on, as it was the retaining structure for the stones, sods and earth that made up the body of the mound. The corbelled roof over the chamber might have been constructed as the level of the mound built up allowing access to gradually higher levels.


Decorated Stones at Newgrange


At Newgrange the entrance stone is covered in a curvilinear pattern, which emphasises the size of the stone. A groove at the top centre lines up with the entrance and the roof box. Left of the groove is a triple spiral and beyond this, a series of lozenges covers the end of the stone. Right of the centre, two double spirals sit on top of a wave pattern that connects back to the triple spiral. Lozenges, curves and zigzags cover the right-hand end of the stone (Fig. 20.19).


Kerbstone 52, at the opposite side of the mound, has a more varied range of patterns. It is divided into two parts by a groove down the centre. The upper half of the left side has a double spiral, a small spiral and arcs with cupmarks at each side. Below this, lozenges have been carved into the surface, leaving raised outlines. A row of chevrons makes a border at the bottom. The right side is dominated by three ovals with alternately raised and hollowed outlines, each with three cupmarks across the centre.


Triple spiral Lozenges


Ovals with three cupmarks inside


Arcs


Figure 20.20 Newgrange kerbstone 52.


A series of arcs that connects with these ovals covers most of the remaining surface (Fig. 20.20).


Analysis


Study the techniques and materials that were available to the artists of the stone age. Try to work out out the reasons for the work and the range of images they used.


Decorated lintel


Light box Entrance


Double spiral


Lozenges Triple spiral Figure 20.19 Newgrange entrance stone and light box. 296


Passage mounds seem to have been so much more than graves for our ancestors. The sheer scale of the commitment from the Stone Age people who spent generations constructing them must have made them the most important thing in the lives of the community. They were the largest structures in the country for thousands of years and were the source of legends. The earliest records describe Brú na Bóinne as the home of the Tuath Dé Danann, the ancient Irish gods descended from the skies to inhabit Ireland. In later generations, they were thought to be the burial places of ancient kings.


The number of cremated remains inside the passage mounds is relatively small in relation to the size of the community and the length of time the mounds were in use. This might mean that only very special members of the community were buried there or that they were ritual or sacrificial burials.


NEW APPRECIATING ART IRELAND AND ITS PLACE IN THE WIDER WORLD


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