stones historical ireland

One of the great wonders of the ancient world, Newgrange is older than Stonehenge, Mycenae or even the pyramids in Egypt. Brú na Bóinne Visitor Centre is the starting point for a tour of Newgrange....

Two Ogham stones standing in an enclosure composed of an earthen ditch which also contained an iron-smelting pit. The inscriptions on the tow stones read: COLLABOT MUCOI LUGA MAQI LOBACCONA (Collabot son of Lug son of Lobchu) MEDUSI MACI LU (later corrected to )MUCOI LUGA. A third stone with the inscription RITUVVAS has been removed to the National Museum of Ireland in Dublin....

The Goles Alignment is a group of 11 standing stones that run exactly North-South....

This gigantic monolith is the tallest and most remarkable of several 'long stones' in Co. Kildare. Now standing 19 feet high, it was re-erected in 1934, having toppled from its tilted position three years earlier. Its overall length measured on the ground was 23 feet and its weight was calculated at 9.22 tons. A Bronze Age cist was uncovered at the foot of the monument. Many such pillarstones are thought to mark burials, but few have been excavated....

A standing stone 7 feet high. On the west face is a cross with a V-shaped ornament beneath it, and on the east face is a cross and four concentric circles. These last have been thought to belong to the art of the megalithic tombs; the stone however probably belongs to the Early Christian period....

The White Stone of Kilcroagh is a mystical standing stone of white quartz on the outskirts of Castlederg....

This tall granite stone tapering to a height of 23 feet is one of the finest examples of its type in the country. When it fell and was re-erected in 1930, it was found to have a Bronze Age burial at its base....

The length of trail is 8km (5 miles). The actual walking will take you 2 - 2.5 hours, but there is a lot to see on the Trail, so you should allow 4 - 5 hours if you are to enjoy it fully.

The route is marked by yellow arrows on limestone plaques, with an occasional - walking man - symbol. There are stiles wherever you need to cross a wall....

A 9ft high pillar stone with crosses on two faces in suitably named Giantsgrave off the N24. Signposted....

A standing stone which tradition associates with the death of CuChulainn, the legendary hero of the old Irish saga, the Tain Bo Cuailgne. When CuChulainn was dying of his wounds which he got while trying to ward off the army of Queen Maeve of Connacht single-handed, he tied himself to this stone. while he was still alive his enemies kept their distance. It was only when a raven came and rested on his shoulder that they knew he was dead. The scene is commemorated in a statue standing in the G...