Newgrange is the most famous tomb at the Bru na Boinne site, a UNESCO World Heritage Site in Ireland. It contains over 40 passage graves, with Newgrange being the most important and visited. The tomb dates back to the 4th millennium BC and demonstrates advanced astronomical knowledge. The winter solstice illuminates the burial chamber floor for 17 minutes, displaying a sophisticated understanding of astronomy. Visiting during the winter solstice is popular and a lottery is set up to deal with the crowds. The site is associated with Irish mythology and the Tuatha De Danann.
Newgrange is the most famous Bru na Boinne tomb in Ireland. Le Bru na Boinne is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and has been since 1993. It is considered one of the most important megalithic sites in all of Europe, and is in excellent condition. It is probably the ultimate destination in Ireland and is often compared to Stonehenge in Great Britain.
The Bru na Boinne site contains more than forty passage graves, but of these Newgrange is by far the most important and most visited. The tomb dates back to the 4th millennium BC, predating the Great Pyramids by centuries and demonstrating an incredible knowledge of astronomy.
Newgrange is essentially a huge burial mound, covering more than an acre and reaching more than 40 meters in height. There is a marble facade leading to the tomb and combined with the rich verdant green of the Irish grass creates one of the most photogenic megalithic sites in the world.
Upon entering the Newgrange burial mound, one descends into a tunnel that pushes more than 60 feet (18 m) into the heart of the tomb. The tunnel ends in a cross-shaped burial chamber, with an arched roof reaching 20 feet (6 m). This roof has kept water out, and has stood, for more than 5,000 years, demonstrating the ingenuity and skill of its original architects.
One of the most notable features of Newgrange is astronomical in nature. On winter solstice day, the sun lines up perfectly with a special roof box above the tunnel entrance and shines the full 60 feet (18 m) to illuminate the burial chamber floor. It’s a profound thing to witness and displays a sophisticated understanding of astronomy. The sun shines into the chamber for about 17 minutes, starting just minutes after sunrise. Calculations show that at the time Newgrange was built, the time the sun hit the floor of the chamber would have been almost exactly dawn.
Visiting Newgrange during the winter solstice adds a bit of spice to the experience and as such is understandably a very popular event. To deal with the huge amount of people trying to enter the winter solstice, the authorities have set up a lottery. For those who don’t win the lottery, or who can’t make it on the solstice, a large light has been installed to replicate the position of the sun at the winter solstice, which comes on at the end of each tour of Newgrange to show what would see during the solstice itself.
The Bru na Boinne are named after the goddess Boann and are all, Newgrange included, associated with the fairy mounds that housed the Tuatha De Danann in Ireland’s mythical past. In some mythic cycles, Cuchulainn, the great hero, is also said to have been conceived at Newgrange.
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