Newgrange
This is a separate area, also of the same age. Able to venture inside but pictures disallowed. Ugg! This was constructed to permit a thin beam of sunlight to penetrate deep into the mound from 18-23 December. Folks surmise these dates were cheered as days then began to lengthen. The etching you see here was created by stone age folks (pre-metal) 5,200 years ago using one stone to etch another (very, very hard work). Knowing someone did this that long ago is the most impressive aspect of the entire site. BTW, these five ton stones were transported a bit over thirty miles before the wheel was invented. Yep, this description is long but here's something I sure did not know. The folks who constructed these massive burial mounds are long gone with not a trace of their DNA remaining in the modern Irish. Entirely replaced by people who migrated from eastern Europe. Yes, there were repeated massacres.
Celtic tribes arrived on the island between 600-150 B.C. Invasions by Norsemen that began in the late 8th century were finally ended when King Brian BORU defeated the Danes in 1014. English invasions began in the 12th century and set off more than se... ... read more 
