408 



evidently a muin, or neck tore, of very elegant proportions. The poor 

 man to whom the children brought home this valuable relic of antiquity 

 brought it to a person in Gorey, v^^ho pronounced upon the nature of 

 the metal, and, it is said, advised the owner to cut it up, in order to 

 conceal it from his landlord or the Crown, and also for the greater facility 

 of disposing of it. It was accordingly chopped into nine fragments, eight 

 of which averaged about three inches long, and the ninth was a small 

 fragment cut off the end of one of the circular hooks, weighing not more 

 than a few pennyweights, and wMch there is reason to believe is still in 

 existence. The fragments of the tore were then brought up to Dublin, 

 and sold to Mr. Eonegan, who committed one of them to the smelting- 

 pot. "When he was waited upon by a member of the Committee of An- 

 tiquities, he at once, and on the most liberal terms, resigned it to the 

 Academy. Since then I have had it repaired, with great success, by 

 Mr. E. Johnson. Its present weight is 12 ozs. 10 dwts. Had the pea- 

 sant who found this article been acc^uainted with the Treasure Trove re- 

 gulations, and brought it in an unmutilated state to the police or to the 

 Academy, he would have received its full value, both intrinsically and 

 according to its state of preservation as an article of antiquarian in- 

 terest. 



It is to be hoped that this notice of the Gorey tore may be widely 

 circulated, in order to prevent the further destruction of valuable articles 

 when found, and in the expectation of inducing the finders of such to 

 bring them under the notice of the Government, or directly to the Aca- 

 demy, where they may rest assured that they will be fairly and liberally 

 dealt with, and moreover be secured from any proceedings which might 

 be instituted against them. 



The second article of this class, H^'o. 2, now before the Academy, is the 

 Belfast Tore-— said to have been found in digging an old ditch in the 

 Co. Down" — which v/as purchased from Messrs. Neill, of Belfast. It is 

 by far the most curious article of its class which has yet been discovered 

 in this country, and substantiates in a most remarkable manner the fact 

 that gold was manufactured in Ireland ; for it is still in an unfinished 

 state, and was probably in process of working when lost. It is a three- 

 leaved gold tore, believed to have been found perfect, but which when 

 brought to the Belfast jeweller consisted of two fragments, and was still 

 further broken up in his establishment; so that when it came under my 

 care it was in a very shattered condition. Under the skilful manage- 

 ment of Mr. Johnson, it now forms a perfect whole, 32 inches in circum- 

 ference, and about f tlis of an inch wide, and weighs 5 ozs. 1 2 dwt. 6 grs. 

 The terminal hooks are circular, as there is reason to believe the v/hole 

 bar was originally. It v/as then cut longitudinally, and hammered out 

 into three fiat bands or ribbons, each about fths of an inch wide, but 

 retaining their > integrity in the centre, as was demonstrated by a careful 

 examination of the sections of the fragments into which it was broken, 

 and which did not exhibit at the junction of these bands the slightest 

 trace of solder or other mode of artificial joining. It was then slightly 

 twisted, and might, in the opinion of our jewellers, be given the same 



