The geological history of Rathlin extends back some sixty million years, at that time, the land that was to become Rathlin lay much further south, roughly where present day Morocco is situated.
Continental drift has brought it to its present position in the North Atlantic, 55N. 06W.
The land mass that comprised Europe and North America began to split up, giving rise to widespread volcanic activity and the beginnings of the Atlantic ocean, molten lava welled up and flowed out over the landscape, which consisted mainly of chalk or limestone.
Today,we can see the result of this, in the vast plateaus of basalt which covers most of Rathlin, as well as the adjacent land of Co. Antrim and the west of Scotland, this has preserved the underlying limestone, which gives Rathlin it's distinctive black and white cliffs.
The human history of Rathlin commenced soon after the end of the last ice age, when glaciers upwards of one mile thick covered the land, as the climate warmed up, the ice melted, leaving a bare landscape covered in debris from the glaciers.
This debris soon weathered down into a reddish fertile soil, which in turn was colonised within a couple of thousand years with plant life,such as willow, juniper and hazel, and creatures such as the giant Irish elk, wolves appeared. Forest trees, such as pine, oak, elm, ash and alder were quick to follow, and about 9000 years ago the first humans arrived in Rathlin, these are described as Mesolithic, they were hunter gatherers, and the limestone cliffs of Rathlin provided large quantities of flint which they fashioned into tools of various types. I have included photos of some of these flint scrapers.
Mesolithic Flint Tools
The next wave of humans to arrive were those designated as Neolithic, they were the first farmers, and planted crops, which led to a settled way of life. When they arrived in Rathlin about six thousand years ago, they developed heavier stone tools and axe heads which they used for felling trees and cultivating the ground.
Porcellanite axes
The Rathlin axe heads are quite distinctive, being manufactured from a rock known as Porcellanite, there is an outcrop or plug of this material on Rathlin, and the only other known source occurs near Cushendall in Co Antrim.
Porcellanite does not occur naturally, it is the result of volcanic activity, which baked weathered laterite into a china like rock, which is extremely hard, it makes excellent hardwearing tools, which were exported from Rathlin to all parts of Ireland and Britain, some found their way to western Europe. Large quantities of pottery from this period have also been excavated. I have included photos
of Porcellanite axes and Neolithic Pottery.
Neolithic Pottery Sherds
The next wave of humans to arrive were the Bronze - Age people around three thousand five hundred years ago, bringing metal- working skills, I would think that they were not exactly welcomed on Rathlin, as cast bronze tools brought an end to stone tools, the Rathlin islanders had made a good living from exporting stone tools for many centuries.
The only evidence for the presence of the Bronze-Age people are a number of burial chambers which have been dated to that period.
The next wave of invaders were the Celts who were skilled in iron-working, hence the Iron Age.
We have inherited a permanent link with their time, the Gaelic or Goidelic language, still widely spoken in Ireland, and was the first language of many Rathlin islanders until the middle years of the last century.
All of the place-names on the island are in Gaelic.
The name Rechru or Rachery, since anglicised to Rathlin, is mentioned by the Roman geographer Pliny in the 1st century A.D. set as it is, in the seaway between Ireland and Scotland, it must have caused difficulties to many an ancient seafarer.
There is little further mention of Rathlin until the advent of the Christian period in the early fifth century. It is recorded that Columcille of Iona stopped in the island monastery 'Teampall Cooill', which was established by Comgall of Bangor at his second attempt about 580 A.D.
Segene the Abbot of Iona, established a Church on Rathlin in the year 635 A.D. These religious establishments flourished until the Viking raids began in 790 A.D. The last recorded raid by the Vikings was in 1045 A.D.when they killed 300 people including the chieftan Randal O' Heochada.
Rathlin had been a central part of the kingdom of the Dal Reti, which extended across the sea from Co. Antrim and included the west of Scotland as far as Oban. It existed from approximately the middle of the fourth century until the tenth century.
Flint Hand Axe
Rathlin Crystal