Ireland’s Newgrange Tomb; A Megalithic Hub of Mystical Curiosity

Ireland’s Newgrange Tomb; A Megalithic Hub of Mystical Curiosity

Built 5200 years ago, and during the Neolithic period (tail end of the Stone Age), the Newgrange megalithic tomb was constructed with alternating layers of dirt and rock and infused with the mystical curiosities. This earthen temple is 600 years older than Egypt’s Giza Pyramids and 1000 years older than Stonehenge. The building of Newgrange is a remarkable architectural feat. And some say it’s within one of the most popular flight paths for UFOs.

With a mesmerizing entrance stone, the Newgrange passage and tomb are adorned with beautiful circles, spirals, and radials. While the purpose of this ancient art appears to be decorative, many spiritually-minded scholars believe these etchings to be energy-creating emblems or metaphoric icons that relate to the sun, moon, and stars.

Healers and empaths say that Newgrange has an etheric quality to it, with remnants of energetic bodies no longer living in this physical reality. They believe the site to be a reservoir of healing energy for all walks of life. 

Residents of the nearby Laytown say that unusual objects have been crisscrossing the night sky for as long as they can remember. More recently, unexplained crop circles have been appearing in neighboring areas. It seems the Gods are restless and trying to communicate.

Irish mythology might hold some of the secrets of Newgrange. Legend has it that the Tuatha Dé Danann, Gaelic for “People of the Goddess Danu,” are a supernatural race within whose ranks exist a pantheon of pre-Christian deities. Having lost a monumental battle to the righteous ancestors of today’s Irish, these otherworldly spirits became elusive, which is why they are now known as the “Aos Sí” or “fairies.” These light beings are fierce guardians of their homes. They are still accessible, helpful, and relied-upon today. 

Known to the ancients as “Síd in Broga” and “Brug Mac ind Óc,” Newgrange is Ireland’s most remarkable and famous prehistoric monument.

Who Built Newgrange?

Gaelic mythology tells us that the original Irish race (the “Milesians”) traveled to Ireland from Hispania. Hispania included Andorra, Portugal and Spain, and the British Crown colony of Gibraltar. When they arrived, they set their sites on defeating the powerful Tuatha Dé Danann. 

In the final throws of battle, the two warring parties agreed to divide Ireland between them. The Milesians took the physical world atop the earth’s crust, and the Tuatha Dé Danann were awarded the worlds and realms below, also known as, “The Underworld.” As time unfolded, the Tuath Dé became the worshiped, pagan gods of Ireland, still adored today. 

This suggests that the Tuatha Dé were the builders of Newgrange. They were known to be inventive farmers and passionate astronomers. They built a mound that’s 93 yards in diameter, 15 yards high, and covering an area of about 1 acre. Newgrange houses a passage that measures 21 yards which leads into a chamber consisting of 3 alcoves, all of which are perfectly aligned with the rising sun. 

This UNESCO World Heritage Site is surrounded by 97 massive kerbstones, some of which are decorated with enchanted engravings. Some say that the Newgrange stones can be used for healing and connecting with other realms.

Newgrange is part of a massive collection of sites that includes the Knowth (largest) and Dowth monuments, along with 35 smaller mounds. Visitors can access this ancient multiplex, known as “Brug na Bóinne,” via the visitor’s center of the same name.

What was the purpose of the megalithic tombs at Newgrange?

Archeologists classify Newgrange Ireland as a tomb with passageways. Meanwhile, many intuitives, spiritual seekers, and researchers believe the site to be an ancient temple, one filled with mystery. 

Not only was Newgrange of ceremonial importance, but it was also a portal built with energetic and astrological principles in mind. The site was a place a worship, prominence, and authority, akin to a mother church or cathedral. It accommodated many influential political and religious leaders would seek out light, magic, and blessings, and declare the spot for their final resting place.

Excavations of the site have revealed remnants of burned, human bones, indicating that at least a few human beings were first cremated and then buried here. While burial may have been one of the general uses of the site, it seems more likely that the predominant activity at Newgrange was the practicing of an astronomy-based faith. Some maintain that the Newgrange community were members of a cult focused on the deceased. 

megalithic tomb at newgrange

Megalithic passage tomb at Newgrange

Winter Solstice and Newgrange

The architects of Newgrange understood astronomy, as demonstrated during the Winter Solstice. This is when the rising sun illuminates the temple’s long passageway, into the primary, central chamber. The top box or roof box that rests above the main entrance is the lens through which the sun pours. Also notable is the presence of the Aurora Borealis, which hovered above Newgrange on Dec. 20th, 2015. 

