Letters in English from the Reverend Donald MacQueen of Kilmuir (died 1785) to the Reverend Dr John Stuart of Luss.
Scope and Contents
The letters consist of the Reverend Donald MacQueen’s detailed comments on the Reverend Dr John Stuart’s Gaelic translation of part of the Old Testament with antiquarian excursi including quotations in Gaelic. The principal such excursi are noted below.
(i) Letter of the Reverend Donald MacQueen to the Reverend Dr John Stuart, dated 27 November 1777. Genesis. Cf. ‘Transactions of the Gaelic Society of Inverness’, volume 36 (1931-1933), page 364. (Folio 1.)
(ii) Letter of the Reverend Donald MacQueen to the Reverend Dr John Stuart, dated 5 April 1778. Exodus. ‘Transactions of the Gaelic Society of Inverness’, volume 36 (1931-1933), page 370. (Folio 4.)
(iii) Letter of the Reverend Donald MacQueen to the Reverend Dr John Stuart, dated 16 January 1779. Exodus. ‘Transactions of the Gaelic Society of Inverness’, volume 36 (1931-1933), page 373. (Folio 5.)
(iv) Letter of the Reverend Donald MacQueen to the Reverend Dr John Stuart, undated. Exodus. (Folio 9.)
(v) Letter of the Reverend Donald MacQueen to the Reverend Dr John Stuart, dated 6 August 1779. Leviticus. ‘Transactions of the Gaelic Society of Inverness’, volume 36 (1931-1933), page 378. (Folio 11.)
(vi) Letter of the Reverend Donald MacQueen to the Reverend Dr John Stuart, dated 7 March 1780. Exodus. ‘Transactions of the Gaelic Society of Inverness’, volume 36 (1931-1933), page 393. (Folio 13.)
(vii) Letter of the Reverend Donald MacQueen to the Reverend Dr John Stuart, dated 22 March 1780. Exodus. On offering first fruits of harvest as expiation. (Folio 17.)
(viii) Letter of the Reverend Donald MacQueen to the Reverend Dr John Stuart, dated 15 May 1781. Leviticus. Sun-worship. (Folio 21.)
(ix) Letter of the Reverend Donald MacQueen to the Reverend Dr John Stuart, dated 29 august 1781. Numbers. ‘Transactions of the Gaelic Society of Inverness’, volume 36 (1931-1933), page 388. (Folio 24.)
(x) Letter of the Reverend Donald MacQueen to the Reverend Dr John Stuart, dated 15 November 1782. Numbers. Water deities. (Folio 25.)
(xi) Letter of the Reverend Donald MacQueen to the Reverend Dr John Stuart, dated 14 February 1783. Numbers. Curses. ‘Gaoth tua mho Ifun uar’, 1 quatrains: on drowning of Iain Garbh Mac Gille Chaluim. ‘Transactions of the Gaelic Society of Inverness’, volume 36 (1931-1933), page 391. (Folio 28.)
(xii) Letter of the Reverend Donald MacQueen to the Reverend Dr John Stuart, dated 25 February 1783. Numbers. Charms. ‘Mha Abraham er Sliamh Pessaline’, 1 quatrain: charm for toothache. ‘Transactions of the Gaelic Society of Inverness’, volume 36 (1931-1933), page 392. (Folio 32.)
(xiii) Letter of the Reverend Donald MacQueen to the Reverend Dr John Stuart, dated 25 April 1783. Deuteronomy. Sanctuaries. ‘Transactions of the Gaelic Society of Inverness’, volume 36 (1931-1933), page 390. (Folio 33.)
(xiv) Letter of the Reverend Donald MacQueen to the Reverend Dr John Stuart, dated May 1783. Deuteronomy. (Folio 35.)
(xv) Letter of the Reverend Donald MacQueen to the Reverend Dr John Stuart, undated. Joshua. Battle deities. ‘Clan Ranaild ar bhordaibh bristah’, 10 lines: “A fragment of MacLeod’s Execration against the Clanranalds”. With a note in Donald Mackintosh’s hand. (Folio 36.)
(xvi) Letter of the Reverend Donald MacQueen to the Reverend Dr John Stuart, dated 17 November 1784. Joshua. With treatise of sun-worship in anonymous hand. (Folio 37.)
Dates
- Creation: [Before 1785.]
Conditions Governing Access
Normal access conditions apply.
Conditions Governing Use
Normal reproduction conditions apply, subject to any copyright restrictions.
Extent
40 Leaves ; Folio and under.
Language of Materials
Undetermined
Arrangement
40 folios.
Custodial History
Formerly Gaelic MS.CXL.
The letters were sent to Sir John Sinclair 6 January 1807, and subsequently listed as box 4 by the Highland Society of Scotland.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Presented, 1925, by the Faculty of Advocates to the nation on the foundation of the National Library of Scotland.
Separated Materials
For the Reverend Dr John Stuart’s covering letter, see Adv.MS.73.2.14, folio 1. See also Adv.MS.73.2.25, folio 25.
Bibliography
Parts of the collection were copied with other letters in 1785, and extracts from this transcript were published by its owner, Fred T MacLeod, in ‘Transactions of the Gaelic Society of Inverness’, volume 36, pages 346-407, with a biographical sketch of the Reverend Donald MacQueen. Some references to the transcript were noted on the originals.
- Title
- National Library of Scotland Catalogue of Manuscripts
- Author
- National Library of Scotland Archives and Manuscripts Division
- Description rules
- International Standard for Archival Description - General
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
Repository Details
Part of the National Library of Scotland Archives and Manuscripts Division Repository
Archives and Manuscript Division
National Library of Scotland
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