Catalogue of Irish Manuscripts in Royal Irish Academy
1269
B iv 1 b
Miscellaneous
This is a miscellaneous collection of fragments of paper and vellum mss. taken for the most part from the covers of various mss. in the course of rebinding. The shelf numbers of the mss. in question have been kept in some instances. The fragments lie loose in box-cover, now marked B iv 1 b, in which B iv 1 236, 236 a, supra, was formerly located. For description of paper fragments judged by cataloguer of B iv 1 to belong to that ms., see supra, pp. 587, 588. The remaining sections of fragments located in box B iv 1 b may be described briefly as follows: —
I.
Two vellum diplomas, deriving from unknown mss., date and provenance of which are not given. They formerly stood together as outer cover of C vi 3 (see 740, supra). They are described here separately, as they are separate fragments, viz. :
A. 11 × 7½. Ff. 2, conjugates. Fo. [1] defaced, bears the name "Domhnall Ua Leigh ( )" on sup. marg. A date "1616" stands fo. [1] v., sup. marg. In later ink between columns, ibid., occurs a number "247 (?)"; fo. [2] v. : "Mo nert fein nil (?) fuluing orm."
Contents : fragmentary text of a moral treatise on Sin; St. Ambrose and St. Augustine are quoted. Opening lines of one paragraph (fo. [1] a i.) run: Auaricia est imoderatus amor mobilis ~ immobilis. Ends (imperfect), fo. [2] v., with the words, somnia tollunt (?) inprudentes.
B. Ca. 12 × 8½. Ff. 2, conjugates. Ff. [1], [2] v. illegible; fo. [2] damaged. The number "32" (that of Stowe ms. C vi 3) occurs (see supra).
Contents: fragmentary medical treatise (unidentified), in a small good hand.
II.
Four vellum fragments from an unknown source, which formerly served to strengthen the cover of A ii 4.
15th (?) cent. Vellum. Ca. 10⅜ × 8. Ff. 6, of which ff. [1], [2] (detached leaves), [3], [4] (conjugates of [6], [5]) are fragments. Chasms after ff. 1, 4. Fo. 5 v. is defaced. Ff. [3]-[6] once formed the two outer diplomas of a gathering.
Contents : Tripartite Life of St. Patrick. Fragmentary text, corresponding to ed. Mulchrone, ll. 29-42, 51-68; 1162-1171, 1187-1204, 1221-1240, 1246-1267; 1267-1286, 1297-1310, 1324-1339, 1351-1366; 1377-1400, 1450-1473; 2230-2283; 2341-2454. The text is that of a Third Manuscript of the Longer Version, being an independent copy of the interpolated text.
III.
Miscellaneous collection of nineteen damaged vellum folios, some fragmentary, deriving from various unnamed mss. ; date and provenance unknown. They may be classed as separate fragments A-H, viz.: —
A. Written area : 5½ × 1½. Vellum fragment, containing on recto an acephalous poem (4 qq., defective), one line of which runs : Muircertach Ruagh rogha an iarsma. On verso occur further lines, among them d'olcus na mbreath berid filid ; only one complete quatrain remains here.
B. 10¼ × 3¼. Two slips of vellum, original writing effaced.
C. 10½ × 7½. Detached leaf, from which a long narrow section has been excised. Writing practically entirely effaced.
D. Originally 10½ × 8¾. Detached leaf, original writing entirely effaced.
E. Ca. 10½ × 8 (written area 9¾ × 7½). Ff. 8, apparently a quaternion. Ff. [1], [8] v. are very defaced. Large square sections of vellum have been cut from four of these leaves, and there are great holes in two others.
Contents : Irish Grammatical Tract, treating mainly of Syntax. Defective and defaced. Text beg. imperfectly, fo. [1] v., gonfud gonfidior mor .c. Appears to end on fo. [8], col. b. Fo. [8] v. bears writing which is now indecipherable.
F. Originally 10½ × 8 (written area 9¼ × 7). Ff. 4 (detached leaves), very defaced and damaged, particularly the fragmentary fo. [1], Ff. [1], [4] v. altogether defaced.
Contents: [Lebar Gabála.] Fragmentary and defective. Introductory biblical section beg. fo. [1] v., [In prin] cip [to creavit Deus caelum] ~ terram.
G. 10¾ × 3. Outer column only, of a vellum folio. Damaged, piece cut away from inner lower half. Text on recto not identified; on verso occurs a poem in praise of poetry and the poet (delbadoir na ndubfooal). Owing to the defaced condition of outer edge of fragment, the quatrains are practically all defective.
H. 7¾ × 3½. Fragment of a vellum folio, bearing on recto twelve defective quatrains of a poem, the twelfth quatrain of which runs: Is he (?) sin doronus res | re Mailseachlainn Sleibhi Mis, etc. Verso bears defaced text in two hands.
All these vellum fragments, I-III, are written in double column.
In addition to the vellum sections I-III, and to the paper fragments of B iv 1, some further paper fragments are contained in box B iv 1 b, viz. : (a) fragments from A iii 4, all in English, the names "George Armstrong" and "McPerson" occurring on scraps; (b) nine small leaves, folded, on which someone practised handwriting in English, taken from the cover of 23 A 3; (c) one leaf (formerly in the possession of
Sir W. Wilde, see letter) containing notes headed "V. British Topography, p. 756, tom. 2," possibly in Charles O'Conor's hand. The B iv 1 fragments (see p. 588, supra) give O'Duibhgeannáin's obit "1696." B iv 1 and A iii 4 fragments each bear the name "George Armstrong."