Although the nearby mounds at Knowth feature far more megalithic art, and is a larger more complex site, Newgrange has become world famous after observations made during excavations cofirmed what local folklore had always attested.
The small aperture above the door of the entrance with its intriguing carved lintel, though it is pretty inconspicuous, allows one of the worlds first known solar observatories to function with amazing accuracy today as it has done for the past 6,000 years. The midwinter sunrise on the shortest day of the year shines through this aperture, up the sloping passageway and into the very heart of the inner chamber 19 metres inside the mound. The thin ribbon of light allows the observer to determine the traditional festival at winter solstice with stunning accuracy.

Although the nearby mounds at Knowth feature far more megalithic art, and is a larger more complex site, Newgrange has become world famous after observations made during excavations cofirmed what local folklore had always attested.
The small aperture above the door of the entrance with its intriguing carved lintel, though it is pretty inconspicuous, allows one of the worlds first known solar observatories to function with amazing accuracy today as it has done for the past 6,000 years. The midwinter sunrise on the shortest day of the year shines through this aperture, up the sloping passageway and into the very heart of the inner chamber 19 metres inside the mound. The thin ribbon of light allows the observer to determine the traditional festival at winter solstice with stunning accuracy.