LWNIO/1

Doubt as to the authenticity of the stone was cast by Rhys/1876, 245--246, in a review of Huebner/1876.

In response Francis/1877, 74-75, states that he has now ascertained that the stone is in the possession of Mr Adam of Middleton Hall, where it was `stowed away against the wall of some outlying sheds'.

According to Anon/1919c, 2b, the stone remained at Middleton Hall until 1919 when `Major Wm. J. Hughes and Mrs Hughes had it conveyed to the Society's custody at Carmarthen'.

The stone is still in the Carmarthenshire Museum.

Macalister/1945, 359: `the top of the stone is broken'.

Nash-Williams/1950, 118: `On the (original) butt is an incised linear Latin ring-cross between oblique bars (one wanting), suggesting that the stone was later reset head downwards'.

Macalister/1945, 360, does not show the oblique bar, but the photo in Nash-Williams/1950, Plate III, shows it clearly.

Jackson/1953, 180--181, who reads the word as AVI, still, however, sees the inscription as Latin, arguing that `the engraver did not attempt to translate Pr.I. avi (by nepos as elsewhere) but simply transliterated it'.

Thomas/1994, 75: 'the avi(/awi/) is a `latin' imitation of avvi (/awi/)'.

The V/A ligature is strange in that the leftwards stroke of the V comes from half way up the left ascender of the A, rather than from the bottom. The V in line 2 has one vertical ascender, with straight serifs, and the right stroke is at a great angle so as to almost be horizontal.

Macalister/1945, 360, argued that the carver started to carve a V at the end of line 2, but, realising there was not the room, started the letter again on a third line.

Nash-Williams/1950, 118: `the ogam inscription...is incised along both angles of the face reading upwards'.

Rhys/1877, 140, argues that the four strokes to the left make up two Ds rather than a C, in spite of the fact that there was no gap to mark the new letter.