II. A VISI O EILEACH-AN-NAOIMT T H (). BY WILLIAM W. , M.D., F.S.A. SCOT.

In the summer of 1901, along with Mr "W. C. Maughen, I visited this island. To Dr Patrick H. Gillies, of Kilbrandon, I am much indebted, not only for his guidance to the place, but also for a large informatioe parth f o t thin ni s paperremarke Th . s abou meanine th t g d etymologan f Gaelio y c word e entirelar s y derived fro r GilliesmD . Hs revisite islane dth d last yea tood ran k somphotographiw ne e c views. I am also indebted to Mr Benjamin N. Peach, LL.D., of H.M. Geological Survey, who visited the island last summer, for five photographic views and for some useful notes about the buildings. After establishing himsel r t lonala o if o whict , s possessiohhi n was confirme e Pictisth y b hd king Bridei d alsy Conallan b o, e th , king of Scottish Dalriada, St , in the prosecution of his missionary work, planted churches and religious colonies in the islands around—Ethica Insula (), Elene Insula (off ), Scia (Skye), Egea Insula (Egg). Adamnan, in his Life of St Columba, frequently mentions the Saint's visit to the island of Hinba or Himba, a monastery d wherha e eh , over whic e placeh s maternadhi l uncle . The date of this establishment must have been between A.D. 563 and 574. No island of the now bears this name. s beeha n t I derive d Gaeli ol fro n ca m word Imbac r Imbeho h , meaning a surrounding sea. All traces of the locality seemed to be lost A VISIT TO EILEACH-AN-NAOIMH (H1NBA). 183

Garvelloctile th l h islands were visiter MaocullocD y b d 1824n i h n I . the westermost of them, called by the Gaelic name Ilachann, he lighted upo remaine nth somf so e religious building monumentd san primitiva f so e form and apparently of ancient date.1 The island was uninhabited,, which goes to account for the preservation of the remains. Dr Reeves, describing them, put the question—Is this Hinha 1 It was reserved for1 Sken o stat et e groundth e r thifo ss belief a forcibl n i , e mannere Th . converging probabilities which he arrays maybe found in Reeves's edition of the Life of St Columba.2 We are told by Adamnan that the Saint,, while stayin islane th f n Hinbadi go s proceedinwa , excommunicato t g e some persecutor e Churchth f f sDomnailo sone o th n ,f Conall so so e .th , On f theseo e malefactor s namewa s d e racJoan th f Gabran,o ef o , 3 who was chief of the Dalriad Scots, on the fringe of which the Garvellochs lay. One of their companions named Lam-dess (Manus dextera) hearing of what was taking place, instigated by the devil, rushed at the Saint brothere interpositioe th saves wit th f o wa y hspear a db e e s H on .f o n named Findluganus. Lam-des killes swa d wit javelia h e yeanth r after e islanith n f Lungo d a (Insula longa). n islanThia s i s d in. sighf o t Eileach-aii-Kaoimh. This Joad twicha n e plundere e housth a d f o e frien Columbf do a; returnin thire gth d tim placa t ea e called Ait-chambas Artmuirchol (), the Saint being there, he tried to dissuade e robbeth r from farther plunders interpositiohi t t witbu ,me h s wa n derision. The Saint followed the robbers up to the knees into the sea, praying to Christ. Returning to the dry ground, Columba prophesied that neither the robber nor his wicked companions would get back to the lands which they desired. Accordingly their shis wreckepwa a y db sudden middlee storth mn i f the.seao , , between Mul Colonsayd an l d an , all were drowned. This was on the way between Ardnamurchan and e Garvellochsth . Descriptiona e Se 1 e Westernoth f Islands f ,o . 157p vol . .ii . t Columba,S Lifef o Founder f Hy,o writte y Adamnannb , edite Williay b d m

Beeves3 , D.D., Edinburgh, 1874, p. 324. 3 Joan filius Conallis filii Donmallis de regio Gabrani oitus genere. Vita, Jib. iL cap. xxiii. 4 18 PROCEEDING SOCIETYE TH F O S , MARC , 19039 H .

