I.

HISTORE NOTETH PROBABLD N SO YAN E SITUATIO EARLIEE TH F NO R ESTABLISHMENTS AT , TO THE FOUNDATION OF THE BENEDICTIN TWELFTE TH F O E H D MONASTER CENEN E - TH N YI TURY W. , Y SKENEF B . , ESQ., LL.D., F.S.A. SCOT. In April 1873 I laid before the Society some notes on the history of the ruins at lona, in which I stated that none of the existing buildings reach further back than, the twelfth century. Since then the Duke of Argyll has been carrying on during the last two seasons a great work in connection with these ruins. It consists in the main of clearing away the rubbish which encumbered the ruins, disclosing the foundations of these buildings previously hidden unde e sodrepairind th ran , g such parts of e wallth s wera a precarious n ei o arrest s e proces s statea th t o f s ,o s decaywore bees Th kha . n carrie unden d o e superintendencth r r M f eo Eobert Anderson, and has been done in a most thorough manner, and with excellent judgment and good taste. I think every one who takes an interes thesn i t e ruins owe debsa f gratitudo t e Dukth Argylf o eo t r fo l the munificent spirit and sound judgment which have characterised this positioa grea n i tjudgo w nt wor no restorationef e k o bette ar e f w o r d an , the precise nature and extent of those ecclesiastical buildings of which the remains still exist. In the notes I laid before the Society I dealt ex- clusively with the ruin n theii s r historical aspect I trus t tbu ; thae th t NOTES OF THE EAKLY ESTABLISHMENTS AT IONA. 331 Society wile lon er e lfavoure b gr Andeiso M y b d n wit n accurata h e account of the work lie has accomplished, and with the architectural history of the ruins. The object of this paper is to lay before the Society some inquiries I have been making into the history and probable situa- tion of the earlier establishments during a few weeks which I spent in the island this summer. For the history of the earliest establishment—that founded by St himsalf—we must look mainly to the two lives of the , the earlier one written by Cummin the White, who was of lona from e seconth Adomnand y s b abbod an ;9 wa o 66 t o o frot 9 wh , 7 m67 65 704. The earlier, therefore, was written between sixty and seventy latee yearsth rd writtean , nhundrea d years, afte t Columba'S r s death. From these lives it appears that the , or monasterium, con- structe t ColumbS y db a containe a smald l cour plateolar o sidte eon n o , of which was the church, ecclesia or oratorium, with a small side chamber or exedra communicating with it; on another, the' guest chamber or hospitium thirda n refectorye o ; ,th , havinfireplaca t i n gi focusr eo d an ; the fourth having the dwellings or domus of the . Separated from it, and at a little distance, was the cell of St Columba, called his domus, tuguriolum, or hospitiolum, in which he sat during the day when engage writingn di slepd an t ,night whole a t encloses Th .ewa d withina rampar r fenceo t , calle vallume dth . Now the first observation I have to make is, that it seems quite clear tha whole th t thesf eo e buildings were mad f woodeo . Adomnan tells su of twelve curraehs or hide boats which, in his own time, came from Sheil, in Lome, loaded with oaken timber—roborese materise—for repairine gth monastery—ad nostrum renovandum monasterium (B. ii. c. 46). He also tells us that St Columha sent some of Ms monks to procure bundles of rods—virgarum fascicules—to build the guest chamber—ad hospitium construendurri—and that they returned wit a vessel—navis—loadeh d with rods (B. ii. c. 3). Again, in mentioning St Columba's cell, on one occasion adde h , buils s thaboardf wa o t t i t r planks—tuguriolso o tabulis . 19.c suffulto. i ) . (B . churche th Theo t s ,n a Bed e tell s thae churcu s th t t Lindisfarnea h , founde monky db s fro me sevent th lon n i a h century entirels wa , y built k wood ooa d fcovere an , d with reeds, afte e manne e th Scotr th f so r 2 33 PROCEEDING SOCIETYE TH F SO , DECEMBE , 1875R13 .

—quam tamen (ecclesiam) more Scottorum, non de lapide, sed de robore secto totam composuit, atque harundine texit (B s .there i iii. 25)t c .I -. fore a fair inference that the parent church in lona was constructed in the same manner.. These wooden churches were common at the time in . Cogitosus, in his life of St Brigid, written in the ninth century , n elaborata give s u s e descriptio e woodeth f o nn churct a h Kildare. They also existed in England, and are frequently mentioned in Doomsday Book churce Th .G-reenstea t ha thesef o d e Essen ,dan i on s xwa preserves ha d their structure composes i t I hale . th ff do trunk f oaksso , " split through the centre, and roughly hewn at each end, so .as to let them intbottome th osil a t d inta l an ,o a topplane whico th t , t ka h thee yar secured by wooden pegs. Adomnan calls the church at lona " Oratorium," and this term, as Petrie shews (Bound Towers, pp. 147, 340), was applied to the Duirtheach or oak building, in contradistinction to the Daimhliag or stone church. note ar , e thereforeW o expect , t thay remain e monasteran tth f o s y founded by St Columba should be found in the Island, and, in order to ascertain its site, we must refer to such indications as these lives afford us of its relative situation to other fixed localities. It has generally been assumed tha t Columba'sS t monastery must have been same inth . e situa- tion as the existing ruins, but this by no means follows. These ruins are the remains of the Benedictine monastery founded in the end of the twelfth centuryshale w ld finan , d that such indication derivn ca e e w s sa lined ol fro se poinm th differena o t t t locality. Beside monasteriume sth , or monastery e buildingth d an , s composin , Adomnagit n mentions some other localities connected wit t hwhici h appea havo t r e been withoue th t vallum. These aree cowhousth - r bocetumo e e granarth , r horreumyo , and the kiln or eanaba; and though he does not mention specifically the e implieh mill t ye ,s e grindin there talk th e h s one f th s o e swa a f , go corn—frugum trituratio; he also tells us of a cross, the base of which had been inserted in a millstone—in molari lapide; and the mill is mentioned existinpoes d a ol t Columba'prefac e mS e th n th callegi n i o et e y dth sda "Altus Prosator," published by Dr Todd in his "Liber Hyrnnorum," part ii. Now, therlonan i s ei littlnorth-wesa ,y ewa presene th f o t t ruinsd an , e westh roae tn th sido d f leadino e g fro landing-place mth norte th ho et NOTES OF THE EAKLY ESTABLISHMENTS AT' IONA. 333

