68 [Proc, B.N.F.C, 



only half round. I have never seen or heard of another 

 instance like it elsewhere, and unless explained in the way I 

 have endeavoured to do, its shape would be meaningless. 



One other chronological point about these raths is established 

 beyond the shadow of a doubt, and this is, that ancient as they 

 are, some of them at least are not nearly so ancient as the 

 ogam inscriptions, as these have been found in many cases on 

 the long slabs of stone used in covering the crypts or souter- 

 rains, and in such positions that the inscriptions could neither 

 have been engraved nor deciphered where they were placed, 

 showing that these sepulchral monuments had ceased to be 

 respected by the rath builders, which implies an immense lapse 

 of time among a race so unwilling to disturb the memorials of 

 the dead as the Celtic — a period of such immense duration that 

 this archaic cipher may have lost its significance and been 

 replaced by a newer alphabet. 



We have, then, three classes of ancient remains in this 

 country. Can we fix their relative antiquity ? The oldest of 

 the three, the ogam inscriptions, were doubtless the work of 

 the aboriginal Iberian. That the burial tumuli were erected 

 by the earliest tribe of Celtic stock that invaded this country 

 after it had become an island, we may fairly assume, as they 

 seem to have introduced the practice of cremation, which was 

 associated with those monuments. What shall we say about 

 the raths ? While we find barrows, or burial tumuli, in many 

 Celtic countries, this particular form of earth-work seems con- 

 fined to Ireland. Did the idea arise here ? May we assume 

 that the first rath builder copied, in his artificial cave, the 

 natural one of the savage cave-dweller, and added to it his 

 symmetrical superstructure ? As the Iberian was in other 

 ways a pioneer in the march of civilisation, we may owe to 

 him also this most ancient^form of human dwelling. 



Perhaps a fuller examination of these most interesting re- 

 mains than they have yet received may enable us to reply to 

 these questions, and throw some light into those dim abysses 

 of the past, when these islands were still connected with the 



