Exploring Loughcrew Cairns: Ancient Neolithic Tombs and Artwork

Welcome back folks! Over the weekend I made the trip down to Loughcrew to visit the Loughcrew Cairns. These cairns are ancient tombs that were built all the way back in 3200BC - 2900BC and are estimated to be over 5000 years old! They were built during the Neolithic Period (4000BC - 2500BC) and contain a number of different and incredibly rare pieces of artwork that date back to this time period. 

Loughcrew Cairns View

The Cairns

The cairns themselves, 32 in total, are spread across 4 different hills (Carnbane West, Carrickbrack, Carnbane East & Patrickstown) with all of them having unique designs, artwork and features. They were used as sacred burial grounds and are used to celebrate ancestors, gods and nature by those local to the area.

Loughcrew Cairns - loughcrewmegalithiccentre.com

Cairn T

The largest cairn, Cairn T, is the most popular cairn to visit due to it being one of the largest as well as having a number of different pieces of artwork, carvings and other notable features located both in and around the cairn. For example, "The Hag's Chair" located just outside Cairn T is a great example of some of the carvings and artwork from the Neolithic Period as the "chair-like" stone displays a number of different circular carvings on its side. Another feature of Cairn T is the piece of white quartz on the ground outside the cairn. Originally, the cairns were covered in white quartz however, over time, the quartz has been worn away and now only a small amount remains visible. Two of the hills that the cairns are located on (Carnbane East & Carnbane West) are anglicised versions of the phrase Carn Bán meaning white quartz which references the aforementioned white quartz that was previously used when building the cairns.

Cairn T Chamber - heritageireland.ie

Equinox Festival

An Equinox Festival is a celebration or gathering that celebrates the time of year when the number of day-time and night-time hours are almost equal in length. This celebration takes place around March 21st and September 23rd and large groups gather every year to celebrate the occasion. On these dates, the sun perfectly aligns with the passageway in Cairn T and as a result, the sun illuminates the decorated back stone in the cairn highlighting the impressive carvings and artwork on display. This alignment marks the halfway point between the winter and summer solstice and is an incredible piece of design.

Equinox Festival - loughcrewmegalithiccentre.com

Overall, I would highly recommend for everyone to visit the Loughcrew Cairns as they are an incredible piece of history as well as having extremely fascinating pieces of artwork that are over 5000 years old. Despite the steep walk up to the cairns, it is 100% worth it as the view at the top is definitely worth it. On a clear day, it is possible to see the likes of Slieve Gullion, the Dublin & Wicklow mountains and even the Mourne mountains in County Down.

Thanks for reading folks, all the best!