Newgrange is the oldest and most mysterious structure on the planet
The oldest religious building is located in Europe. The name of this unique attraction is Newgrange, and it is located just 40.5 kilometers from Dublin. Every year, more than 250,000 people come to see the oldest building, which in ancient times served as a cult place, and where one of the world's first stone tombs is located.
Without exaggeration, this structure can be called unique: firstly, it is still not entirely clear with the help of what technologies it was built, and secondly, scientists to this day are tormented by the question of who the ancient astronomers were, who were able to calculate with extreme accuracy the course of our luminary. Newgrange, according to research by archaeologists and specialists conducting carbon analysis, has proven that the ancient cult site appeared on our planet, according to the most modest estimates, in 3000 BC! Newgrange is now just over 5,000 years old, but it still attracts a huge number of people.
To understand how ancient Newgrange is considered to be, one can make a comparison with other, no less mysterious structures on our planet: for example, a cult building near Dublin is at least 500 years older than the Egyptian pyramids. By the way, even if you compare Newgrange and Stonehenge, the difference in their age will be just over 1,000 years. True, these two structures, the true purpose of which is still unknown, have a lot in common, but this should be discussed in more detail below.
Newgrange - the history of the discovery of a cult building
Initially, according to archaeologists, Newgrange served as a place where ancient people worshiped their gods. Over time, it grew: new elements and branches appeared. Surprisingly, no traces of housing have been found nearby a place sacred to ancient people. This says only one thing, people came to worship Newgrange, they did not live near him. True, several burials of people were found very nearby, according to the state of their skeleton, scientists determined that they were most likely workers who were building a long corridor and a mysterious chamber. “Why was the complex abandoned and forgotten?” - no modern scientist has an answer to this question. Some experts put forward a version that, due to its massiveness, the Newgrange complex began to sag and soon disappeared underground. Theory maybeand would deserve attention, if not for one "but". Why did the ancient people not restore it, because the technologies they possessed allowed them not only to move huge stone slabs, but also to calculate the motion of cosmic bodies with extreme accuracy? At this level of development, it would be quite easy to restore the sinking Newgrange …
Whatever it was, most likely, the answer to the question: "Why did Newgrange disappear underground?" - will never be found. The history of the discovery of a cult place in Ireland begins in 1688: at that time, the lands near Dublin were owned by a wealthy farmer Charles Campbell. His workers were engaged in the cultivation of the land and looked for stones in these places for the construction of various structures. While searching for building materials, the servant came across what he initially thought was a stone cave. After exploring this "cave", he realized that he was dealing with some kind of structure hidden underground and having a long corridor built by human hands. This find was immediately reported to the owner. Charles Campbell personally came to Newgrange and realized that there was some "incomprehensible and mystical" cult place on his land. Campbell was far from science and reported about the cave with a corridor to his friend Edward Luid, who at that time was known in the area as an authoritative antiquarian, historian and philosopher. Luid quickly realized the significance of this find and communicated it to scientists. He said that he was the discoverer of a prehistoric tomb, which is sure to store untold wealth.
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Newgrange - unanswered questions
No riches were found in Newgrange: but the stone slabs, which were located in almost the same order as in the territory of Stonehenge, aroused great interest among historians. True, in those ancient times there were no tools that would allow large-scale excavations. In the 18th century, an archaeologist suggested that the "Cave of the Sun", as he called it, was built by the Celts. However, in those days, such a thing as carbon analysis, which allows you to accurately determine the time of the appearance of an object, did not yet exist.
Archaeological research began only in 1962. Michael J. O'Kelly supervised the restoration of the oldest monument of human civilization on earth. As a result of the work carried out, it was possible to establish that Newgrange has a height of thirteen and a half meters, and its diameter is 85 meters. The corridor inside the oldest grave is just over 19 meters long. It is this corridor that leads to the burial chamber.
