Although not as famous as its nearby relative at Newgrange, Knowth is however arguably a more important site as far as megalithic art is concerned and as a centre of important activity over a far longer period of time. Long after Newgrange slipped into an untidy mound, Knowth was used as a settlement for thousands of years and various dwellings were built around and even on top of the mound. The large main mound at Knowth is swarmed with smaller satellite tombs which are irregularly placed around it, some are thought to be older than the main mound itself because the kerb of the main mounds curves to avoid at least one satellite tomb.

Part of the main mound kerbing, the concrete shelf and retaining wall behind the stones is modern. Note the nearby satellite tomb, its entrance almost looks out at the entrance of the main mound.

Click on any photo for a larger view.

This circle of wooden posts is a reconstruction of a an arrangement of post holes found near the eastern entrance to the main Knowth tomb.

Almost every stone forming the kerb of the main mound is carved with fantastic designs, more cohesive in their form than Newgrange and most of the stones also seem to be themed to a particular design.

A fish-eye view of the main mound, though it has been stitched together using two wide angle shots.

One of the distinctively carved stones, you can see the individual pock-marks where the artist has chipped away at the stones surface using a stone 'hammer and chisel' action.

Looking up at the site from the river Boyne direction. For scale, the standing stone situated outside the west entrance just visible centre left is slightly taller than an average height person.

The western entrance with its standing stone. The main purpose for visiting the site late evening at the end of September was to view the shadow of this stone aligning with the vertical line cut into the entrance stone here. Unfortunately I was here too early and the shadow only fell on the far left of the stone.

The entrance to the eastern passage is now blocked, you can however see most of the way up the passage though an iron gate set behind the concrete wall, inside the mound.

Knowth passage tomb complex, Co. Meath.

Two satellite tombs.