Thank you, especially you Michael, that was very helpful! I believe the total number of ballads that have included this ending in one or more variants is 10. It is the nature of folk music to borrow, make changes, adapt to regional preferences etc. For me, the origin of the rose-briar motif is not a question of propriety; it is strictly a question of scholarship.

Btw, the idea of plants springing from the graves of ill-fated lovers is ancient and universal. The theme is somewhat embedded in the human psyche, however, the rose and briar in particular can be traced to Medieval romance of Tristan and Iseult which mirrors and yet predates the Arthurian storyline of Sir Lancelot and Guinevere. Ethnically speaking, Tristan and Iseult (and Lord Levett as well)can best be described as Hiberno-Norman (Irish-French). Originally, it was just a briar that sprang from Tristan's grave and crept toward Iseult's grave. This idea eventually evolved into a rose and briar intertwining into a true lover's knot. This is vivid maritime imagery. The true lover's knot was once a popular style of wedding ring for sailors!

My research thus far has led me to conclude that Lord Levett as sung by Nora Cleary of "The Hand," Miltown Malbay, Ireland (in Jim Carroll & Pat Mackenzie's "Around the Hills of Clare", is the closest of any to a truly authentic ancient ballad with rose-briar motif ending. Other Irish versions, some of which use the name Lord Donegal and even the version from Tom Lenihan who lived in the same vicinity as Nora, seem to have been influenced by the Lord Levett "remake" "Lord Lovel." Although I might be being a bit hasty here. I have a few more to track down and analyze.

If you listen to Nora's version, you can hear the sea. There is this rhythm and melody like rocking back and forth and the lyrics are filled with references to the sea. You can almost imagine that it survived through women just like Nora singing it while rocking their babes. Also, I have heard the plot of Lord Lovel described as "too, too insipid" (Bronson) or who suggest the lord is a cad for abandoning his lady. To me, that's out of context, written by someone who does not understand the culture of men who go to sea and the women who love them :-)

                                                 ~Susan~