The Newgrange burial chamber is a true phenomenon. It contains blocks set by man: the "lightest" of them weighs 20 (!) Tons, and the heaviest - more than 40. Explain how 5,000 years ago these monoliths were brought here and then put in a certain order, does not seem possible. It is also interesting that these huge boulders, as mentioned above, almost completely resemble the shape of Stonehenge. The only difference is that Newgrange is covered with a roof. By the way, after the opening of this burial chamber, many historians expressed the opinion that Stonehenge at one time also had a roof. However, no official evidence has yet been found in favor of this version. The roof of Newgrange consists mostly of an embankment. Surprising, and again, inexplicable:what technologies were used in the construction of this roof, which, even 5,000 years after its appearance over the stone blocks, still does not allow even a drop of water to pass through. By the way, all the stones of the mound are interconnected in an incomprehensible way: the ancient masters did not use mortar, they just fitted the blocks so tightly to each other that it was impossible to even insert a blade between them.
Michael J. O'Kelly, in addition to completely unearthing perhaps the oldest grave on the planet (it is not known how many mysteries and secrets are still hidden under the ground and at the bottom of the oceans), decided to strengthen it with quartzite. The outer part of the embankment wall was coated with mortar, on which the wall was attached. According to the scientist, such a fortification was supposed to prevent the destruction of Newgrange. Immediately after the construction of the wall began, negative statements about the work of the archaeologist appeared in the press in the United Kingdom. According to scientists, the ancient structure should remain in its original form. Although, in all fairness, the prim English and Irish were more "touched" not by the construction of the wall itself, but by quartzite and granite, which were brought from another area. Residents of Foggy Albion have always been jealous of their land and their sights. Let's face it, Newgrange's new wall, although it prevented landslides, still looks like a foreign body in a green meadow.
The burial chamber, and some historians argue that this is just a place of worship, not a tomb, is a room in which a ritual bowl is located, on top it is covered with a hexagonal dome. By the way, the height of this dome is 6 meters! In the walls of this room, holes are carved, decorated with patterns from symbols that have not yet been deciphered. However, the greatest surprise is not even the impossibility of deciphering the ancient symbols, but the fact that they are found in many places on our planet, in particular, in some Mayan pyramids!
As mentioned above, a tunnel just over 19 meters long leads to this cult room or burial chamber. It is directed not to the east, but to the southeast, to be very precise, to the place where the sun appears from the horizon on the day of the winter solstice. Above its entrance is the very small window through which light floods the main room of Newgrange on the shortest day of the year. By the way, a bright light in a room with a ritual bowl can be observed for a very short time, about 19 minutes. Some say that the one who touches this light becomes purer and receives tremendous power. Whether this is true or not, only those who have visited the burial chamber on the winter solstice can say.
In addition to the fact that Newgrange itself is an amazing and inexplicable structure, its entire surrounding area is associated with numerous legends and myths. Even in ancient documents, it is noted that strange huge luminous balls were recorded in this area. Irish people, who are introduced to fairy tales from childhood, believe that fairies constantly visit the territory of Newgrange. By the way, in many tourist avenues, the Irish mound is also called "the hill of fairies". There are bold assumptions that the ancient structure was built by people with the help of representatives of alien civilizations. Explaining how this highly accurate observatory was built 5,000 years ago is even more difficult than how the Egyptian pyramids were built. Even with the current level of technology development, it is quite difficult to calculate and build something like Newgrange.
There is even a legend today that some gods (UFO researchers call them aliens) entered the war with humanity and were defeated in it. One god decided not to interrupt communication with the earth: for himself and other gods, he built mounds, in each of which, under certain conditions, you can be transported to another world. In what world - remains a mystery, the answer to which, by the way, can be shed by the decoding of the symbols that adorn Newgrange.
Newgrange - tourist information
If the paths brought the traveler to Dublin, he should definitely take the time and visit the legendary Newgrange. True, only a very happy person will be able to observe the bright light in the chamber of the ancient burial ground: the number of tourists participating in the lottery, winning in which gives the right to observe the rays of the sun in Newgrange on the winter solstice, is growing every year. The trip from Dublin to the oldest observatory, place of worship or burial ground takes less than an hour by car.
In 1993, the now legendary Irish mound was included in the UNESCO World Heritage List. By the way, it is described in this list as the oldest, largest and most significant monument of human history in Europe!