Provenance
Discovery: Site of church and old burial gound (An Cheallúnach or An Lisín). ‘This circular enclosure crowns the summit of a low, but prominent, hillock between Dingle Harbour and Trabeg. The site of a church is shown within the enclosure on the OS maps, but nothing more is known about this, and no visible trace survives. Children were still being interred there in the burial ground in the mid-19th century’ (Cuppage et al 1986, 264). The current stone enclosure, approximately 30m in diameter, is ‘only a portion of the original site and was built up by a landlord sometime prior to 1847’ (Devane 2001, 372). Macalister (1945, 151-7) recorded nine ogham stones collected together at the site. These ‘mostly pulvinar’ or oval water-rolled boulders resemble the stones found ‘about 6 miles away’ at Minard storm beach. Eight of the nine stones are now arranged in a circle within the stone enclosure with the ninth placed centrally. Apart from the ogham stones, the interior consists of ‘a confusion of low mounds and low upright grave markers’ (Cuppage et al 1986, 264). A tenth ogham stone was discovered in the 1980’s but only protrudes 24cm above the ground (Devane 2001, 369). This stone was found lying loose in a dyke near a ditch, presumably that of the enclosure (Cuppage et al 1986, 265) in the townland of Ballintaggart and barony of Corkaguiney. First mentioned by Vallancey in 1804 (Macalister 1945, 151).
Findspot: Ballintaggart (Baile an tSagairt), Co. Kerry, Ireland (ITM coordinates (approximate): 446414, 599691)
Last recorded location(s): in situ (inside modern enclosure)
Support
National Monuments Service SMR ID: KE053-033008-
Object type: Pulvinar pillar
Material: Sandstone
Dimensions: H 0.56 × W 0.36 × D 0.13 m
Condition: Macalister (1945, 153) states it is ‘in fairly good condition.‘
Inscription
Text field: Up-top-down
Letters: Pocked in even, well-spaced strokes. Macalister (1945, 153) states ‘The second Q is broken and faint’. ‘The last two scores of the Q and the 1st four of the I have broken away but their former presence is confirmed by earlier accounts’ (Cuppage et al 1986, 265).
Edition
Transcription: SUVALLOS MAQQI DUCOVAROS
Commentary
This is one of the inscriptions listed by McManus (1991, 93-94) to be among the earliest in the corpus showing no trace of vowel affection. It may be dated to the first half, or the early second half, of the fifth century (McManus 1991, 97).
The personal names in this inscription are not to our knowledge attested elsewhere. They may contain the prefixes so-/su- ‘good’ and do-/du- ‘bad’ (McManus 1991, 105).
References
- Bennett, Uí Shíthigh, Holden, and Ó Bric 1995, 18
- Cuppage 1986, 264-266
- Devane 2001, 369-372
- Macalister 1945, 151, 153
- McManus 1991, 65, 93-94, 97, 108