cud of the island, a bog called the Lochan Mor, which was once a small sheet of water, but is now drained, and which is separated from the road by an embankment on the east side. From, the south-east corner of this Locha smalr no l lake flow a sstream , small now t whicbu , h must have been larger befor e s lakdrainedth ewa e , toward e soutth s h east, crossin roae gth d til t reacheli presene sth t ruins, whic t hpassei e th n so north side, and continues an eastward course till it falls into the sound of lona at a small bay. This stream is called Sruth-a-Mhuilinn, or the Mill s moutit t a Streame smal h y th Port-a-Mhuilinn ba d l an ; e Milth lr o , Port. Pennant, who visited the island in 1772, after describing the existin gsmale ruinsth d l risinan , g grounwese th thef o tn do m callee dth Abbot's Mount, says, " Beyond the mount are the ruins of a kiln and a e lake mill r pooth Th o egranary s . l thaneawa d t an i tr, servey la t di turberye nativesbehinde th drained w th s fuee i f t no th I ,o d l s i .; an , appears to have been once divided, for along the middle runs a raised way pointin hillse th o .gt North fro e granarmth y extend narrosa w flat, with a doubl a singl sidee ed on dike an other ,d fos n th diko an es n o e" (Pennant's "Scotland," vol. iii . 295).p Johr D . n "Walker describeo ,wh e sth island about the same time, says, " Ou a plain adjoining the gardens of the Abbey surrounded an , smaly db l hills, ther vestigee ear larga f so e piecf eo artificial water, which has consisted of several acres, and been contrived bot pleasurr hfo utilityd ean s bank It . s have been t formeintar oy b d perceivy walks ma thoug d boga remaine u an ;eth w yo ,broaa h no f o sd green terrace passing through the middle of it, which has been raised considerably above the water. At the place where it has been dammed up, and where are the marks of a sluice, the ruins of a mill are still to be seen" (Walker's "Essays, . e foundation115)p " Th .e granar th f o s y and kiln can still be traced on the north side of the stream, where it issues from the Lochan, and between, it and the road. I thin existence k th smale th f le o lak mill-streamd ean onle th , y place suitable for the purpose, fixes the situation of these buildings at all times, with whatever materials they were constructe t Columba'S n i d s daysn importand a affor an s , u d t means f ascertainino e relativth g e positios monasteryhi , f o n . Now, Adomnan tell s thau s t Ernae th n priest, who was the uncle of St Columba, and presided over the monastery he had founded in the island of , now identified with 334 PROCEEDINGS OF THE SOCIETY, DECEMBER 13, 1875.

Eilean e nGarvelocath f Naomho e hon , islands, feeling himself seriously ill, desired to be taken- back to St Columba, who set out e landing-placfoth r n loni e o t meea t him, while Ernan, though feeble, attempte o walt d k without assistance froe landing-placth m e to meet Columba; and when there was only twenty-four paces be- tween them, Ernan suddenly died before Columba could see his face, and e grounbreatheth e fel h o t s dlasl s hi da (Bt s i . . t 35)ic I . . obvious tha place th t e where the nearlo ys y metwherd an , e Ernan died, must have been somewhere on the road between the landing-place and St Columba's cell and monastery, and not far from a point about half-way between them. But Adomnan adds, " that on that spot a cross was raised befor e kiln—ant dooe th eth f o r e januam canabas anothed an , r whert eS Coluraba stood whe (Ernane nh ) expired, which remain unto this day.e Th " landing-plac hele b kilfixe s s e dkile a y th nwa th dn f ma i d point d ean an s; about halfway between the present landing-place and St Columba's cell, the latter must have been situated nearly as far to the north of the point wher e mill-streath e m crosse e landing-plac th e roa th s a d souts wa e h of it, and equally far to the north of the present ruins. I think another passage assists us in fixing pretty nearly where the cell must have been situated. The ground ascends after the road leading to the north end islane oth f d leave mill-streae sth m til t reachei l sa poin t abou a quartet r of a mile to the north of it, when it again descends, and here the ground over which the road passes reaches its highest elevation. Now, Adom- nan tells us that St Columba's cell or tuguriolum was built on the higher ground—quod in eminentiore loco erat fabricatum (B. iii. c. 23)—which I think places'it on this highest point. Another passage points to the monastery being at the same distance from the granary on the mill- s deathhi stream f o , y Columb.da .Oe th na goes wit s attendanthhi , Diormit e granarth o t , r horreumyo , whic nearests wa h , whic entere h s and blesses, and finds two heaps of winnowed corn in it. He then leave granare sth goed y an monasterys e th bac goino n t i k d g an ,"rest s at a place halfway—media via—where a cross, which was afterwards erected standins i d an , thio g t observee s b roadside—i e dayy th n ma ,d o n margine vise—where he sat'to rest a while" (B. iii. c. 24). This descrip- tio s quitni e inapplicable e presenth o t , t ruins, whice e closth ar ho t e granary; but on the west side of the road, exactly halfway between the NOTES OF THE EAKLY ESTABLISHMENTS AT IONA. 335 granarhighese e ruinth th f d so groundye tan parth f placa o t s i , e called Na Crossa ne greaMorth r to , crosses, whic r EeevehD s say s spokei s n largo tw e site f th e crosseo s oa f s long since removed. From this place he ascends the hill that overlooks the monastery—monticulum monasterio supereminentem (B. iv. c. 24). In another place he calls it "mons qui nostro monasterio supereminet onle . 