Thread: The passage tomb at Newgrange is probably Ireland’s most iconic archaeological site & it is indelibly linked with the winter solstice. Photo: Tourism Ireland 
This date marks the shortest day of the year & it appears to have been a time of special significance for the builders of Newgrange. Indeed, the whole monument was designed around capturing the first rays of sunshine on this special morning. Photo: discoverboynevalley.ie/winter-solstic…
Due to the slope of the ground the floor of the passageway at Newgrange rises gradually as you journey from the entrance to the inner burial chamber. This means that the floor of the burial chamber is actually 2m higher than the floor at the entrance (Stout G, 2008, 'Newgrange')
As a result no light can reach the inner recesses of the tomb, which remain in nearly total darkness for most of the year. However on the 21st of December something very special occurs (and a number of days either side). Photo: Alan Betson/The Irish Times
As the sun rises above the horizon a single beam of sunlight creeps slowly up the tomb’s passageway until it reaches the dark confines of the burial chamber. The near perpetual darkness is broken & the inner & most sacred confines are illuminated (Photo: The Irish Times)
To ensure this solstice event occurred the tomb builders had to construct a special ‘roof box’ above the passageway. This was was in essence a stone lined window whose extra height allowed the sun’s rays to reach the very back of the tomb
The entire monument is modelled around this single beam of light and considerable planning must have gone into working out the exact time and angle of the solstice sunrise and how to capture its rays for maximum effect Photo newgrange.com/people-of-the-…
The winter solstice was obviously a very important date for the Newgrange builders. It marked the end of the old year & the start of the new one. A significant moment in the farming calendar, from this day on the days would gradually grow longer Photo independent.ie/life/six-thing…
Moreover, it may also have symbolically marked an important moment in the human life cycle. It is hard not see parallels with the old sun ‘dying’ on this day & the new one being ‘born anew’ & a human belief system based on the principle that people would similarly be reborn
Today we can only speculate on why the builders of Newgrange put such emphasis on the winter solstice sunrise. However, there is no denying that 5000 years later there is still a sense of magic and wonderment when the darkest recesses of Newgrange light up on the 21st of December