Ther stile remaine ear th l islane a castlth f o sn d eo nort f Eileacho h •an-Naoimh, of which farther mention will be made. Dr ."W. F. Skene tells us that Dean Monro, in his description of the Western Isles in 1594, mentions ' Dunchonill,' "ane iyle so namit from •Conal Kernache, ane strength, which is als meikle as to say in Englishe, .•ane round castle." Kernach probabls ei y Gathernach, " soldiea r leade o rcompany,a f o r " •or what were called from this word ' caterans- t un seemi t d no s'an • reasonable to suppose that Dunchonall was so called from Conall, the e sea thith f fatheo ts s wa piraticaJoanf o rd an , l family whichr fo , , both fro s isolatemit d characte s proximitit d an r y e mainlantoth ' d territory genue th f s o Gabrans peculiarlwa t i , y appropriate. This confirme th s identit Eileach-ari-Naoimf yo h with Hinba. Garvelloce Th chaia h e islandsf saib e hillno b o dt y s -washema l y b d seae th , whic isolates hha d the breakiny mb g throug anciene hth t ravines, now narrow straits. There are many well marked traces of denudation e softeoth f r rockse topmosTh . t pea f Eileach-an-jNTaoimho k e th , top about 270 feet high, bears the name of Dun Bhreanain, or St Brandon's Hill. The north-west shore is very precipitous in some places, presenting a sheer descent of 200 feet. On the southern aspect ther slopee ear f differenso t gradient e smor ;th e level part coveree ar s d •with a rich grass ; in the hollows there are bushes growing, but no trees. The island is about one and a quarter miles long, and at its broadest 1 The word is pronounced locally, not Garbheileach, but Garbhbhilleaeh, that is, rough lipped or edged ; but even if we say Eileach, this means a mound or stony place. Thus the rough mound would be an appropriate name for the rugged out- lin Garvellochf eo . e samIEileach-an-naoimy nth wa e h would mea e moundnth s •of the saints, "or holy mounds. Eileach, or more properly Aileach, is probably connected with Ailbhe, flint, and •certainly with Al, an obsolete word for a rock or stone. Skene thought Eileach to be-a corruption of Eilean, an island, which it certainly is not ; we have the very word monkisd ol e inth h Vita Brendani n aliai t E : regione n Britanniai monasterium nomine Ailtch sanctissimus Brendanus fundamt. In the Brussels edition of the same work, Ailech is mentioned as an island : umim (monasterium) in insula Ail- ech, alterum in terra ethica. We may suppose that Ailech was the original title, naomh (holy) or naoimh (of ike saints) being afterwards added; A VISIT TO EILEACH-AN-NAOIMH (HINBA). 185

abou quartea t a mile f o r . Ther dykee ear f basaltso ; but.the islans di mainly composed of a gritty calcareous shale. A column of rock about 12 feet high, which stands out near the southern shore, has been called Cranogge th r Columba'so , pulpit composes i t I . harf do d quartzite rock, with some slight mixtur f carbonateo f e limesofteeo Th .r rocks round

Churce Th Fig Eileach-an-Naoimh. n h1 o . , showing doorwa soute th hn yi wall. (From a photograph by B. N. Peach.)

have been worn away with the lapse of time, leaving this tough old tusk, which still has on the outside the colour given by oxide of iron. The landing is generally made on a narrow creek on the south-west aspect. After an easy scramble up the rocks we passed through some marshy ground, and a little higher up, on a more level spot, we came to a rude 186 PROCEEDING E SOCIETYTH F O S , MARCH 9, 1903.

building e chapel.(fig ) believeth 1 e roo. e wantings b i Th f 1o t dt bu , walle th entiree ar s . The constructee yar f widdo e flat stones, laid upon

Fig. 2. Exterior view of east wall of the Church, showing the single small window. (Fro mphotograpa . NB . y Peach.hb )

one another without any lime. The material is obviously taken from

e ecclesiastica ruine th f 1Th o s l building islane th n do s have been describey b d s Characteristics. MuiS hi . n i T r late r th Churched M Ol f o Architecture (1861)d an , by Dr Joseph Anderson in Scotland in Early Christian Times (1881), where they are figured from photographs taken by Rev. J. B. Mackenzie, Kenmore, in 1869. A VISI EILEAGH-AN-NAOIMO T H (HINBA). 1ST

the rocks around. The chapel measured about 27 feet by 12 feet ex- teriorly walle aboue Th sar . fee8 t t fee3 higd t han thick . Thera s ei little splay window in the east end (fig. 2), about 5 feet from the floor foo1 inche6 d t an n widthsi chapee Th s .oriented i l s nearln a , ca s ya be, true east and west. On the west side of the building there are clear- traces of a square enclosure. A little higher up the hillside is a smaller building (fig. 3), 15 feet by 10, wit dooro htw s opposit anothers e semicircular,i eon e easd en Th t . .