24)c Th y . i risin. . "(B g ground near the present ruins that this could apply to is the little eminence called Torabb; but Adomnan's name for such a small eminence is Colliculus or littl en anothe i hilld an ; r passag e plainlh e y mean e hilth sl called Dun-i by the term monticulus—sedens in monticulo qui Latine Munitio r EeeveD d san ; •magnrightl4) . c ay . dicituii says . ,(B r Munitis i o Adomnan's equivalent for the Gaelic Dun, and he sees from it in the nort hdensa e rainy cloud rising froe seamth , whic e coulh d onle yse f Dun-io p to , from whice e th th , n ho intercepta se e e th vieth sf wo north. Moreover oldee th , r life from whic passage hth takes ei " s monnha - tem monasterio supereminentem " (c. xix.), and the term " mons," could neve appliee rb mera o t de rock like Torabb. ¥rom this hil returne h l s to the monastery and sits in his cell—descendens monticulo et ad monasterium revertens sedeba tugurio,—on i t oldee th s r a rit—ds lif eha e illo descendens montd monasteriua t e e m reversus, sedeba n celli . t (c a xx.) The expression " reversus " shows that this eminence was not on his direct way from where he sat to the monastery, and it was at some little distanc anothen i e s froa , mrit passag telle eh tha s sainse u th t t sat on the top of the mount which overhangs the monastery at a little dis- tance from it—in cacumine sedens monti i nostrsqu o huic monasterio emi- nus supereminet (B. i. c. 24). It can only have been the hill called Dun-i, which could not be said to overhang the present ruins, but is quite appropriate when applie positioa o t d n nearl yquartea e milth a f o et o r north of them. From the point where the road attains its highest ele- vation groune th , d slopes down wit hconsiderabla e gradien e seath , o t t where there is a little sandy bay called Port-an-diseart,— the harbour of desertum,e th t verabovd no r fro burying an yd , shoree fa it meol th n a , - ground,-^now called Cladh-an*diseart, the cemetery of the desertum. The above passages indicat e highesth e t point wher e roaeth d passee th s sa t Columba'S sit f eo s dwellin cellr go , ane monasterth d y whic t hoveri - looke probabls dwa y situated betwee t aiinburi e dth y ing-groundy ma I . 33.6: PROCEEDING TIIF SO K SOCIETY, DECEMBER IS, 1875.

further illustrate this by two passages which are not in Adomnan. The e prefacth n tho i t one e s i e".Altu s Prosator," whic I hhav e already alluded to :—" On a certain day Columcille was in Hi or lona, and -no witexceps onm ehi wa h t Boithin fooo n d thed d an ,excep yha sieva t e fulf oats.o l ' Then said Columcill o Boithin,.t e ' Illustrious gueste ar s coming to us to-day, 0 Boithin,' and he said, to Boithin, ' Eemain thou here ministerin guestse th Muiline o gth t , o whilsmill].r t tooe no [o g H kI t' upon him his burden from off a certain stone that was in the Eecles (or monastery), Blathna t i existnames it upo s d i s san t t ,n i i wa t still d an , that division is made in the Prointig (or refectory, literally dinner-house.) However, his burden was heavy to him, so that he made this hymn in alphabetical order, from that place until he arrived at the mill" (Lib. Hymn hym. e 220)p . Th .ii n . consist sixteef so n stanzas alphabetican i , l order. This show t sa som thae s mileth twa ldistanc e froe th m monastery othee Th r. passag s fro i ee " m Martyrologth f Donegal,yo " and is taken from.the.Introductioa to an equally old poem, the Amra Columcille. " It was after this that he .(Columcille) resolved upon the celebrated abstinence, viz., to take nettle pottage as food for the future without dripping, so that the impression of his ribs through Ins woolle ne sid e sandf th tuni o th es seey whic y b n wa cba yni s i h I or lona, when he used to lie on it at night" ("Mart. Don." p. 165). This seem e littl refeo th t s eo t r sand calley yba d Port-an-diseart, imme- diately below; where I place the monastery. Assuming, then, that the position of the. landing-place, and that of the mill, kiln, and granary are tixed points direce th , t inference from these passage , tha sis t Columba' S t s woodeceld an l n monastery were situate dquartea norte mila th f o hro et presene oth f t ruins, -and betwee hile nth l called e westDun-d th n an , o i the old burying-ground, called Cladh-an-Diseart, on the east. Before I leave the times of St Columba I wish to notice another locality which appear connectee m o st d wit s historyhhi . Tha islante parth f do t which lies to the west of the monastic establishments, and extends froni Machae norte Dunith th o n h t r -plaino o r , wher t appearei s from Adom- arable th cultivater n eo na d ground was calles i , d Sliabh Meanachs i d an , a sort of prairie ground, consisting of rocky hillocks with boggy ground and grassy hollows between them. In one of these hollows, due east from the Lochan Mor, 'or lake, .that fed the mill-stream, surrounded on EARLE NOTETH F YS O ESTABLISHMENT IONAT SA . 337

the north east and south with small hillocks which shut off all view in these quarters, while there is an uninterrupted view towards the west extending e islanth e distanceTiref o t dth o a foune n ei se th ove e s -i , th r datio f whano t seem havo st e bee nsmala l oval "building termed Cabhan Cuildeach, abou fee1 2 t tbroa5 1 lon y dgb outside measure. This i s usually translated the Culdee's Cell, but allow me to say at once that there is no such word in the Gaelic language as Cuildeach, signifying a Culdee. It is a modern introduction into our Gaelic dictionaries, emanat- fro g nonsense in mth e about Culdees factn wor e i adjectivn a , Th , dis . e formed from Guil, a corner, and signifies angular, sequestered, remote, ann thii d s sens t i ecorrectl y e appearHighlanth n i s d Society's dictionary. Neither is CaWian correctly translated. Caban is a small hut or cell, and is merely the English word cabin, but Cabhan is a small hollow plain, in which sense it is opposed to hillock as glen is to moun- tain, e.g., Cnoc no cabhan, Binn no glenn (O'E. Diet, voce Cabhan). Cabhan Cuildeach means simply the sequestered hollow. Now Adornnan tell thas su t ColumbS t a soughwilde th f Tonso n i t placa e more remote from men for prayer, and that when he began to pray he suddenly beheld vera y black hos f demono t s fighting agains witm hi th iron dartse Th . contest was maintained throughout the entire day, and he could not drive them from the island until the angels of God came to his aid, when the enemy in terror gave way and fled to Tiree (B. iii. c. 9). It is not difficult to understand how, if the saint passed an entire day fasting and in prayer in this remote place, a black thunder-cloud with its occasional flashes of' forked lightning might have appeare likm hi a ehos f o demont do t s shooting iron darts, who fled to Tiree when the oloud passed to the west, but the term which Adomnan applies to the place, " remotior locus," is almos a translatiot f Cabhao n n Cuildeachn i s e statewa H t .i s " saltibus," which I have translated " in the wilds," by which probably the Sliabh Meanach r uncultivateo , rougd an d h groun s meanti d d an , the flight to Tiree, when the demons were driven from the island, indicates the very situation. It no doubt was simply a place for solitary prayer, with some protection from the weather. After Columba's death, which took place in 597, the monastery founded appearm hi havy o t b s e been repaired, darin e timth g f Adomnaneo s a , he himself tells us in a passage I have already referred to, with oak Y VOL . PARXI .. TII 338 PBOCEEDINGS OF THE SOCIETY, DECEMBER 13, 1875.

