THE AGE OP THE LAST UPRISE OP THE BRITISH ISLES. 188 



terraces on each side of the Irish Sea are representative of each 

 other ; and the inference is that whatever terrestrial changes in 

 recent times affected the Scottish area, also affecied that of 

 Ireland to a greater or less degree. With regard to the northern 

 parts of England south of the Scottish border they doubtless 

 partook of similar changes ; but I do not propose to extend our 

 survey farther than is necessary for our immediate object. 



Paet III. 



Date of Emergence. — We have now to endeavour to determine 

 approximately the period at whicli the rise of the land took 

 place, and the evidence on this head is partly circumstantial, 

 partly inferential. There has existed a feeling for a long time 

 past that this uprise was at such a distant period that there 

 was no use in attempting to investigate the subject at all. 

 But we have seen that it is certainly within the human period 

 and not only so, but within a period comparatively recent, and 

 in which works of art were not uncommon. If we accept as 

 generally true that the " Stone Age " was succeeded by that of 

 the Bronze, and the " Bronze Age " by that of Iron, we have 

 clear evidence that this last had prevailed for a considerable 

 time when portions of Scotland and Ireland w^ere below the 

 waters of the sea ; and this brings us down to the epoch of 

 modern art. We have therefore to inquire within what limits 

 of time we may infer the introduction of iron into Xorth 

 Britain — and we may add into the ISTorth of Europe — for use 

 in the arts. That iron came into use in Northern Europe 

 and Britain some centuries before the Christian era seems 

 pretty clear ; though the exact time cannot be determined. 

 When the armies of Eome brought the civilization of the south 

 into contact with that of the north they found the value of iron 

 already well known to their enemies ;* and the description 

 given by Tacitus of the Caledonian weapons shows that bronze 

 swords were no longer in use in Scotland.! That iron was 

 in use in the arts of Norway as far back as the third century of 

 our era is shown by the discovery of a boat by M. Engelhardc 



Sir J. Lubbock (now Lord Avebury) Prehistoric Times, p. 7. 

 t The question occurs, were bronze swords ever in general use amongst 

 the Caledonian warriors ; it does not follow that everywhere bronze 

 succeeded stone in the manufacture of weapons in North Britain. In 

 fact in the case of Scotland, it is probable that iron succeeded to stone 

 directly, without the intermediate stage of bronze. 



N 



