Researchers believe the first known humans to arrive in Ireland thousands of years ago likely originated from Wales. This follows the discovery of ancient cave art in south-west Ireland, which has been dated to at least 15,000 years ago.
During the most recent Ice Age, a "lost land bridge" is thought to have connected modern-day Pembrokeshire in Wales with the south-east tip of Ireland, near Rosslare. Dr George Nash, a rock expert from Liverpool University, suggests that hunter-gatherers would have utilised this pathway.
Dr Nash, who coordinated the Lost Land Bridge Project, and an international team have located eight cave sites in south-west Ireland containing rock art. This art, including engravings, paintings, and line sketches, dates back at least 15,000 years, which is around 5,000 years earlier than the previous oldest evidence of humans in Ireland.
The team used artificial intelligence to identify potential cave sites in south-west Ireland, based on characteristics of cave dwellings in south Wales. Dr Nash believes that growing populations and competition for existing caves in Wales may have driven humans to move westward and northward.
The Lost Land Bridge Project team believes there is a high potential for further discoveries, suggesting that more, and possibly even earlier, sites are yet to be found.