timber brought from Lome; and Hector Boece seems for once to report a rea r learl evenou yn i historyt , whe e tell h ns tha u s t Malduin, King of Scots, repaire e churcdth lonn hi a dedicate t ColumbaS o dt , which had. become ruinous (lib. ix.) r Malduifo , s kin nf wa Dalriada go , from whenc wooe broughts eth dwa 690o ,t fro3 , mwhil67 e Adamnan became Abbo 679n i t . Twenty-four years aftes deathi rfine hw d Cilline, sur- nained Droichteach, abbot from 726 to 752. This epithet Droichteach n adjectiva s i e formed from Drochaid a ,bridge d signifiean , s Bridge- builder—literall yincline m Bridgera I e thino d t w an ;k m hi tha o t t may attribut e constructio causewad th e ol e th yf no whic h traversee th s Locha nalss i Mor oe termeH . Tighernacy db h " Ancorita anchorite r "o , and his object may have been to give more easy access to Cabhan Cuildeac solitarhfor y lif prayereor . The beginning of the next century seems to have brought this earliest Northme e burns th establishmeny wa b tt i yeae 2 nth r80 endn n a I o . t t —a gentibus combusta est,—by which the entire destruction of the wooden buildings seems to have taken place; and four years after, in 806, the whole community, 68 in number, was destroyed. [Familia lae occisa est gentibus, i. Ix. octo]. So complete was the destruction, and so exposed had islane th d becom ravagee Northmene th th o et f so , tha abboe th t t appears to have resolved to remove the chief seat of the Columban Order from lona to Kell Meathsin obtaine whicof ,had hhe dgrana yeartwo t s previously. The Irish annalColumbaw buildine ne th se 7 recorth nf 80 g o housn di e t Kells—coiistmctia o novce civitatis Columcill 4 Cenannusn i 81 n i d an , tole war ed that " Ceallach, abbo f lonao t , having finishe buildine dth g e churcoth f t Kellsha , resign e abbacyth s d Diarmiciusan , , disciplf o e Daigri, is ordained in his place." Ceallach died the following year, and the monastery of lona appears to hav« been reconstructed, as in 818 Diarmicius goes to Alban with the shrine of St Columba, no doubt e dedicatiofochurcw th r ne o hima t h f o n. "We have als n almosoa t contemporary notice of the monastery at this time in the metrical life of St Blathmaic, slain by the Danes in lona in 825, written by Walafrid Strabo, who died in 849. We here find Blathmaic superintending a com- munity of monks, whose dwellings or " tecta" are mentioned, and celebrating befor altare eth , which implie existence sth churcha f eo . churcw ne No he wwhicth h Ceallach erecte t Kellda buils f stonswa o t e NOTES OF THE EARLY ESTABLISHMENTS AT IONA. 339

and not of.wood; for we find that when it was destroyed by the Danes expressls i t i 0 92 yIrise n saith i hn d i annal havo st e bee ndaimhliaga r o stone church, and I think it is a fair inference that the new church with s monastiit c buildings erecte t lonada abou same th t e time was likewisf eo stone. This monastery appears'to have remained entire yeatile lth r 986, fata t ewhe similame e t earliei n th o that rf o rt wooden onethan I .t tolde yearar ,e H,w y Columcilli lais d wa Dane waste th Christman y eso b s e religiou th e churc f th o f o 5 sh 1 e abbo werth d Eve d an et an slain, . Westere Th n Isles passe t thida s time Norwegiae unde th e rul f th ro e n Earls of Orkney, who possessed them till the year 1064, when by the death of Thorfinn, Earl of Orkney, they fell to the Crown, and we then find that the " Huense ccenobium " or monastery of lona, which had long lain waste s rebuilwa , y Margaretb t e queeth , f Malcolo n m Cannmor; and in the following century the Benedictine monastery was founded, of which the ruins still remain. stone Th e which succeeded that buil f wooo t d seem, there- fore, alway o havt s e same th bee e question i nth place d an n; arises, were they situated where the wooden monastery had been, or where the subsequent Benedictine monaster s builtwa y ? Now, n i examining the existing ruins of the monastery there is a peculiarity which at once strike se nort th one n he Abbe O .th sid f o ey Church thers i e a littl t a e distance froa chape t mi l abou fee3 3 tt6 broad 1 lon y b g. This chapel, however t parallee Abbeno th s i o ,t y l s Churchha t bu , an entirely different orientation. It points more to the north than the Abbey Church, and the deflection amounts to no less than fourteen degrees. If the chapel was connected with the Abbey Church it is im- possibl accouno et thir fo ts variation t i existe f i t d bu , befor Abbee eth y Churc quitn builts ca ee wa h w ,understan d thae orientatioth t e th f o n lattehavy ma er been made quite irrespectiv e formerth f eo . Alongside of this chapel, the foundations of a building have also been disclosed, which have the same orientation. Then, on the west of the ruins, is a building which goes by the name of Columba's house, and it also has nearl e samth y e orientation thn O e .sout e hpresen th sid f o e t ruins, there is, at a little distance, another chapel called St Mary's chapel, and it also has the same orientation. I cannot doubt, therefore, that these buildings forme de establishment th par f o t , which precede e Benedth - 0 34 PROCEEDING SOCIETYE TH F SO , DECEMBER 13, 1875.