Fig. 3. The Kiln on Eileach-an-Naoimh. (From a photograph by B. N". Peach.)

and two-thirds of the interior is taken up by a raised stone platform, havin middle th n g i hollo ea w like a caldrotha f o t r boilerno . Below, there is a flue going through the basement of the platform to let in air. doubo n s i kil a tdryin r t I nfo g e grouncornb o t , n querni d s similar to- the ' sornies' formerly common in Caithness-shire, which some old people remember stil n usei l . A littly froe soutth wa me e hchape th sidf o le n a ther s i e underground cell, big enough for a man to turn easily in. It has two stone shelves.. This was probably the cellar for the wine for the- eucharist. 188 PROCEEDINGS OF THE SOCIETY, MARCH 9, 1903.

- Lower down is a small piece of level ground with, ruined wall, which is'thought to have been the garden. Around old conventual buildings sometimee on s finds rare plants e descendantth , f flowero s s which were •cultivated by the monks. We noticed the elder-bush, still a favourite hedge in the Highlands, the corn-marigold, the meadowsweet, the lychnismulleie th d nan , (Verbascum f thapsus).theso e founl ar e Al d e isleith n s around, save perhap e mulleinth s , whic s a use s wa ha d herbalistsd demulcenol e th y .b t

Fig . Portion4 . f Sepulchraso l Sla Eileach-an-Naoimhn bo . (From a photograph by Dr P. H. Gillies.)

Below the garden is the graveyard, clearly indicated by a number of headstones, of the same slate rock as is quarried at . There are rudw slae fe e a carvingson ba Gree n o kd lettereo n crossan , t - bu ,din scriptions. One gravestone, more elaborately carved than the others, was lying flat beside the chapel. On one side of the face was a sword, othee th rn o a' rod, signifyin gresteo perhapwh dn belosma thae wth t oncd ha e borne arm afterwardd san s becom monkea slae bTh . measure. d 47 by 20 inches, with a thickness of 5 inches. After clearing away the A VISIT TO EILEACH-AN-NAOIMH (HINBA). 189

liche d dusan nt upo s faceit n a photograp, s take wa hy D b nr Gillies.1 There is good reason to helieve that several of these ancient monuments have been carried away. Macculloch speak numbea f so f votivro e crosses, carvingd e swordan th f f warriorso so f formeso re gre dayth yn stoneso s burial-grounde onth headstonA . e wit incisen ha d Greek cross, which was- carried away in a boat for ballast, was fortunately rescued, and is now in the Museum. In August 1880 Dr Macinillan and Mr Clerk unearthed a e spot th disappeared w .n o no Thip s u Celti ha sd t i an t ,c se cros d san only one stone with any attempt at ornamentation (fig. 4) remains above f whico grounde r GilliehD on e th s, too photographka . Next summer Mr Peach o alsowh , copied it, foun e stonth d e broken through the middle. About 150 yards south-west of the principal burial-ground, upon a grassy eminence, ther caira s ei n with headstone f whico e shon (fig, 5) . bear a rudels y incised Greek cross. Accordin o traditiont g n thii , s solitary grave was laid the body of the mother of St Columba. East of the chapel are the walls of an. old building of the same rude structure n pace te ,y seventeen b s . Below e eastwartheseth o t d , an d nearer the sea, were two beehive cells (fig. 6), each having its own entrance and a channel for drainage, and also a passage from one to- another, standing lik figurea . 8 eThoug h half ruined, their contoud an r structure could clearly he seen. Their diameter from the inside was 14 largee th feer rfo t onesomewhad an , e othere tthicknes th lesr Th sfo . s of the wall at the base was over 8 feet. The Celtic monks frequently retired to such hermitages, some of which still remain in Ireland in good preservation.2 No fror e landing-placfa tm th a etricklin g sprin s beeha g n collected

Dr Gillies subsequently wrote, "I have got hold of the old baptismal font of 1 the chapel, which was removed therefrom, as far as I can guess from thoroughly re- liable tradition authority, at least 250 years ago. I shall send photos of it, or at leas fea t w sketche measurements.d san " 2 Church of Scotland, PastPresent,d an editer W. StoryD H . y d. b 154 p , .

