An old cluster in NGC 6822

We present spectroscopy of two clusters in the dwarf irregular galaxy NGC 6822. From these we deduce an age for cluster VII of 11(-3)(+4) Gyr and [Fe/H] = -1.95 +/- 0.15 dex. Cluster VII appears to be an analog of the metal-poor Galactic globular clusters. Cluster VI is found to be much younger and more metal-rich, with an age of approximately 2 Gyr. Its derived metallicity, [Fe/H] approximate to -1.0 dex, is comparable to that of the gas seen today in NGC 6822. The existence of a metal-poor old cluster in NGC 6822 rules out models for the chemical evolution of this galaxy with significant prompt initial enhancement. We find that a star formation rate that is constant with time and is within a factor of 2 of the present star formation rate can reproduce the two points on the age-metallicity relationship for NGC 6822 over the past 10 Gyr defined by these two clusters.