dictine monastery d thaan , t their different orientation enableo t s u s discriminat e remaine oldeth th wha e f r ar o st monaster y froe th m e Benedictinruinth f so e foundation. What confirms this conclusio, nis that the recent excavations have laid bare the foundations of what seem to have bee ne wes th cell e waltn o th ssid f l o eenclosin e presenth g t cloisters likewisd ,an enclosurn ea e projecting beyond, and factn i , , enclosing the cell usually considered to be the sepulchre of Saint Columba. These are obviously parts of one set of buildiugs, and the former contains two monumental stones, bearing each an Irish inscription of the same char- e Eelio oldesth tw c n i e tGrain acteth d belongins a ran , perioa o t g d certainly anterior to the foundation of the Benedictine monastery. I con- sider, therefore, tha stone tth e buildings, which succeede woodee dth n mon- asterbeginnine th nintn ye i th hf g o century, were erecte soute th n hdo side mile oth f l stream verd e presenan ,y th e sit nearlf th o e tn yruinso t bu , having a somewhat different aspect to the east. After the stone monastery was laid waste by the Danes in 986, we find that the establishments at Kells and lona were almost uniformly s calle e undewa Coar e th headd o f Columeilleon o rb wh o , wh d an , .governed both monasteries e tilyeath l r 1156, whe e Coarbshith n f po Columcill s transferrewa e Abboe th o f t Derrydo t . During this period feweo n Kell s r sthawa n eight times oftes burnta nd restoredan , , tilt li appears to have been almost entirely destroyed in 1156, so that both monasteries must have 'remained during this timvera n eyi dilapidated condition. Now, at the period that Queen Margaret restored the monastery t lonaa , Domnail Eobhartaiga u l e Coarth f s Coluimcillbo wa h e from 1062 to 1098, and we find, from the charters of Kells, that some time prior to 1084, Masechnall, King of Ireland and Doornail the Coarb of Columcille, with all the religious of Kells, both priest, bishop, and con- fessor, granted for ever Disert Columcille in Kells, with its garden, to God and devout pilgrims Columbad ol ; e thath s ti n foundatio Kellt n a pros s-wa bably converted into a desertum or hermitage for pilgrims, and after this functionarw granne a t y appear t Kellssa , called, between 109 1114d 8an , the'Coar f Diserbo t Columcille betweed an , n 113 USOCennnd 8an a Disert or the head of the Desertum; but at the same time a new func- tionary likewise appear s called i t lonaa so 1164n i ,wh , Disertache ,th , rendered by Dr Beeves, president of the Desertum ; and, I think, there NOTES OF THE EAKLY ESTABLISHMENTS AT IONA. 341 reasonably ma fore e w , y conclude e ,sam th tha t ea t time Coare th , f bo Columcille conjunction i , n wit Kine hth f Irelandgo , converte oldee dth r Columban establishmen t Kella t s int a oDesertum e likewiseh , conn i , - junction with Queen Margaret, converted what had been, the wooden monastery, or oldest establishment at lona, into a Desertum for pious pilgrims, which henceforth bore that name. It only remains for us now to consider a point which has perhaps as t greatgreateno f i , r interest, tha preceding—thae nth e truth e f situao t - tion of the sepulchre of Saint Columba. The old lives throw no light upon its exact position. Columba, they tell us, died on the steps of s bode churchs carrie hi th n celle alta wa yd th n ow i ,ran d ,s -thi o wher e obsequieth e s were observed three daynightsd an s ; when these were finished, Cummin merely tells us that the body, wrapped in clean fine linen s buriewa , d wite reverencedu h o whict , h Adomnan adds e sepulchrplaces th that wa n i dt i ,wore e Th dprepare . useit r d dfo by Adomnan, whic I hhav e translated sepulchre s "i , ratabusta," which is unknown, either in classical or medieval Latin, and there is obviously some corruptions puzzleha t e transcriberi th ds a ,e MSS. th t f o sbu , Eustum is used for a sepulchre, and Ducange has Busticeta, which he defines "sepulchra antiqua," " sepulchra in agro." Cummin, however, gives us another indication. He says that Saint Coluniba was wont to sleep on the bare ground, having for his pillow a stone which is placed to this day at his sepulchre as a monument; and Adomnan, who alters the expression "nudam terrain" to "nudam petram," repeats verbatim the expression regardin e stongth e pillow,—the words are, "titulus monu- menti. "s memoirhi Adomnaf o d , en than e tadds th "whil t a , e h e (Columba) was yet abiding in the flesh he was often surrounded by a halo of heavenly light, and even after the departure of his s^ul from the tabernacle of the body. Until the present day the place where his sacred bones repose—locu o ipsiuqu sn i ssanct a pausant ossa—a s beeha sn clearly show certaio nt n chosen persons, dot frequentlt e ceasb hno o t e y visited by holy angels and illumined by the same heavenly light" (lib. iii. c. 24). Adomnan died in 704, and the only additional statement we have as to place toth e where Columb burieds Bedeay wa b s ,i , twenty-seven years after, who talkinn i island,e th f go , adds, " wher , Columbehe buries ai d ;an " 342 PROCEEDINGS OF THE SOCIETY, DECEMBER 13, 1875. again, whe mentione nh e insulath s r monastery whic"n i reposee hh n si the body" (Lib. iii. c. iv.). The positioe traditiosepulchrs th islan e hi o t th f n o s dn a ni thus e i s given by Martin in 1716. " Near to the west end of the church, in a little cell, lies Columbus his tomb, but without inscription; this gave me occasio citdisticho ne t eth , asserting that Columbu buries swa Irelanddn i , at which the natives of lona seemed very much displeased, and affirmed that the Irish who said so were impudent liars; that Columbus was once placeburiee th thad n an d,i t none ever came from Ireland sinc carro et y away his corpse, which, had they attempted, would have'proved equally vain and presumptuous." This cell still exists. It projects from the west cloiste e churche walth abous th i f o f ld o r weste an , clos d 10th en to J et feet lon 7y gb | feet wallbroade aboue Th sar . t 3J s feeha t t highi t bu , been partly excavated, as the interior floor is somewhat below the surface surroundine leveth f o l g ground t containi d stonan o , stw e cists alongside each other exactld an , y alike, fee witw tfe spaca h betweea f eo n them. Now, undoubtedl e existencyth f thio e s tradition, connectin buriae gth l of Saint Columba with the cell, would have great weight, if we had reason to suppose tha sepulchre tth Sainf eo t Columb neved aha r been disturbed, and that his body had always remained in the same place, but