The Brú na Bóinne World Heritage Site has added to its importance with further megalithic burial chambers discovered.

Archaeologists in Ireland made a major new discovery at the Brú na Bóinne World Heritage Site in July 2018, revealing a 5,500-year-old megalithic passage tomb cemetery that is being described as a "find of a lifetime."

Following research carried out by agri-technology company Devenish and University College Dublin School of Archaeology, two burial chambers have been discovered within the western part of the main passage tomb beside the 18th-century Dowth Hall in Co. Meath. The chambers were covered by a large stone cairn which was around 131 foot (40 meters) in diameter.

"For the archaeologists involved in this discovery, it is truly the find of a lifetime,” Dr. Clíodhna Ní Lionáin, Devenish's lead archaeologist for the project told RTÉ.

The archaeological research has also discovered six kerbstones which would have formed part of a ring of stones that followed the cairn perimeter. The cairn is a mound of rough stones built over the burial chamber as a landmark, whereas the kerbstones would have marked the outside of this mound. One of the kerbstones identified is heavily decorated with Neolithic carvings and is said to be one of the most impressive discoveries of megalithic art in Ireland for decades.

This latest discovery comes less than a week after major new finds in the Co. Meath Brú na Boinne prehistoric complex. With thanks to the drought caused by Ireland’s recent heatwave, historian and photographer Anthony Murphy last week discovered a henge up to 656 foot (200m) in diameter near Newgrange while flying a drone in the area.

"Myself and Ken Williams of Shadows and Stone imaged some very substantial and previously unrecorded features in the fields near Newgrange this evening," he wrote.

"They look like giant henges or enclosures, very similar in scale to Site P, and forming a row-of-three with P. Have a look at these very exciting photographs. If these turn out to be substantial discoveries, then I would be nothing short of utterly elated, chuffed and excited. We're already discussing them with an archaeologist and to say he's very excited is a huge understatement!"

For the rest of this article please use source link below