Fians, Fairies and Picts by David MacRitchie
page 56 of 72 (77%)
page 56 of 72 (77%)
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the doorway of the Brugh, it may be mentioned that "the same kind of
ornament appears on a stone found amidst a heap which had once been a 'Pict's-house' in the island of Eday, Orkney;"[77] and that in Orkney, also, there has been found, in an underground house, a large stone "saucer," or "tray," resembling the two shown in the ground plan of the Brugh. (There appears to be no settled opinion as to the uses of those "saucers.") In connection with the identification of this mound with the "Brugh of the Boyne" of ancient Irish history, the following remarks may be quoted. The Rev. Father O'Laverty, in the Journal of the Royal Society of Antiquaries of Ireland (December, 1892, p. 430) thus observes:-- "In his very valuable work, _The Boyne and Blackwater_, Sir William Wilde appears to me to have used convincing arguments to prove that _Brugh-na-Boinne_ ... was ... on the left bank of the Boyne, convenient to the ford of _Ros-na-righ_ (Rossnaree) at Knowth, Dowth, and Newgrange. To Sir William's arguments one point only was wanting: the old name had disappeared.... It is now more than thirty years since I went to Newgrange for the special purpose of investigating that matter. I explained to Mr. Maguire, then of Newgrange, and to his son, that _Brugh-na-Boinne_ signified 'the town, or dwelling-place, on the Boyne,' that the word _Brugh_ would assume the modern form _Bro_, as in Brughshane (pronounced Broshane), and many other townland names, and that _na-Boinne_, 'of the Boyne,' would probably cease to be used as unnecessary at the site. I need not say that I was greatly pleased when they informed me that the field in which is the mound of Newgrange is called the _Bro-Park_, while in the immediate vicinity are the _Bro-Farm_, the _Bro-Mill_, and the _Bro-Cottage_." [And also, they might have |
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