we know for certain tha contrar casethathe tthe and t,brea a ther the ywas kin was e continuit traditioe lass th hi t f restinyo o t s na g place beginnine ; th fo n ri g e nintoth f h centur fine yw d tha s bone hi tbeed s ha shi n f takeo t nou grav enshrinedd an e . This custo f menshrinino remaine gth f saintso s appearsevente Saxoe th th f o n i sh d churc centuryen e earls a hth s y,a eighte anth n di h centur becamt yi e very frequen Irelandn i t . Betweee nth e Iristh h0 annal80 d an s yea6 recor72 r d fifteen instances worde Th .s used for th# process of enshrining are—Commutatio, Conductio, and Positio. The shrines were of two kinds. They were either chests made of stone, or they were of wood sheathed with plates of silver and gold, so as to be more easily carried about, and were always placed above the pavement of the c*hurch, and in the sanctuary near the altar. As an instance of a stone shrine, I may mention that of St Cuthbert. He died in 687, and was buried in a stone coffin in the church of Lindisfarne; and bones hi 8 s wer69 n i edeposited takean p nlighu a dn i t ches sarcophagur to s —in levi area—and placee samth en di spot t abov bu ,e pavementeth — NOTE SEARLE OFTH Y ESTABLISHMENT3 34 IONAT SA .

d suprse a pavimentum othee Th r. kin f shrindo thus ei s mentionen di Irise th h Annals:—799, Positio reliquiarum Conlaid (Bisho f Kildarepo ) n Serii r ocuoi n s airgid; 800, Positio reliquiarum Eonain filii Berich in Area auri et argenti. The place where these shrines were deposited was always on the floor or pavement of the church near the altar. Cogitosus, who wrote the life of St Bridget between 799 and 835, tells us that the shrines containing the relics of Conlaid, Bishop of Kildare, and St Bridget, e righ werlefth d n tan te o side f thso e e churcaltath n f ri Ealdare ho — In qua gloriosa aniborum, hoc est, Episcopi Conlaed et hujus virginis S. Brigidse corpora, a dextris et a sinistris altaris decorati, in monumentis posita ornatis vario cultu aur t e argenti t e gemmarui t e pretiosm i lapidis, atque coronis aurei t argenteise s desuper pendentibus, requiescunt (Messing . 99)p , . No fine ww d that whe e woodenth n monasters ywa destroye 802n d i Cellac d an , abboe hth t transferre e headshith de th f po communit f Columcillyo Kellso et bonee th , f Sainso t Columba seemo t have been taken up from his sepulchre and enshrined at the church of Sabhal Patrick on the shore of Loch Strangford; for in the Book of Armagh, writte 807n havei e ,w , " Sabhal Patrici conductit es i iub o marti- t ossuurues md i m Columbcill Brittannia/e d o ' and n 818,i , Diarmaid, appointes abboe th wa lonaf o o t n wh roo,di f Cellachmo , goe Albao st n or Scotland wit e shrinhth f Columbcilleeo consecratioe doubo th n , r fo t n stonw ne e e churchoth f r EeeveD pointe.s sha t thadou o t thertw e ear word martra,s i Irisn e si on he relic a e saintth use whicf r Th so d fo . h always meane abov th bonese sth in ed si notican , e Latinized martirum. The other is minna, which is used for objects associated with the saint and sanctifie s user Eeevehi D .y b d s give lisa f them o s t u s , eighteen ni number. The chief were his Cross, his Psalter called the Cathach, and the cowl or Culebadh ; and the white tunic he wore was still preserved in lona in Adoinnan's time, and considered sacred (ii. 45). This word minna is usually translated reliquaries. Thus when Diarmaid goes to Alban in 8 wit shrinee 81 hth Annale th , s tel thas lu followee withh 9 t e 82 th , n di minna or reliquaries of Columcille. Now we have some very valuable information as to the fate of the shrin f Saino e t Columb e metricath n i a t lBlathmaic S lif s f eo wa o wh , martyred by the Danes in lona in the year 825. It was written by Wala- frid Strabo, who died in 849, and is therefore a contemporary account. 344 PROCEEDINGS OF THE SOCIETY, DECEMBER 13, 1874. He tells us that the brethren, fearing an invasion of the Danes, and knowing tha shrine th t e wouln objeca e f desirdb o t o theet m froe mth rich metal whicn si t hwai s sheathed—pretiosa metalla queis Sancti sancta Colmnbss ossa jacent, took the shrine—area—fro s place—dmit e suis sedibus—which was no doubt on the pavement of the sanctuary near the grounaltare placed th hollowea n ,an o n d i dt i d tumulus under thick sod— arcam tollentes tumulo terra posuere cavato cespit densob su e . Martin, as we have seen, describes the supposed sepulchre in 703 as .a cell; a differen d ha t ti t appearancbu e fifteen years earlier, when Sacheverell visited the island in 1688. He says, " On the west end stands the monu- men f Columbuso t apostle th , f theseo e parts founde d e abbeyan ,th f o r, t presena t nothing but.a ruinous hea f stonespo ideo gived n f ao an ,s su what it was originally." In his time, therefore, the cell, with its stone cists, was hidden under a cairn, and it only requires to have been covered with turf to answer perfectly to the description given in the life of St Blaithmaic of the "tumulus'" in which the shrine was hidden. It would thus present the appearance of a small natural hillock outside the church, mighd an t well baffl e searcDanese th eth f ho . "Wha e tpro addth -o t s babilit f thiyo s bein e plac th g , tha e recenis e th t t operations show the appearanc therf eo e having bee communicationa n fro interioe mth thio rt s s easit cel t t a lend thad ,an t ther s sufficienei t space betwee cisto stw e nth for a person to pass between them. Sacheverell goes on to say—" At the en f thido s monument stand littla s e chapel whicn i , probables i t hi n i , those ignoran devoud an t t ages, they offered e theith r rfo prayerd Go o st blessings of the gospel conveyed to them by this holy person." The recent excavations have disclose foundatione dth n oblona f o sg building, about fee5 1 tfee1 1 lon t y gb broad , projectin e celth g l f o fro e wesd mth en t partld an y enclosinpaves i t I d wit. git h stones amond ,an ge theth e mar two with Irish inscriptions already mentioned. The Irish Annals tell us tha n 829i t , four years afte martyrdoe th r t BlathmaicS f mo , while eth shrine appears-to have been stil lonan li Abboe ,th t Dairmiad wen Scoto t - land with the minna or reliquaries of Collumcille, and took them back to Ireland in 831! In 849 his successor, Innrechtach, is mentioned as taking minnae th reliquarier o Irelando st . Whethe Annale th r s omi notico t t e the intermediate return of-the reliquaries to lona, or whether a part only was taken each timetheyiel 8 difficuls i 87 t ,i n i saythas o e t u lt t th t; bu EAltLE NOTETH F YS O ESTABLISHMENT 5 34 IONAT SA .

