The Account of the Appearance of Cuchulain

Early the next morning Cuchulain came to observe the host and to display his comely, beautiful form to the matrons and dames and girls and maidens and poets and men of art, for he did not consider it an honour nor becoming, the wild, proud shape of magic which had been manifested to them the night before. It was for that then that he came to exhibit his comely, beautiful form on that day.

Truly fair was the youth that came there to display his form to the hosts, Cuchulain, to wit son of Sualtaim. Three heads of hair he wore; brown at the skin, blood-red in the middle, a golden-yellow crown what thatched it. Beautiful was the arrangement of the hair, with three coils of hair wound round the nape of his neck, so that like to a strand of thread of gold was each thread-like, loose-flowing, deep-golden, magnificent, long-tressed, splendid, beauteous-hued hair as it fell down over his shoulders. A hundred bright-purple windings of gold-flaming red gold at his neck.

A hundred salmon-coloured (?) cords strung with carbuncles as a covering round his head. Four spots on either of his two cheeks, even a yellow spot, and a green spot, and a blue spot, and a purple spot. Seven jewels of the eye's brilliance was either of his kingly eyes. Seven toes to either of his two feet. Seven fingers to either of his two hands, with the clutch of hawk's claw, with the grip of hedgehog's talon in every separate one of them.

He also put on him that day his fair-day dress. To this apparel about him belonged, namely, a beautiful, well-fitting, purple, fringed, five-folded mantle. A white brooch of silvered bronze or of white silver incrusted with burnished gold over his fair white breast, as if it were a full-fulgent lantern that eyes of men could not behold for its resplendence and crystal shining. A striped chest-jacket of silk on his skin, fairly adorned with borders and braidings and trimmings of gold and silver and silvered bronze; it reached to the upper hem of his dark, brown-red warlike breeches of royal silk.

A magnificent, brown-purple buckler he bore, with five wheels of gold on it, with a rim of pure white silver around it. A gold-hilted hammered sword at his left side. A long grey-edged spear together with a trenchant bye-spear for defence, with thongs for throwing and with rivets of whitened bronze, alongside him in the chariot. Nine heads he bore in one of his hands and ten in the other, and these he brandished before the hosts in token of his prowess and cunning. Medb hid her face beneath a shelter of shields lest Cuchulain should cast at her that day.

Then it was that the maidens of Connacht besought the men of Erin to lift them up on the flat of the shields above the warriors' shoulders, to behold the aspect of Cuchulain. For they marvelled at the beautiful, comely appearance he showed them that day compared with the low, arrogant shape of magic in which they had seen him the night before.

Tuarascbail delba Conculaind so.

Dothaét Cuchulaind arnabárach do thaidbriud in t-slóig & do thasbénad a chrotha álgin alaind do mnaib & bantrochtaib & andrib & ingenaib & filedaib & aes dána, uair nír miad ná mais leis ind úaburdelb drúidechta tárfás dóib in adaig sin riam reme. Is aire-sin dana tánic do thasselbad a chrotha algin álaind in la sin.

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Alaind ém in mac tanic and-sin do thaisselbad a chrotha dona slúagaib .i. Cuchulaind mac Sualtaim. Tri fuilt bátar fair: dond fri toinn, cróderg ar medón, mind órbuide ar-da-tuigethar. Cáin cocáirsi ind fuilt sin, con cuirend teora imsrotha im chlaiss a chulaid, co m-bo samalta & snáth órsnáith cach finna faithmainech forscáilte fordórda digrais dualfota derscaigthech dathálaind dar a as formna síar sell sechiair. Cét cairches corcorglan do derggor órlasrach imma braigit.

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Cét snáthéicne do charrmocul chummascda i timthacht fria chend. Cethri tibri cechtar a da grúad, .i. tibre buide & tibre úane & tibre gorm & tibre corcra. Secht n-gemma de ruithin ruisc cechtar a da rígrosc. Secht meóir cechtar a da choss, secht méoir cechtar a da lám, co n-gabail ingni sebaicc co forgabáil ingne griúin ar cach n-ái fo leith díb.

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Gabaid-som dana a dillut oenaig immi in láa sin. Bái da etgud immi. i. fúan cain coir corcra cortharach cóicdiabuil. Delgg find findarggait arna ecor d'ór intlaisse úas a banbruinni gel, immar bad locharnn lánsolusta nad chumgaitis súli dóeni déscin ar gleordacht & ar glainidecht. Cliabinar siric fri chness arna imthacmanhg massi de chimsaib & chressaib & chorrtharaib óir & argit & findruni, condriced go barr uachtur a dondfúathbróci donderggi míleta imme de sról rig.

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Scíath digrais dondchorcra fair, co m-bil argit oengil ina imthimchiull. Claideb órduirn intlassi bar a chlíu. Gae fata faeburglass re faga feig fobarta co suanemnaib loga co semmannaib findruine issin charput ina farrad. Nói cind isindara láim dó & deich cind isin láim anaill, ocus ros croth úad risna sluagaib do chomartha a gascid & a engnama. Laigis Medb a heinech fa damdabaich scíath, ar na ras dibairged Cuchulaind in lá sin.

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Is and-sin ra attchetar in ingenrad firu hErend ma tocbáil bar lebennaib scíath as guallib feróclách do thaidbriud chrotha Conculaind. Ár rap ingnad léo -som in delb álaind algen atchondcatar in la sin fair, ic athfescain na[d]uabordelbi doescairi druidechta ra condcas fair inn adaig ríam reme.