Provenance
Discovery: The ogham inscription was first discovered in 1845 by Roger Downing of Bantry. Macalister (1945, 59) states: ‘It was afterwards seen and copied by Windele. Brash, visiting the stone later, found that only a week previously a man had flaked off most of the inscribed angle with the back of an axe. The two copies made before this act are almost identical so far as the number of the scores goes, but otherwise they cannot be reconciled; nor can any sense be extracted from either of them ’.
Findspot: Coomleagh East (An Com Liath Thoir), Co. Cork, Ireland (ITM Coordinates: 509969, 553646)
Last recorded location(s): In situ in pasture, on a gentle south facing slope on the north side of the valley of the Mealagh River. It was visited and 3D recorded for the OG(H)AM project in September 2022.
Support
National Monuments Service SMR ID: CO106-064----
Object type: Pillar
Dimensions: H 2.00 × W 1.10 × D 0.60 m
Condition: An ogham inscription is recorded on the upright stone of a pair of standing stones (SMR ID: CO106-035----, the second lies prostrate 1.m to E). Macalister (1907, 31-37; 1945, 59) noted that there was a row of three stones here in 1879, reduced to two by 1907. The inscription was badly damaged some time after 1845 (Macalister 1945, 59). When examined by Fionnbarr Moore in the early 1980s only traces of the final four letters of the inscription could be discerned and while these were quite vague they were undoubtedly ogham scores (Ronan 2009, 154).
Inscription
Text field: The inscription is found on the lower half of the stone on the right angle of the eastern face, and runs up from near the ground to a height of 1.1m. However, most of this is illegible with only traces of ogham strokes remaining.
Letters: The ogham strokes have been scored, which is consistent with many Cork ogham inscriptions. The surviving consonant strokes are small, measuring from 2 to 4cm in length.
Edition
Transcription: .. ? ..ṬẸṬẠ
Critical apparatus:
- Macalister (1945, 60-61) read: [AN]M [SAINA M]A[Q] OGAL[A] M[UCOI] TEMOCA
References
- Brash 1879, 158-159
- Macalister 1907, 31-37
- Macalister 1945, 59-61
- Ronan, Egan, and Byrne 2009, 153-154