Skellig Michael

Skellig Michael is a jagged, two-peaked rock that rises from the Atlantic Ocean about 11.6 kilometres off the coast of County Kerry in Ireland. Its highest point is 218 metres above the sea, and its name honours the archangel Michael.

Monks built a monastery near the top between the 6th and 8th centuries. Its beehive-shaped stone huts, made without mortar, are still standing, and steep stone steps climb the cliffs. UNESCO made the island a World Heritage Site in 1996. It is also known from Star Wars films, where it became Luke Skywalker's hideout. Boats can reach it only in summer, when the sea is calm.

The monks' home

The monastery sits about 170 to 180 metres high on the north peak, and visitors reach it by narrow steps from three landing points. The card says the monks laid about 600 steps. The island is so remote that boats can only land in the summer months, and only if the sea is calm. Archaeologists value the site because the monastic settlement is in unusually good condition. A hermitage on the south peak is much harder to reach and is mostly closed to visitors.

Birds, seals and legends

Skellig Michael is crowded with wildlife: gannets, puffins, a colony of razorbills and about fifty grey seals live there. The word 'skellig' comes from an Irish word for a splinter of stone. Irish legends say a hero named Irr was buried here after drowning. Many people today know the island from The Force Awakens (2015) and The Last Jedi (2017), where it appeared as Luke's hiding place.

On the globe

The model shows two steep rock peaks with stone steps and beehive-shaped huts near the top.