1808.] 
- scribed as visible in different parts of 
Sweden? fave they been all explored? 
or, can we believe what the learned Ve- 
relius Gn his Runographia Scandica, Ad- 
denda, p. 74,) says on this subject, viz. 
that Olaus Rudbeck had examined above 
twelve thousand of those sepulchral mo- 
numents, and ascertained the ages of. 
them by the strata of earth, &c. that he 
found (or supposed) many to be of .the 
third century, after the deluge! * tertio 
post diluvium seculo congestos depre- 
hendit ;” and some runick inscriptions 
which he discovered in Upland, he de- 
clared to be three thousand seven hun- 
dred years old; another, three thousand 
two hundred years, and one between 
Upsala and Holm, (near Marstad) of 
three thousand years! In an additional 
note, (p. 14), Varelius mentions that in 
his time (the Runographia is dated 1675) 
there were six hundred and_ sixty-nine 
sepulchral tuinulinear Upsala, besides a 
considerable number which had been 
opened or ploughed up. 
Ii. The Jate Sir William Jones was 
much delighted with a Persian work, 
which he perused in manuscript, and 
which he declared threw great hght on 
the primeval history of the human. race ; 
this work is called the Dabistan, and 
that part of it which related to the an- 
cient Persians, may be found in the Asi- 
atic Miscellany, translated into English 
by Mr. Gladwin, of Calcutta: but this 
fragment serves only toexcite a desire for 
the entire work ; ; which, as a learned 
orientalist lately assured me, contains 
many interesting particulars, relative not 
only. to the Hindoos and Parsees, but 
also to the Jews and Christians, and a 
very beautiful translation (into cams 
of some passages from the Hebrew Seris- 
tures. A complete version of the Da- 
bistan in English or Latin, is a literary 
desideratum. 
Ift. Virgil describes Memnon as black, 
“ nigri Memnonis arma.” Philostrafus 
speaks of his dark complexion, and the 
Vhebans declared that he was an Ethio- 
pian; but Pausanias brings him from 
Susa, and, I believe, Suidas also repre- 
sents him as a Persian., Some reconcile 
the ditterence, however, by saying, that 
he was, in fact, an Ethiopian, but had 
extended his conquests as far as Susa in 
Persia; and Divsysius in his Periegesis, 
denominates Susa Meuvoverovasa, OF the 
“ city of Memuon.” Do any Persic, or 
other Eastern manuscripts, record ‘the 
name or actions of this ancient hero, who 
fell by the hand of Achilles, at the siege 
Miscellaneous Antiquities, Kee ‘315 
of Troy, and whose father (Tithonus) was 
brother of King Priam. 
< IV. Inva monthly publication which’ 
appeared seven or eight years ago, (the 
British Magazine) an account was given 
of a small island in Loch Mask, near Bal- 
linrobe, in Treland, called, Baal Morti~ 
mer’s Island, from a strong local tradi- 
tion, that an English nobleman of that 
name was decoyed by his Irish enemies 
into, a boat, under a solemn promise that 
his blood should not be shed.; but that 
they put him into a sack and draveed him 
through the water to this island, and a_ 
solitary bush now marks the spot- where 
his body was interred. Some passages 
from the ‘“ Myrroure for Magistrates, fs 
confirm the tradition that Earl Mortimer 
was treacherously murdered by the “ Trish 
Kernes ;” and a gentleman who lately 
madea tour in Ireland was so much struck 
by the romantic situation of the island, 
‘the beauties of the lake, and its surroun- 
ding scenery, that he spent several days 
in taking views of the whole. What credit 
is to be given to this tradition? Has the 
island ever been explored? what do the 
Trish antiquaries say upon the subject of 
Earl Mortimer? 
V. I was informed by. the same tra- 
veller, that, likewise in the vicinity of 
Ballinrobe, are two immense cairns, or 
heaps of stones, supposed by the com- 
mon people to cover treasures of 'consi- 
derable value; but which, no doubt, are 
the sepulchral monuments of ancient 
warriors. These cairns have not yet been 
opened, buta similar tamulus was cleared 
away about thirty-five or forty years < Ago, 
by order of Lord Altamont, a quantity 
of human ‘bones found in a stone chest, 
or cottiny. some weapons, and a skull, in 
which was a lump or kiob of brass, seme- 
what resembling the pommel of an old- 
fashioned sword, and this, from a consi- 
derable fracture visible in the skull, was 
supposed to have been the instrument of 
death. 
VI. In that beautiful picture called 
the “ Madonna della Pesce,” “ Our Lady 
of the Fish,” (of which Mr. Twiss has 
given a very fine engraving in bis Travels 
through Spain,) Raphael, by a strange 
kind of anachronism, introduces young 
Tobias presenting to the Virgin Mary, 
ov rather to the infant whom sbe holds, a 
fish, which, according to.the rules of pro- 
portion, would not be much above a foot 
in length. Now, this celebrated painter 
availed himself oF that hcense which we 
allow to poets on many occasions, and- 
perhaps said, “ Ut poesis, pictara sit.” 
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