batch.motif.celtic-irish-heroic-romances-of-ireland-leahy-gutenberg-l2185-l2315
---
record_id: batch.motif.celtic-irish-heroic-romances-of-ireland-leahy-gutenberg-l2185-l2315
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/celtic-irish/project-gutenberg/heroic-romances-of-ireland-leahy.md
passage_locator:
label: MAC DATHO'S BOAR / INTRODUCTION / MAC DATHO'S BOAR / FROM THE BOOK OF LEINSTER
(TWELFTH-CENTURY MS.); lines 2185-2315
start: '2185'
end: '2315'
translation: Heroic Romances of Ireland
notes: Generated from OpenAI Batch run motif-extraction-2026-04-28-high-priority;
human review required.
canonical_text:
quote: ''
summary: Mac Datho arranges for rival armies from Ulster and Connaught to arrive
at his palace on the same day. They are seated in opposite halves of a large house.
Mac Datho's great boar is slaughtered for the feast, and the guests dispute how
it should be divided. Bricriu proposes that the division be awarded according
to martial deeds. Ket of Connaught claims the right to divide the boar and rebuts
several Ulster challengers by recalling earlier defeats or injuries connected
with them.
language: English
quote_policy: summarized
literal_observations:
- id: obs:1
text: Mac Datho deliberately arranged for two armies, one from the East and one
from the West, to arrive at his palace on the same day.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: obs:2
text: Mac Datho greeted the arriving armies outside and welcomed them into the court
of the house while saying he was not prepared for two armies at once.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: obs:3
text: Inside the palace, one half of the house received the Ulstermen and the other
half received the men of Connaught.
category: setting
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: obs:4
text: The house is described as large, with seven doors and fifty couches between
each two doors.
category: attribute
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: obs:5
text: The Ulstermen and the men of Connaught are described as enemies, with a long-standing
war between the two provinces.
category: relationship
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: obs:6
text: Mac Datho's boar was slaughtered for the guests after being nurtured for seven
years on the milk of fifty cows.
category: object
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: obs:7
text: The passage says venom must have entered the boar's nourishment because it
caused many men of Ireland to die.
category: attribute
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: obs:8
text: The feast includes the boar, forty oxen as side dishes, other food, and the
son of Datho acting as steward.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: obs:9
text: Ailill asks Conor how the boar should be divided, and Bricriu proposes that
the test should be each warrior's deeds in war and strife.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: obs:10
text: Several warriors exchange boasts or counter-boasts about earlier killings
and battlefield encounters.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: obs:11
text: Ket of Connaught rises above the assembled men, hangs his weapons higher than
the others, takes a knife, stands beside the boar, and challenges anyone to equal
his renown.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- id: obs:12
text: Ket answers Laegaire's challenge by recalling that Laegaire once fled after
being pierced by a spear and leaving his charioteer, chariot, and horses behind.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
- id: obs:13
text: Ket answers Angus by recalling that he once hurled back a spear that cut off
the hand of Angus's father, Lama Gabaid.
category: speech
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
- id: obs:14
text: Eogan, son of Durthacht, steps forward to oppose Ket, and Ket says he has
seen Eogan on an earlier day.
category: sequence
evidence_refs:
- ev:9
figures:
- id: fig:1
name_or_label: Mac Datho
description: Host of the palace who arranges the simultaneous arrival of the two
armies and welcomes them.
role_refs:
- role:1
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: fig:2
name_or_label: Ulstermen
description: One of the two enemy hosts seated in half of Mac Datho's house.
role_refs:
- role:2
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: fig:3
name_or_label: Men of Connaught
description: One of the two enemy hosts seated in half of Mac Datho's house; Ket
belongs to this group.
role_refs:
- role:2
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:6
- id: fig:4
name_or_label: Conor
description: A leader among the Ulstermen who comments on the boar and assents to
the proposed test for division.
role_refs:
- role:5
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: fig:5
name_or_label: Ailill
description: A speaker associated with the Connaught side who asks Conor how the
boar shall be divided.