Serin, or shrine of Columcille, and all his minna or reliquaries, were brough Irelano t t o escapt d foreignere th e r Northmeno s e shrineTh . , therefore, had remained for fifty-three years in its concealment; and I am inclined to think that the two stone cists which are not sunk in the eart grounde t placelevee th hbu th f n o ld o , were intende concealo t d e th , one the shrine with the bones, the other the minna or reliquaries. It is true that the Pictish Chronicle tells us that, in his seventh year, Kenneth M'Alpin removed the relics to the church he had built at Dunkeld, that is, about 850; but this was probably only a small part of the bones taken e purposfoth r f consecratino e e churchth g r Dunkelfo , d claimee th d possession of only one bone, as appears from an incident in 1500, told by Mylne in his Lives of the Bishops. The shrine doe t appeasno havo t r e remained lon e Irelandn gi th n i s ,a life of St Cadroe his parents are said before his birth to have prayed at the shrine of St Columba. The scene of this life is undoubtedly in Scot- land; and as Cadroe died in 976, this must have been about the begin- centurye ninth f go . Thehavy yma e knel d prayean t d befor shrine eth e little th en i chapel foundatione th , f whico s h have just been discovered. The last mentio chapee th Magnuf e no lth appearn i e sb Barefoot'o st s saga. It is said that he came in 1098 with his army to the Holy island, that is, lona, " and gave quarter and peace to all men that were there, and to the property of every one. It has been said that King Magnus opened the little church of Columba, but did not go into it. He immediately locked the door, and said that no man should be so bold as to go in there, and that church has never been opened since." It is difficult to understand this of an ordinary church; but the expression is " the little kirk of Columba" —Kolumba kyrku hinni liotlu—and if the chapel enclosing the shrine is meant, the awe and reverence with which King Magnus regarded it is natural enough e Sags writteTh wa a. n abou e yeat th i t r f i 1221 d an , remained closea hundre r fo d d year r nearls fo after d y an ,twent y sub- sequent to the founding of the Benedictine monastery, the entrance was probably filled up, and this will account for their being no appear- ance of an entrance from the outside in the foundations of the enclosing walls which have been uncovered. How reliquariee lon e shrinth th gd ean s remaine islane o d th e n dw i nofine tdw knot tha reliquariee bu w tth ; s wer Irelann ei 1090n di d an ; 346 PltOCEEDINGS OF THE SOCIETY, KECEMBEK 13, 1875.

the testimony of all who mention the shrine in the following century is. thes Downpatricthan wa i t i t Irelandn ki . In the old tract called the " The Amra Coluimcille," we find the follow- ing statement. " In Dun or Downpatrick, again, some say the resurrec- tio Columcillf no poee saids th ha tes a —wil , be l lonar (o i ) H wit multitude hth martrs it f relics)r eo a(o , Of which was Colum, beauteous disciple : He went out of it at last, blesses hi S s oi dthan church.Du t " St Berchan, writing in the end of the eleventh or beginning of the twelfth century, repeats, as a saying of St Columba— My grac Hn eo y without crime, And my soul in Deny, And my body under the stone Under which are Bridget and Patrick. The story tol O'Donnely d b sam e th lifes en hi o authority, n w ,i ho o t s a , it came there, is this: —" Manderus, son of the King of Denmark, and leader ofleea f Northmenf o t , wastin e northergth n part Britaif so n with d firean sword, came to lona, and began searching for treasure. They found the shrin whicn ei t e relicColumbS th h f o s a were ,boar n tooo t ki d shut, Irelano t an thein y do wa rd openet findinbu , dit g nothin t bonegbu d san ashes e wavee th th cas s thren d ,y so shub t wa an wt intt t i i seaI te oth . shor t Downpatricka e e Abboth d t an ,havin g foun , andit d , being instructed by a divine revelation that it contained the relics of St Columba, place t daloni g with t thos Patrict Bridget.S S f eo d t kan Bu " who Manderus was, or when this is supposed to have happened, there is nothin showfirse o gt store Th t th par. naturas yf i o t l y enoughma d an , destructioe contai refeth y o reat e ma r n th shrinet e i l f th fatn o d f eo an , stone th e monaster Danee th y 986n ysb i . If, then, the small cell was the place where the shrine containing the bones of Columba was placed in 825, it will sufficiently account for the traditio buries nveneratioe wa thath dr e h ttherefo d n sups an , paihi -o dt posed sepulchre; but the question still remains, Where was the grave in which Saint Columba was buried before his remains were taken up and enshrine d? Dr Eeeves seem thino st k tha t oughi lookete n i b r o t t dfo NOTES OF THE EARLY ESTABLISHMENTS AT IONA. 347