Whether or not you’re a believer, most visitors to Newgrange beliefe that the site provides a divine connection to pagan royalty and deities. Even the original monks who farmed the grange in its early history believed the site’s mythologies to be equal in truth and power to the tenets of their Christian faith. 

If you’d like to tour Newgrange, you can visit the Brú na Bóinne Visitor Centre and hop on a 24-person shuttle bus. To experience the site’s Winter Solstice phenomenon, you can enter their annual lottery. Every year between December 18 and 23rd, 12 people are permitted to enter the temple’s holy chambers. 

Every year, local school children draw the 50 lucky names by hand. A reserve list is also drawn. Visitors who are not on these lists are welcome to stand outside the monument during the immersion of the Winter Solstice morning light. 

You can enter the lottery by filling out an application on the Brú na Bóinne website. Over 30,000 people applied in 2019. These magic seats are not transferable for any reason. 

Lugh: The Warrior-King of Newgrange

It appears that the spiritual father of Newgrange’s otherworld was Lugh Lámhfada, or “Lugh of the Long Arm,” named as such for his unmatched fighting abilities and spearing skills. Lugh, often equated with the Roman God, Mercury, was a member of the Tuatha Dé Danann, sometimes referred to as their most potent ruler and savior. 

Legend has it that Lugh and his mystical family are buried at Newgrange. Dagda Mór and his three sons are also believed to be entombed at this holy temple.

Newgrange has always been a special place. Even if you don’t subscribe to its mythology, historical records show that Newgrange once had endless supplies of ale and several abundant fruit trees. It was most likely a haven for regular community events, feasts, and celebrations. To connect with your ancient allies and some of the most potent pagan deities, call on Lugh and the Tuatha Dé at Newgrange.



Out of Place Artifacts; Who Really Discovered America?

Out of Place Artifacts; Who Really Discovered America?

There are a number of details that run counter to Christopher Columbus’ discovery of the Americas glossed over in our society’s dominant narrative. The fact that he wasn’t the first old world explorer to discover the Americas is often met with strong resistance, despite numerous out of place artifacts and unexplained archeology telling a different story. So, who discovered the Americas?

Did Columbus Discover America? 

The actual discovery of the Americas comes down to a matter of perspective. Obviously, the indigenous people already living in the Americas are the true discoverers, but from a European or old-world context the credit is mostly given to Columbus. But if the definition of making a discovery means understanding what you’ve found, did Columbus really discover America?

Columbus believed he had arrived in Asia and was interacting with the denizens of India, hence the name he gave them. He never understood that he had actually landed on an entirely different continent. But this is why America was named after Vespucci rather than being called Columbia, with his realized discovery a decade later.

It wasn’t until the 1960s that it became nationally recognized that a Norse explorer discovered the continent before these two Italian explorers. Leif Erikson and a small group of Icelanders landed in what is now modern-day Canada on the tip of Newfoundland. Erikson and company established a small settlement in a site called L’Anse aux Meadows, nearly 500 years before Columbus, in the year 1000.

 

Vinland map

The Vinland Map

 

For a long time, this Norse presence was disputed as myth, until there was so much conclusive archeological evidence that history had to be reconsidered. One of these artifacts, the Vinland Map, showed cartographic evidence of the Norse discovery, though its legitimacy is still debated, despite carbon dating placing it at least 50 years before Columbus’ discovery.

 

Out of Place Artifacts

There have been a number of anomalous finds suggesting that the Norse weren’t the only ones to have predated Columbus in discovering the new world, making it possible that even Erikson’s landing was predated.

A number of discoveries involving Roman artifacts have raised archeologists’ eyebrows throughout both of the Americas. Unsurprisingly, these too have experienced dismissal and cover-up.

In Brazil’s Guanabara Bay a sunken shipwreck was discovered appearing to be the remains of an ancient Roman ship. Among the submerged ruins were a number of large terracotta amphorae, tall jars that were made during the Roman empire.

