Geology of Ireland longest known free-hanging stalactites. Geology of Ireland The geology of Ireland consists of the study of the rock formations in Ireland. The island contains rocks from every age from Proterozoic to Holocene and a large variety of different rock types is represented. The basalt columns of the Giant's Causeway together with geologically significant sections of the adjacent coast have been declared a World Heritage Site. The geological detail follows the major events in Ireland's past based on the geological timescale. The oldest known Irish rock is about 1.7 billion years old and is found on Inishtrahull Island off the north
Smoo Cave behind after dissolution of the surrounding dolostone. The cave was formed along two geological lines of weakness by a combination of erosion from the sea and an inland underground stream which has formed the innermost chambers. Upstream of the Allt Smoo which runs into the cave, impermeable quartzites have been faulted against the Durness Limestone, causing the stream to sink down into the carbonate rock soon after it has crossed the contact between the two different rock types. The cave is unique within the UK in that the first chamber has been formed by the action of the sea, whereas