Newgrange Historical Facts and Pictures

Located in County Meath, Ireland, the prehistoric monument of Newgrange is even older than the Egyptian pyramids and Stonehenge in England. Built around 3200 BC, this Neolithic monument consists of a huge spherical mound with interior chambers and a stone passageway. Now a UNESCO World Heritage Site, Newgrange is the most celebrated monument within the Brú na Bóinne complex. The site has been part of many Irish folktales and mythology.

Newgrange Map

Newgrange Map

Newgrange

Newgrange Images

Newgrange Pictures

Structural description of Newgrange

The main structure is centered on a large mound that is constructed with alternating layers of stone and earth. Covering 4,500 square meters of ground, the kidney shaped mound is encircled by a standing stone circle. An entry point on the southeastern part of the monument leads to a 19-metered long chambered passage. Three small chambers of a large central chamber are located at the end of the chambered passage. Each small chamber contains a large flat basin stone.

Newgrange Entrance

Entrance of Newgrange

Newgrange Entrance

Inside of Newgrange

Inside of Newgrange

Newgrange Inside Passageway

Newgrange Inside

Art and Architecture

The site displays various Neolithic rock-art decorations that can be distinguished into ten categories according to curvilinear and rectilinear forms. The five curvilinear forms are consisted of spirals, circles, dot-in-circles, arcs and serpentiniforms, whereas the five rectilinear forms include chevrons, radials, lozenges, offsets and parallel lines. The triskele like designs carved in the entrance stone is the most remarkable artwork of Newgrange.

The open roof-box above the passage entrance allows the chamber and passage to be flooded by sunlight around the Winter Solstice. A slender beam of sunlight penetrates the chamber floor, gradually reaching to the rear passage. The beam widens up with the rising of the sun and dramatically illuminates the whole room. The site was first studied by the antiquarians in the 17^th century, and archaeological excavations started soon after that. Regarded as one of the most significant megalithic constructions in Europe, it is now a popular tourist site.

Newgrange Stone Age Passage Tomb