c Da Tho's Pig" the men all state their victories in order to have the privilege of receiving the best portion of meat. These men go so far as explain the defeats of fathers as well as those involved and to fight to the death if no conclusion can be reached. They tell of the importance of winning and boasting of such honors. This is shown in many of the stories when they speak of taking peoples heads. When men would conquer their enemy they would take their head for a trophy. Within many of the stories in Early Irish Myths And Sagas the hero Cu Chulaind takes many heads and also the hero Conall from "The Tale of Macc Da Tho's Pig". In this story it is written that Conell said;"since I first took a spear in hand, there has not been a single day that I have not killed a Connachta warrior, not a single night I have not destroyed with fire, and I have never slept without a Connachta head under my knee ."6 And only a few lines later it says he takes a head of his enemy out of his pouch or wallet. This is a very interesting habit of the Ancient Celts. Having the heads or brains of your enemies meant you had their soul and power. Heroes of that time are said to have not only to have cut heads off but also to collect them like souvenirs. The custom of brain balls is also mentioned in the stories. Brain Balls were made out of the brains of the warrior's favorite enemy. The head would be cleaned of all the brains and mixed in a solution of lime. The balls would be hard and supposedly hard enough to knock a man out.In Professor Kenneth Jackson's paper he writes about many of the Ulster Tales and argues both sides of the question. In his paper he mentions the similarties of Greek and Roman Literature to that of the stories about the Ulster Cycle. He mentions that the gods and places may be the same as in other ancient literatre but with different names. ...
