Ancient Connections

Dark age Irish and Scottish cross settlement was a result of far more ancient connections than most people realize. Ireland was physically linked to the mainland of Britain until the end of the last Ice age: this is shown by the series of underlying rock formations known as the Caledonia trend which connects the North East of Ireland with the West Coast of Scotland. Ancient trading and population links between the two countries were evident during the prehistoric period, long before the Roman conquest of Britain. Some settlers of Mesolithic people (from the Middle Stone Age) arrived in Ireland from southern Scotland and the Argyll islands, Neolithic (New Stone Age) court cairn builders from Ireland, repeated this emigration in reverse and colonized the south-west of Scotland. There was an important trade in polished stone axe heads between early Scottish and Irish tribes, many such artifacts of Irish origin have been discovered in Scotland while the remains of ancient axe factories can be found in County Antrim. This trading link seems to have continued well into the Iron Age where goods for personal adornment from Scotland were exported into Ireland. Perhaps some memories of these ancient traders and settlers have been left in the earliest of the Irish writings such as the Lebor Gabala ("The Book of Invasions") which, while trying to explain the origins of the Irish race (with a certain amount of Christian overlay), gives us some information with regard to prehistoric beliefs.

Copyright 1998 David F. Dale