March | 2017 | jcroundtable.com

Thurs.30 Mar – Hidden in plain Sight –a Secret History: The Origins of NEWGRANGE-Dr. Robert HENSEY, Archaeologist

As we emerge from the darkness of winter, moving through the Equinox and into the growing light… Join in an ancient journey, the journey to Newgrange.

Newgrange, Brú na Bóinne, in the Boyne Valley in Ireland, dates to before 3000 b.c. It is a world-famous monument, not only because of its vast scale and elaborate megalithic art, but also because of its renowned alignment to the sun on the winter solstice. Yet it’s origins remain mysterious.

Robert Hensey uncovers an untold history, an island-wide story of a society that left behind a rich and enigmatic legacy. There are many passage tombs across Ireland which are older than Newgrange, from Carrowmore and Carrowkeel in Sligo, to Loughcrew in Meath. These demonstrate a long tradition of both extraordinary physical accomplishments, and tremendous acts of imagination.

Could an interest in an otherworld realm of the ancestors have been a central motivator in passage tomb construction? Did early small-scale monuments lead to the development of potent centres of ritual training at the edge of society? Was entering the darkened chambers of more sophisticated passage tombs imagined as a transforming experience?

What brought about the creation of the temple-like monuments at the very heart of the religious and political sphere, more than 5000 years ago, in Neolithic Ireland?
Join in a journey that still intrigues us today -the Journey to Newgrange!