role_refs:
- role:5
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: fig:6
name_or_label: Bricriu, son of Carbad
description: Speaker who proposes that the boar be divided according to each warrior's
deeds in war and strife.
role_refs:
- role:6
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: fig:7
name_or_label: Mac Datho's Boar
description: Great boar slaughtered for the feast; it had been nurtured for seven
years on the milk of fifty cows and becomes the object of the division dispute.
role_refs:
- role:4
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:4
- ev:6
- id: fig:8
name_or_label: Son of Datho
description: Steward of the feast who welcomes the guests and speaks about the provision
of food.
role_refs:
- role:3
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: fig:9
name_or_label: Ket, son of Mata
description: Connaught warrior who claims superior renown, stands beside the boar
with a knife, and challenges others to equal him.
role_refs:
- role:7
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- ev:7
- ev:8
- ev:9
- id: fig:10
name_or_label: Laegaire the Triumphant
description: Ulster warrior who objects to Ket dividing the boar but sits down after
Ket recalls a prior defeat.
role_refs:
- role:8
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
- id: fig:11
name_or_label: Angus, son of Lama Gabaid
description: Fair-haired Ulster warrior put forward as a better warrior than Ket,
then sent back after Ket recounts the maiming of Angus's father.
role_refs:
- role:8
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
- id: fig:12
name_or_label: Eogan, son of Durthacht
description: Fair-haired Ulster warrior and lord of Fernmay who steps forward near
the end of the passage to contest Ket's priority.
role_refs:
- role:8
evidence_refs:
- ev:9
- id: fig:13
name_or_label: Lama Gabaid
description: Father of Angus; Ket says he cut off Lama Gabaid's hand by hurling
back his spear.
role_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:8
- id: fig:14
name_or_label: Senlaech, Munremur, Lugaid, and Celtchar
description: Named warriors who participate in the exchange of boasts and counter-boasts
before Ket's challenge.
role_refs:
- role:9
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
roles:
- id: role:1
label: host and planner
assigned_to:
- fig:1
basis: Mac Datho plans the same-day arrival of both armies, greets them, and admits
them to his house.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: role:2
label: rival guest-hosts
assigned_to:
- fig:2
- fig:3
basis: The Ulstermen and the men of Connaught occupy opposite halves of the house
and are explicitly described as enemies.
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: role:3
label: feast steward
assigned_to:
- fig:8
basis: The son of Datho is identified as steward to the feast and welcomes the guests.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: role:4
label: contested feast animal
assigned_to:
- fig:7
basis: The boar is slaughtered for the feast and becomes the object whose division
is disputed.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:4
- ev:6
- id: role:5
label: leaders in the division discussion
assigned_to:
- fig:4
- fig:5
basis: Ailill asks Conor how the boar shall be divided, and Conor comments on the
boar and assents to the test.
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: role:6
label: proposer of martial test
assigned_to:
- fig:6
basis: Bricriu states that the proper test for dividing the boar is each man's record
in warlike deeds and strife.
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: role:7
label: claimant to division by superior renown
assigned_to:
- fig:9
basis: Ket hangs his weapons higher, takes a knife, stands beside the boar, and
demands that an equal in renown be found or that division be left to him.
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- id: role:8
label: challengers to Ket's claim
assigned_to:
- fig:10
- fig:11
- fig:12
basis: Laegaire, Angus, and Eogan each step forward or are put forward against Ket's
claim to divide the boar.
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
- ev:8
- ev:9
- id: role:9
label: boast-exchange participants
assigned_to:
- fig:14
basis: These named warriors exchange statements about prior battle-deeds and slain
opponents.
