Catalogue of Irish Manuscripts in University College Dublin
A 4
ACALLAM NA SENÓRACH
15th and lóth (?) cent. Vellum. 28.5 × 21 cms. Ff. 42 with fly-leaf of paper at end; pagination 5-82, 41 twice, p. [83] unnumbered. Gatherings: 1-4, 5-28, 29-43, 44-63, 64-81, 82-[83]. Pp. 5-6/25-6, 9-10/21-2, 50-51/56-7 (conjugates) and 17-18 (singleton) are smaller than the others; pp. 1-4, 80-81, loose; parts of pp. 56-7, 64-5, cut or torn away without loss of text. Chasm in text after p. 71 (middle of gathering), but no gap in pagination. Double columns except in smaller leaves mentioned above, initials coloured in vermilion, yellow and green. MS covered with pasteboard bound in vellum bearing title 'Agallamh na Seneorach, No. 12'. Press-marks G. iv and A 4 labelled on front cover. Various signatures occur throughout the MS (see below) but none of these is clearly that of the main scribe. Pp. 1-4 and 82 ff. were written by Maoilir Búre (see below), who completed the text at beginning and end for Énrí Ó hAgán. This MS was used by W. Stokes for his edition, Irische Texte IV pt i (1900), but has not been published in full. The stories occur in a somewhat different order from that in the other MSS used by Stokes (see Stokes, p. xii).
Marginalia and notes: (a) 3 i. A rígh Neimhe is dion dhamhsa. 1 q. Ed. by N. Ní Shéaghdha, Éigse 1 (1939) 304. (b) 13 i, 21 i. 'Misi Concobar, O. D.', 'Misi Concobhar O Dhubhda'. Stokes (p. xii n. 1) regards these as scribal signatures. (c) 25 i. 'Fionnduine ma[c] Firbis'. (d) 26, left margin. 'Feardorcha O Maoilechluinn do scriobh sin ~ [word crossed out] ni dho', (e) 40 i (inverted). Baodhlach bidhbadh fa bhreith riog. 1 q. Foll. by 'Misi Donnchadh O C[l]ei[ri]g do [sgríobh sin]', (f) 56 i. 'Mian dom mianaib otig maidin pog don inngi[n] . . .'. 1 q. (?). Foll. by date '1589' and other scribbling, (g) 57 i. Atait tri comhraic am cind. 1 q. Cf. Dioghluim Dána (1938) no. 5. Foll. by 'Misi Morchadh O Maoilechluin do sgribh so'. (h) 60 (between cols of text). Dam bráthir is olc lem. 1 q. (i) 65 i. Manam duid ade athair. 1 q. Repeated in another hand between cols of text on p. 66 and foll. by 'Is misi Niall O Maoilechluind do sgriobh so a nAgallamh na Senorach antaonudh la deag do mhí oc[t]', after which another hand again has written 'As bromanta dhuitsi sin do sgriobhadh ina samhuil so dáit a Néill', (j) Inside front cover: 'Franciscus Wardeus et Franciscus'; 'Benn[acht] agat a Baothdhalaigh'; 'Misi Toirdealbhach'.
Other notes and scribblings, many of which are illegible, occur on pp. 5, 17, 21, 22, 27, 32, 33-6 (two being erased), 37, 39, 41-2, 50, 53, 66, 78, and inside both covers; verso of fly-leaf at end contains list in English of Irish soldiers (?) to whom beds were issued, dated 17 Nov. 1615, and a number of scribblings in Irish, Latin and English.
A slip of vellum folded into two leaves has been inserted loosely into MS. The leaves measure 23.5 cms (approx.) in width and 8.5 cms (tapering to 4 cms at fold) in height. Contents: (1) Grammatical material in Irish. Beg. choir ní beith da comfhocul aigi. Foll. by 'ag so leabhar Uuilliam I C(h)uilemh[ain]' (?), twice, in different inks. The grammatical material is continued on the verso. (2) Ossianic poem. Cidh be ait ambem anocht. c. 15 qq., with continuation (illegible) on verso.
p.
1 . [Acallam na SenÓrach.] Beg. A haithle chatha Comhoir et catha Céide ⁊ catha Gabhra ⁊ catha Ollarbha ⁊ catha Muighe Deilg. Uair issé sin cath déighenach tugsad an Fhían .... Coloured initial A. Colophon p. 4 b m (at point corresponding to 1. 194 of Stokes' ed.): 'Feach ar do láimh dheis aleightheoir. Finis. Ag sin dáibh Énrí Í Agán ~ mo bheandacht féin maille reis da bhar nionnsoigheadh, ~ cuirim fiaghnuisi ar Dhía, gidh nach coir athógbhail mur íhiaghnuisi acht go ro dhengmhála nach me is ciontaighe reis in leabhar so, aolcus atá scríobhtha, acht droch membram agus becán aimsire etca. bar nduine féin Maoilir Búrc'. Ends (p. [83] a m) tainic remhe ar sin go dorus in tsidha ⁊ dorineadh lamhach mas fíor, et cetera. (Corresponds to Stokes, 1. 7658.) Foll. by scribal note: 'Ni bhfuil ann níos mó ré sccríobhadh don cor so, ~ da mbeadh dodhéanmais ar ndíothcell fair'. For MSS and recensions of this text, see N. Ní Shéaghdha, Agallamh na seanórach I (Baile Átha Cliath 1942) réamhrádh.
[83 ] i. Uch is mairg, ón och is mairg. 2 qq. [=Measgra Dánta II (1927) no. 77 qq. 4, 3]. Foll., lower margin, by Mo mhallacht ort a phinn. 1 q. (ed. by N. Ní Shéaghdha, Éigse 1 (1939) 78). Col. b of p. [83] blank.
Fly-leaf (recto), (a) A Dhuibhdhil in ccluinti an gáir. 3 qq. (b) Dercc anocht corr mo cruit[e]. 3 qq. Two-thirds of page blank. Both these poems are from Tochmharc Farbhlaidhe: cf. Ériu 4 (1910) 59-60 and IMN 1928, 42.