LEWISIAN GNEISS - The UK's oldest rock - Up to 3 billion years old
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The oldest rock in Britain
Up to 3 billion years old
Sutherland, North-west Scotland
The oldest rocks in Britain are in the north-west of Scotland. These are very ancient crystalline rocks known as Lewisian gneiss, thought to be up to 3,000 million years old.
The main outcrops of Lewisian gneiss are in the Outer Hebrides, including the Isle of Lewis, after which the rock has been named. These rocks are part of the Hebridean terrane, one of several fragments of the Earth’s crust that make up the complex geology of Scotland.
Lewisian gneiss is a very hard, metamorphic rock which reveals a tortured history during which these rocks have been squashed and heated during mountain-building episodes. This was the dawn of life and only simple, single-celled life forms existed in the oceans.
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Size: 15 x 9 x 3 centimetres
Weight: 500 grams
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