The Brehon Law Commission was established in 1852 to translate the Senchus Érenn, a collection of early Irish legal tracts more commonly known as the Brehon Laws, a corrupted transliteration of the Irish word breatheamuin.

James Henthorn Todd James Henthorn Todd (23 April 1805 – 28 June 1869) was a biblical scholar, educator, and Irish historian. He is noted for his efforts to place religious disagreements on a rational historical footing, for his advocacy of a liberal form of Prot ...

and Charles Graves had submitted an appeal to the short-lived British Conservative government in 1852.

Eugene O'Curry Eugene O'Curry (, 20 November 179430 July 1862) was an Irish philologist and antiquary. Life He was born at Doonaha, near Carrigaholt, County Clare, the son of Eoghan Ó Comhraí, a farmer, and his wife Cáit. Eoghan had spent some time as a ...

and

John O'Donovan John O'Donovan may refer to: *John O'Donovan (scholar) (1806–1861), Irish language scholar and place-name expert *John O'Donovan (politician) (1908–1982), Irish TD and Senator *John O'Donovan (police commissioner) (1858–1927), New Zealand pol ...

were appointed as translators. Facsimile copies of the original document we're created using the process of

anastatic lithography Anastatic lithography is a method of printing developed by 1840 in Erfurt. The technique provided a means for facsimile reproduction, which was developed and promoted by Werner and William Siemens. The reproduction of the four pages of the 25 Se ...

which had been showcased by

Samuel Cowell Samuel Harrison Cowell (24 May 1801, Ipswich-1875) was a Suffolk businessman who pioneered anastatic lithography in Ipswich. Cowell issued leaflets at the Great Exhibition The Great Exhibition of the Works of Industry of All Nations, al ...

at the

Great Exhibition The Great Exhibition of the Works of Industry of All Nations, also known as the Great Exhibition or the Crystal Palace Exhibition (in reference to the temporary structure in which it was held), was an international exhibition that took ...

of 1851. The commission produced twenty facsimile copies in-house, under a license to use the patent costing £10 a year for three years. Some copies were circulated to major libraries and others were cut up to help produce a glossary for those involved in the translation.

Composition of the Commission

The Commission started its work on 7th December 1852 with the following members: * James Henthorn Todd * Charles Graves * George Petrie *

Thomas Larcom Major-General Sir Thomas Aiskew Larcom, Bart, PC FRS (22 April 1801 – 15 June 1879) was a leading official in the early Irish Ordnance Survey. He later became a poor law commissioner, census commissioner and finally executive head of the ...

David Richard Pigot David Richard Pigot, Privy Council of Ireland, PC, King's Counsel, KC (c. 1796 – 22 December 1873) was one of the leading Irish judges of his time. His children included John Edward Pigot, a noted music collector and one of the founders of the ...

Francis Blackburne Francis Blackburne PC (Ire) KS (11 November 1782 – 17 September 1867) was an Irish judge and eventually became Lord Chancellor of Ireland. Background Born at Great Footstown in County Meath, he was the son of Richard Blackburne of Great Foo ...

Baron Monteagle Baron Monteagle or Baron Mount Eagle is a title that has been created three times; in the Peerage of England, in the Peerage of Ireland and in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. The first creation, in the Peerage of England, was in 1514 when Edwa ...

* Sir Joseph Napier * Edwin Wyndham-Quin *

William Parsons, 3rd Earl of Rosse William Parsons, 3rd Earl of Rosse (17 June 1800 – 31 October 1867), was an English engineer and astronomer. He built several giant telescopes. His 72-inch telescope, built in 1845 and colloquially known as the "Leviathan of Parsonstown", was ...

* Lord Talbot de Malahide *

Thomas Romney Robinson John Thomas Romney Robinson (23 April 1792 – 28 February 1882), usually referred to as Thomas Romney Robinson, was an Irish astronomer. He was the director of the Armagh Observatory, one of the chief astronomical observatories in the UK o ...

References

{{Early Irish law Early Irish law