Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Outside Dublin
Dublin definitely dominates the tourism scene in Leinster, but there are many excellent sites
outside the city that are well worth a visit while you're in the area.
Neolithic Ireland
Newgrange Main Entrance
(photo credit: Clemensfranz via Wikimedia Commons)
What were the Irish Celts up to in the fourth millennium
BC
, when the Egyptians were busy
with their pyramids? It turns out they were building some pretty impressive monuments of
their own, though most are no longer standing. Eastern Ireland is full of archaeological sites
where these monuments are being unearthed, studied, and, in some cases, reconstructed.
Perhaps the best example is
Newgrange
, a UNESCO World Heritage Site in County Meath,
about 40 minutes' drive from Dublin. This site has been meticulously rebuilt into a perfect
replica of how archaeologists believe it looked 5,000 years ago, when it was new. The recon-
struction uses original stones from the site, so visitors can see the intricate, spiraling designs
of the Celtic religion carved into stones whose spiritual significance we can only guess at.