The jars were dated between the 1st century BC and 3rd century AD, definitively proving their origin from the Roman Empire. This type of pottery was used to transport anything from wine, to olive oil, and grains.

 

out of place artifacts

 

Their discovery was made by marine archeologist and treasure hunter, Robert Marx, who turned over the jars to the Brazilian government, under the assumption that he would have the opportunity to return to the site and explore further. When he returned however, he found that the Brazilian Navy had dumped silt over the wreckage, literally covering up his discovery.

When Marx confronted the Brazilian government, he said he was told that Brazilians don’t care about the past and they don’t want to replace Pedro Alvares Cabral as the official European discoverer of the country.

Marx was also given a bizarre story by a Brazilian businessman who said that he had ordered a potter in Portugal to recreate the jars and had sunk them in the bay to “age” them, but had only recovered a few. This absurd story was less than convincing to Marx, while the government’s response added to his skepticism.

There is other evidence of a Roman presence in the Americas further north at the Calixtlahuaca Temple in the Toluca Valley just outside of Mexico City. There, archeologist Jose Garcia Payón found another terracotta artifact that appeared to come from the ancient Roman Empire.

Payon found the carved head of what experts say is a depiction of a Roman during the Hellenistic period, around 200 AD. The head was found underneath two cemented floors inside a pyramidal structure, that had remained intact since before the Calixtlahuaca civilization.

Though no one has definitively answered the question of how the terracotta head made it there, a study by Romeo Hristov and Santiago Genovés proved its antiquity through the use of thermoluminescence dating. The authors used the most conservative timespan in their paper, dating the head between 870 B.C. – 1270 A.D.

This broad range still went counter to the arguments of detractors who believed the head to have been created during colonial times, while lending to the argument that it must have been of Roman provenance. But how did this out of place artifact get there?

 

Roman Coin in North America

Several caches of Roman coins have been found buried throughout North America, dating back to the 16th century. This has led many to believe that it could be evidence of a pre-Columbian European presence. While numismatists and archeologists are often skeptical, it has led them to at least examine whether there could be any credibility to this theory.

A study conducted by Jeremiah Epstein, details 40 reports of anomalous coins found throughout the United States, with some appearing in Native American burial mounds.

 

Roman bronze coin

Roman Bronze Coin

 

Epstein noticed that the majority of coins found in excavations of land during construction or in backyards came from collectors or were deliberately placed as hoaxes. The discovery of several ancient Israeli shekels, known as Bar Kokhba coins, were one of the more intriguing findings as they were discovered in disparate locations throughout Kentucky.

These coins originally marked an Israeli rebellion against the Roman Empire and were only produced during a three-year period, from 132-135 AD. The coins turned out to be fraudulent or commemorative tokens given to Jewish immigrants, despite newspapers from the time of their discovery heralding them as being authentic.

Overall Epstein concluded that most of the coins were either lost in more modern times by numismatists or forged, but he was criticized by some colleagues for his negative and dismissive tone and that it was only a beginning for future study. What he did conclude was that there was a possibility that Roman ships may have drifted accidentally to the new world, but couldn’t necessarily be considered a probable explanation.

Though there was one man who set out to prove it was highly probable that old world explorers could make the journey across the ocean to the new world, whether accidentally or intentionally.

Thor Heyerdahl embarked on the Kon-Tiki expedition in 1947 to prove the possibility of a pre-Columbian journey, by constructing a raft made of materials only available during pre-Columbian times. Heyerdahl believed that pre-Columbian South Americans sailed and populated Polynesia, particularly Easter Island.

His expeditions proved that this would have been possible when the Kon-Tiki successfully sailed over 4,000 miles from Peru to French Polynesia. Heyerdahl’s success inspired similar expeditions between South America and Polynesia as well as another trip of his own from northern Africa to Barbados, to prove the ancient Egyptians might have had contact with pre-Columbian South American cultures.

With the physical feasibility proven and a plethora of evidence that pre-Columbian voyages were made, it seems that there may be more to the story than we’ve been told. This, combined with the number of out of place artifacts that have ben found in the Americas beg to ask who truly discovered the Americas. Is it just a matter of historical inconvenience or is there another reason that new world countries have trouble entertaining alternative timelines?

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