meisrim [Irish]

In Ireland, a unit of capacity, equal to the amount that twelve hen's eggs can hold.

oilmedach

olderb

12

meisrim

12

144

hen's eggs

12

144

1728

sources

1

I ... beg to give one extract to prove the genuine originality of the subject, from among my collection, taken from the Brehon law MS. in the College library, which MS. commences by stating that, “The place for this book is Aicil, near Tara; its time, the time of Cairbre, (Carbry of the Liffey) son of Corbmac, and person for it, i. e., its author (is) Corbmack.” And by the annals, we find that Corbmack lived about the middle of the third century. Meausurement [sic] by grains and egg shells — “Caite tomus o granib agus uigib .i. tri graine in norlach .iiii. iorlaige i mbais, teora basa itrogid, da trogid dec ifertaig, da fertaig dec iforaig da foraig dec itir cumaig dia fod .vi. foirge dia lethed ma beith ina toimsib techtaib. Da lan dec uige circe a meisrim, da meisrim dec in oildeirb, da oildeirb dec in oilmedach.” “What are the measures by grains and eggs? Three grains to an inch, four inches to a hand, three hands to a foot, twelve feet to a fertaig, twelve fertaigs to a forraig, twelve forraigs to a Tirchumaidh (the original Irish acre being three times that of the present) in length and 6 forraigs in breadth, if in the lawful measure; twelve fulls of a hen egg to a meisrim, twelve meisrims to an olderb, twelve olderbs to an oilmedach.”

Owen Connelan, Irish Historiographer to his Majesty.
A List of Irish Manuscripts.
in
The Christian Examiner and Church of Ireland Magazine for 1833.
New Series, volume II.
Dublin: William Curry, Jun. and Co. 1833.
Page 94.

2

Caiti tomus o grainib ogus uighib?

.i. tri graindi i norlach, ceithri orlaighi i mbais, teora basa i troghid, da troigid dec i fertaig, da fertaigh dec i forraigh, da forraig dec i tir cumaile dia fot, se foirrge dia lethet, ma beith ina toimsib techtaib. Da lan dec uighi circi a meisrim, da meisrim dec i nolldeirb, da oilldeirb dec in noilmedach, no i nolpatraic, da ol feine.

What is the measurement by grains and eggs?

That is, three grains are in an ordlach, four ordlach in a bas, three bas in a troigid, twelve troigid in a fertaig, twelve fertaig in a forrach, twelve forrach in a tir-cumhail, 6 forrach in its breadth, if it be of lawful dimensions.

Twelve times the full of a hen-egg is in a meisrim, twelve mesrim in an ollderbh, twelve ollderbh in an oilmedhach, or in an olpatric, which contains two olfeine.

Commissioners for Publishing the Ancient Laws and Institutes of Ireland.
Ancient Laws of Ireland. Volume III.
Senchus mor (conclusion) being the Corus Bescna, or Customary Law, and the Book of Aicill.

Dublin: Alexander Thom, 1873.
Pages 334-337. From the Book of Aicill.

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