A Monumental History

Newgrange & Stonehenge.

 The Taj Mahal is by far the most beautiful and romantic

 monument there is, but the oldest monument known to us

 is called Newgrange, located at Newgrange in the County

 of Meath on the east coast of Ireland. When it was unearthed

 in 1699 by men looking for building stone, Newgrange

 was described as a cave. Since then it has been attributed

 to the Danes, thought to be a tomb of the kings of Tara who

 lived in the first centuries of the Christian era. It is even

 considered to be a remote descendant of the beehive

 tombs at Mycenae. In fact, it is far older than Mycenae

 and older even than Stonehenge or the pyramids. Newgrange,

 celebrated in Irish literature as the Brugh (abode) of Boyne,

 is a megalithic passage grave dating back to 3200 B.C., and

 it offers clear evidence that a technically competent,

 sophisticated Neolithic society was flourishing in the Boyne

 Valley at that time.

 A passage - 3 feet wide, 55 feet long and lined

 and roofed with great monoliths - leads to a central

 chamber with three arms. The height of the passage

 varies from less than 5 feet at the front to twice this

 at the chamber entrance. The chamber and passageway

 are covered by a cairn estimated to contain 220,507

 tons of loose stone. The whole structure was sealed with

 a ring of standing stones to prevent water penetration .

 The monument is a tomb for only five bodies - a mystery

 in itself. At the turn of the year the sun shines

 into a small opening above the passage door for 17 minutes

 - a common design feature of ancient monuments and

 graves. Newgrange is by far the oldest memorial structure

 on earth. It is in the Boyne Valley, an area strangely rich

 with prehistoric monuments.

 Most prehistoric monuments like Newgrange reek

 of mystery and awe. Among the most notable is England's

 Stonehenge. Complete exhumations have never been achieved

 at Stonehenge, so there is no evidence of it being a grave or cemetery.

There Is just one grave and It lies at the entrance to the complex.

 It dates back to 3100 B.C. But that is only

 its beginning. The famous standing stones we see

 today were not erected until after 2100 B.C., 

 at which time Stonehenge was already considered an

 ancient monument! Whatever Stonehenge was

 is lost to history. However, studies do indicate that

 the monument was worked and crafted from generation to

 generation far into modern history, and at various times it may

 have been a shrine or even a market place, for all we know.

 It rates as a monument simply because it is there and

 stands speaking to us as a witness of a past generation,

 though no one knows just what it is saying.

Part 2, The Taj Mahal. | Part 3, Newgrange & Stonehenge. | Part 4, Nile Valley. | Part 5, Persepolis. | Part 6, Parthenon. | Part 7, Pont Du Gard. | Part 8, The Colosseum & St. Augustine & MASONS. | Part 9, Renaissance. | Part 10, Miss Liberty. |

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