150 GEOLOGY OF ARRAN. 



or Molassus, is well known to Irish antiquaries; it was 

 printed in the Bollandists' collection, Acta Sanctorum. He 

 was born in Ireland A.D. 566, educated in Bute by his uncle, 

 St Blaan, returned for some years to Ireland, and after- 

 wards, when yet only twenty years of age, retired to an 

 island in Scotland, where for some years he led the life of a 

 hermit probably in the care which is still pointed out as 

 his in Lamlash Isle i.e., * Isle-a-Molass,' * later named the 

 ' Holy Isle.' About the year 614 he was elected Abbot of 

 Leighlin, in Ireland, and was afterwards made a bishop and 

 apostolic legate to the church in Ireland. He died in the 

 year 640. The inscription on the roof, in Runic letters, has 

 no reference to Molassus. The words, ' Nicolas hann raisti 

 ' Nicolas this engraved ' are Norse or Icelandic, and 

 clearly refer to a Norwegian hermit who resided here at the 

 time when the Northmen ruled the Western Isles, or about 

 A.D. 1100. Wilson (Arch, of Scott., p. 531) identifies this 

 hermit with a bishop of Man. He would make the inscrip- 

 tion refer to the excavation of the rock. But this has clearly 

 been the work of the sea; and, besides, the cave was the 

 abode of St. Molassus at an earlier period. Mr. Wilson 

 gives some other fragmentary Runes. A small cell or mon- 

 astery was erected in connection with the hermitage, ap- 

 parently by Reginald de Insulis, between 1206 and 1212, 

 probably in connection with the monastery of Saddell, in 

 Cantire, founded by him, and to which he granted lands in 

 Arran. It seems to have been an abbot of this small mon- 

 astery, whose tombstone, bearing his chalice and pastoral 

 staff, but without any inscription, is still extant in the ruins 

 of the ancient burying-place and chapel at Clachan Glen, and 

 which is popularly called St. Molios' grave." The traces of 

 this small cell or monastery, which was in ruins when visited 



* Lasrian and Molassus are radically the same. "Las," meaning 

 "light," was probably the proper name; the prefix "mo" and affix 

 "rian" mean "very" and "good," expressing approval or endear- 

 ment. 