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
symbols:
- id: sym:1
label: contested boar
literal_form: Mac Datho's slaughtered boar set before the feast-guests for division
associated_figures:
- fig:7
- fig:9
- fig:2
- fig:3
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- ev:4
- ev:6
- id: sym:2
label: milk of fifty cows
literal_form: Milk used to nurture the boar for seven years
associated_figures:
- fig:7
taxonomy_refs:
- milk
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: sym:3
label: large divided house
literal_form: Palace-house with seven doors and fifty couches between each two doors,
divided between rival hosts
associated_figures:
- fig:1
- fig:2
- fig:3
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: sym:4
label: raised weapons and dividing knife
literal_form: Ket's weapons hung higher than others and the knife he takes at the
boar's side
associated_figures:
- fig:9
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
scenes:
- id: scene:1
label: Planned simultaneous arrival
summary: Mac Datho arranges that both armies arrive at his palace on the same day
and welcomes them into the court.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:2
- fig:3
symbol_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: scene:2
label: Enemies seated in a divided hall
summary: The Ulstermen and Connaughtmen enter the palace and are seated in opposite
halves of a large house despite their enmity.
figure_refs:
- fig:2
- fig:3
symbol_refs:
- sym:3
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: scene:3
label: Boar feast prepared
summary: Mac Datho's boar is slaughtered and brought in with other food while the
son of Datho acts as steward.
figure_refs:
- fig:7
- fig:8
symbol_refs:
- sym:1
- sym:2
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: scene:4
label: Test for division proposed
summary: Ailill and Conor discuss the division of the boar, and Bricriu proposes
that martial deeds determine who should divide it.
figure_refs:
- fig:4
- fig:5
- fig:6
- fig:7
symbol_refs:
- sym:1
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: scene:5
label: Boasts before Ket's claim
summary: Warriors exchange claims about earlier victories and slain opponents before
Ket rises to claim priority.
figure_refs:
- fig:14
symbol_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- id: scene:6
label: Ket claims the boar and rebuts challengers
summary: Ket stands beside the boar with a knife, challenges others to equal his
renown, and answers Laegaire and Angus by recalling earlier defeats or injuries;
Eogan then steps forward.
figure_refs:
- fig:9
- fig:10
- fig:11
- fig:12
- fig:13
symbol_refs:
- sym:1
- sym:4
evidence_refs:
- ev:6
- ev:7
- ev:8
- ev:9
candidate_motifs:
- id: motif:1
label: Rival armies hosted together in one hall
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: Mac Datho deliberately brings two enemy hosts to his palace on the same day
and seats them in opposite halves of the same house.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
confidence: high
cautions: The passage presents the arrangement but does not yet state Mac Datho's
full motive within this excerpt.
- id: motif:2
label: Contested division of a feast animal by martial precedence
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: The boar's division is made subject to a test of each warrior's warlike deeds,
and Ket claims the right to divide it unless an equal in renown is found.
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- ev:6
confidence: high
cautions: No external motif classification is assigned beyond the passage-level
pattern.
- id: motif:3
label: Heroic boast and counter-boast as status contest
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: Warriors answer one another with claims of killings and defeats, and Ket
uses remembered victories to silence challengers.
evidence_refs:
- ev:5
- ev:7
- ev:8
confidence: high
cautions: The motif is extracted as a narrative pattern, not as proof of historical
practice.
- id: motif:4
label: Extraordinary fattened animal whose feast is linked to death
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: The boar is described as unmatched, fed for seven years on the milk of fifty
cows, and associated by the narrator with the deaths of many men of Ireland.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
confidence: medium
cautions: Within this excerpt, the association with deaths is stated narratively,
but the subsequent deaths are not shown in the provided passage.
- id: motif:5
label: Challengers humiliated by prior defeats recalled in public
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: Ket responds to Laegaire and Angus not by fighting immediately but by publicly
recounting earlier defeats or injuries connected with them.
evidence_refs:
- ev:7
- ev:8
confidence: high
cautions: The motif is limited to the two completed rebuttals in this line range;
Eogan's challenge is only beginning at the excerpt's end.
comparison_claims: []
evidence:
- id: ev:1
type: summary
locator: lines 2185-2191
quote_or_summary: Mac Datho has planned that both armies arrive at his palace on
the same day; he greets them and invites them into the court of the house.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/celtic-irish/project-gutenberg/heroic-romances-of-ireland-leahy.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summary supplied.