A VISIT TO EILEACH-AN-NAOIMH (HINBA). 191

into an artificial basin, which is called tobar Challuim-na-chitte, or St Columba's Well. That these buildings formed a smalpar f o t l monastic establishment I have no doubt whatever, and they have obviously the air of great antiquity, probably coeval wit t ColumbS h a s beehimselfha n t I . objected that the early Scottish monasteries and churches were con- structe f hewdo n wood. Thi bases si d upo npassaga s wa Beden ei o wh , born a hundred years after the founding of Hinba; and granting that most of the ecclesiastical buildings were thus made, it can scarcely be proved that they were all so. Where wood failed, stone would be used; and nothing could come in more handy for builders without lime than those broad flat stones.1 Laid plumb upon one another, they would stane strat th s lona d s aa g from which they were dug. tole Adamnan'ar n di e W s Life that four holy founder f monasteriesso , named Comgellus Mocu Aridi, Cainnechus Mocu Dalon, Brendenus Mocu Alti Cormacusd an , e grandsoth , f Lothaino n , passing from Scotia {tha , frois t m Ireland visio t ) t Saint Columba islane th , n di foun m dhi of Hinba. They would naturally go first to lona, and not finding him there, pass on to Hinba, which looks as if it were not far off. They all with one mind agreed that Saint Columba should consecrate the mystery of, the holy eucharist in their presence, which he did on the Lord's day. Saint afterwards related that he saw a globe of fire alight on the head of Saint Columba while he was standing before the altar and consecrating the holy oblation. At another time, while Saine th t remaine islane th f n Hinbadi o stayee h , threr dfo e dayd an s as many nights in a house, out of which rays of surpassing brightness were seen to issue through the chinks of the door. The monastic establishmen f Hinbo t a seem o havt s e been still kept up while Adamnan was Abbot of lona (A.D. 679-704). Most likely,

Remain f suco s h edifices (stone churche e mosth f t o sprimitiv e Celtic type) 1 " still exist in many of the northern and western islands, such as those of Tigh Beaunachad Lewisn hi , Teampul l e FlannaBeannachadth f o e n on islands n ho d an , Teampull Sula Sgeir."—Histor Churche th f o y of Scotland, . 228p . 192 PEOCEEDINGS OF THE SOCIETY, MARCH 9, 1903.

about the beginning of the ninth century, the isle was visited by the piratical Northmen, when the monks were massacred or saved them- selve flighty sb . Therprooo n s i fe that they ever returned. Fordun, who wrot s Chronicahi e Gentis Scotorum between 144 d 1447,1an ' shows some acquaintance with the isles off the coast of Argyllshire. Though he may have visited lona, he could scarcely have come near the Garvellochs, for he says that was fifteen miles long, whereas it is little more than three miles. Fordun mentions Helant Leneow1 (Eileach-an-Naoimh), and says that there was a sanctuary there e doet telH s whetheno su .linhabited s wa mentione t h i r t bu , s the neighbouring castle of Donquhonle,2 which at that time was certainly Macleanse helth y dmentionb e H . neighbourine sth g island f Longaso , and Mull, and is particular in noting the religious foundations, monasteries, churches, chapels and cells.

1 Insula Lyngay, Insula Luyng. Insula Sunay. Insula Sellee major. Insula Sellee minor. Insula Helant Leneow, scilicet, insula sanctorum, et ibi refugium. Insula Garveleane, juxta magnum castvu e Donquhonlemd , distan h aliia s s insulis x milliaribuse oceanon si . Insula Mule, suno ubdu it castrat Doundowerdes d i , e et Dounarwyse—lib . capi . . .x 2 See Donald Gregory's History of the Western Highlands and Isles of Scotland, London, 1881, p. 69. This author erroneously places Dunconell in Scarba, and Dunkerd in the Garvelloch isles.