the Eelic Drain, which he considers was the cemetery of the monastery; but I doubt very much whether it ought to be so regarded. It is situated at a considerable distance to the south even of the present ruins, and is entirely unconnected with incline themm a ratheI s think.o de t wa ron t i of those ancient regal cemeteries simila thoso rt e which existe Irelandn di , and eight of which are enumerated in the tract on ancient royal cemeteries containe "e Lebath n dh'TJidhri.i a rn t seemI " havo st e been principally devote e buriath f kingo o t dl d greaan s t o strangert chiefs d an f , o s distinction who visited the island, while the members of the community appear to have been usually interred within the precincts of the monastery. The oldest traditions regarding it seem to view it as existing in the island before the establishment of this monastery by St Columba. Thus, our old chronicles statinn i , g that Kenneth M'Alpin dieo 860n s di wh , wa , buried in lona, add, " where the three sons of Ere, Fergus, Loarn, and Angus, were buried." These were the founders of the Dalriadic Colony upward sixtf so y years befor arriva e t Columba eth S e annalf th o l d san , of Ulste confirmatiod ad r t whei o nt n relice theth y4 s tel tha78 s u ln i t of the sons of Ere were removed to the royal cemetery of Tailten in Ire- land. Fordun also tell s thasu t Gabhran, Kin Dalriadaf go dieo n di wh , 560, was buried in Eelic Grain, which shows the belief in his day. It ma saie yb d tha cemeterye name th th tf eo , " Eelic wellGrain,e th -d "an known legen t GranS f do , which gav againss i e, it ris o tt e thi s ideat bu ; I would remark that this story make firss sit t appearanc Irise th hn ei lif e t ColumbaoS f , whict oldeno rs hi tha tente nth h century oldo t s I .f i , wat onlsno y entirely unknow Adomnano nt opposes i t s narrahi bu , o dt - tive. According to the legend, St Gran was one of the twelve companions of Saint Columba, and sacrificed himself to remove a difficulty when the churc firse th lonf tfoundeds h s o perso awa wa d nan , burie islande th n di . Now Adomnan describinn i , Sainf o e deate tg on th Columba' f ho s monks, termed Brito, adds this expression, as having been used by Saint Columba r fraternit—"wh ou e firs f th o t s oi y thas die ha n tthidi s island;"— qui primuc insulha san i apumortuus no d t (libd es san , . iii7) . .c Adomnan never once mentions the name of Gran or connects it with the cemetery e twelv.th d lisf o Furtherol te e companionth n i , f Saino s t Columba appended to a MS. of Adamnan's life the name of Oran does not appear. The first mention of Eelic Oran is in a gloss on the 348 PROCEEDINGS OF THE SOCIETY, DECEMBEB 33, 1875. metrical calendar of Angus the Culdee. In it Odhran or Oran, appears on 27th October, and the gloss states that he was " either Odhran, the priest of Tigh-Aireran in Meath, or Odhran of Letracha-Odhran Muskerryn i , an f Icolumkilleo d f Eeli, o tha , cis t Odhrain lonan i " . This identifies the Oran of Eelic Grain with Odhran of Letracha-Odhran n s deatIrelandi hi s i recordehd e Irisan ,th hn di annal s havina s g taken plac n Octobei e r 548, fifteen years before Saint Columba landed in lona. He was of the race of Dalriada, and churches in Dalriada may well have been dedicated to him. How the legend of Saint Oran first arose it is impossible now to tell; but I am inclined to think that whe Christiaa n n chape erecteds e cemeteryth wa l s aften i wa r t i , this legen d gaineha d d therefors groundwa d ean , dedicate himo dt d ,an that henc nams ehi e became connected wit royae hth l cemetery. Munro, in the elaborate description he gives of Eelic Oran in the year 1549, never once hints at any tradition of Saint Columba being burie. it n di s grav hi o loo t r If ee fo k, withi ar then e e precinctw ,th ns hi f o s monastery indees a , implies di Bede'n di s statement tha tn bod s i " hi y yla insulae th r monastery, situatioe th origina e muse o t th " w o f ng o t l woodea monastery, whic hI conside havo t r e been abou quartea t mila f o er north presene oth f t ruins herd an e,I thin shale kw l find somt A e . tracit f eo the old burying-ground there, now called Cladh an Diseart, there are two pillar stones about five feet high and three feet apart, and at one time a third stone lay across the top, forming a cromleac-like structure, though probably it more resembled a rude entrance gate than a true cromleac; and in this burying-groun founds dwa , some years ago ver,a y remarkable stone, now placed in the Abbey Church. It is figured below and shaped some- what lik heartea , abou foo1 t inche7 t s lonfoo1 inchey 3 gt b s broa 4d Jdan inches thick havind an , g incised upoIrisn a ht ni oldese crosth f so t type. I think my friend, Mr James Drummond, was the first to suggest that Saint Columb havy aema been buried here thad an ,t this ston havy ema been the pillow stone whic places "a tituluwa hs da s monument!.n ow I " that when I examined this stone last summer I was greatly impressed with the idea that it corresponded wonderfully in shape, size, and ap- pearance with whae mighon t t expec e pilloth t w ston havo t e e been, when used as a monument, and the result of my examination of the whole NOTES OF THE EAELY ESTABLISHMENTS AT IONA. 349 subjec o persuadt s i t thae m e t Saint Columba's original monasters ywa situated here, thae pillath t r stone marke e positio s th dgrave hi f o n, and that thi sal n i ston ls probabilitewa e stonyth usee pillowa eh s da , and which was after his death placed at his grave. I may add that there seem havo st e been some connection between this burying-groune th d dan cell wher eI conside s shrine forme hi rs keptth r ewa s alsi fo r, o called Cladh lain, or the burying-ground of Saint John, and at the west end of the building which projects from the cell, and which Sacheverell calls a chapele remainth a cross i ,f o ss whic e s knowe i hnamth th f y o eb n Cross of Saint John.

Stone foun t Cladda Disearn ha foo1 ( tinche 7 t s long).