- id: ev:2
type: summary
locator: lines 2192-2199
quote_or_summary: The Ulstermen occupy one half of the house and the Connaughtmen
the other; the large house has seven doors and fifty couches between each two
doors, and the hosts are enemies with a long history of war.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/celtic-irish/project-gutenberg/heroic-romances-of-ireland-leahy.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summary supplied.
- id: ev:3
type: summary
locator: lines 2200-2208
quote_or_summary: Mac Datho's boar is slaughtered; it had been nurtured seven years
on the milk of fifty cows and is said to have caused many deaths; it is brought
in with forty oxen and other food, with Datho's son as steward.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/celtic-irish/project-gutenberg/heroic-romances-of-ireland-leahy.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summary supplied.
- id: ev:4
type: summary
locator: lines 2209-2220
quote_or_summary: Conor and Ailill comment on the mighty boar and discuss its division;
Bricriu proposes that the division be decided by each warrior's record in deeds
of war and strife, and the proposal is accepted.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/celtic-irish/project-gutenberg/heroic-romances-of-ireland-leahy.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summary supplied.
- id: ev:5
type: summary
locator: lines 2221-2241
quote_or_summary: Senlaech, Munremur, Lugaid, and Celtchar exchange boasts and counter-boasts
concerning previous killings and battlefield encounters.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/celtic-irish/project-gutenberg/heroic-romances-of-ireland-leahy.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summary supplied.
- id: ev:6
type: summary
locator: lines 2242-2250
quote_or_summary: Ket, son of Mata from Connaught, rises above the others, hangs
up his weapons higher, takes a knife, stands beside the boar, and challenges anyone
to equal his renown or leave the division to him.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/celtic-irish/project-gutenberg/heroic-romances-of-ireland-leahy.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summary supplied.
- id: ev:7
type: summary
locator: lines 2251-2263
quote_or_summary: Laegaire objects to Ket dividing the boar, but Ket recalls a border
encounter in which Laegaire fled pierced by a spear, leaving charioteer, chariot,
and horses behind; Laegaire sits down.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/celtic-irish/project-gutenberg/heroic-romances-of-ireland-leahy.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summary supplied.
- id: ev:8
type: summary
locator: lines 2264-2284
quote_or_summary: Angus, son of Lama Gabaid, is put forward against Ket; Ket explains
the father's name by recounting how he hurled back a spear and cut off Lama Gabaid's
hand, after which Angus returns to his place.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/celtic-irish/project-gutenberg/heroic-romances-of-ireland-leahy.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summary supplied.
- id: ev:9
type: summary
locator: lines 2285-2315
quote_or_summary: Another fair-haired Ulster warrior, Eogan son of Durthacht and
lord of Fernmay, steps forward to oppose Ket; Ket says he has seen him before,
and Eogan asks where.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/celtic-irish/project-gutenberg/heroic-romances-of-ireland-leahy.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summary supplied.
confidence:
extraction: high
motif_candidates: medium
comparison_claims: uncertain
notes: Literal extraction is strongly supported by the passage. Motif labels are
descriptive and passage-level; no external comparison claims are made because
the excerpt itself does not support them.
reviewer_status:
status: needs_review
reviewer: ''
reviewed_at: ''
notes: Machine-generated draft from OpenAI Batch; not human-reviewed.
extracted_by: openai_batch:gpt-5.5
extracted_at: '2026-04-28'
notes: |-
Only the supplied passage and metadata were used. Available taxonomy symbol ref 'milk' was applied to the literal milk motif; no broader motif-family taxonomy refs were assigned because the passage does not clearly require them.
batch_run_id=motif-extraction-2026-04-28-high-priority
custom_id=motif_extract:celtic-irish-heroic-romances-of-ireland-leahy-gutenberg__l2185-l2315
passage_sha256=2252879a6d3453aa312c5e8dd2fbe5c9e54b77752b9e673172f12d1b252eef91