Marsh's Library, MS12
Overview
Marsh’s Library, MS 12, is an early eighteenth-century Irish manuscript, written in the hand of the poet Úna Ní Bhroin. Due to the difficulty of classifying the manuscript, it is usually omitted from the library catalogue. It entered the collection around 1728, and was probably donated by Jonathan Swift, whose distinctive signature appears inside the front cover. The manuscript details “domhain eile”, or “another world” in Irish, which the author claims to have visited in visions.
Legends
MS12 has been associated with several strange phenomena. For instance, in 1731, the manuscript was reported as missing for just three days, before reappearing in its proper place. On January 12th, 1790, it was reported by one librarian that “the book became exceedingly hot to the touch” without explanation, and “remained so for around six hours”. Between 1807 and 1833, MS12 went missing again for unknown reasons.
A large body of oral legend has grown up around the manuscript, although this is not well recorded. Several readers have claimed that the manuscript’s page count can vary considerably, with some suggesting supernatural causes. No evidence has ever been found for such a phenomenon. These supernatural associations may stem from the period when Jonathan Swift had the book in his possession. One story claims that Swift was plagued by a demon he had accidentally summoned in the opening years of the eighteenth century. This entity is said to have followed the author for years, until he was almost driven mad with frustration. The legend states that Swift gave MS12 to Marsh’s Library in exchange for a magical tome, with which he banished the demon. Similar stories relating to the occult were popular in the Dublin of the eighteenth century. It is unknown whether Swift ever had any interest in magical practices.
The Author
It is not known precisely when Úna Ní Bhroin was born, although she is known to have been writing from about 1670. Aside from MS12, and several poems, little of her writing survives. Ní Bhroin is often remembered as Tadhg Ó Neachtain’s mother, and her creativity is rarely recognised. However, the contents of MS12 display an incredible imagination far ahead of its time.
Contents
MS12 details the visions which Ní Bhroin claimed to experience. The first describes a “land of giants”, or “tír na bhfathach”, high atop a mountain range. Later “visionaries” who claim knowledge of Downalla have argued that this passage refers to the Gualloir Ilveran, a supposed kingdom of “ogres”. The second and third “visions” in MS12 describe “islands of dogs and men” and “the country of Madalang”. Similar images have been reported by other authors on Downalla. In particular, it has been suggested that Swift may have been inspired by the animal imagery in these episodes to create the Houyhnhnms of Gulliver’s Travels.
Portrait of Jonathan Swift, completed around 1718.
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