Early Bronze Age Tomb Rediscovered in Ireland

COUNTY KERRY, IRELAND—Traces of a 4,000-year-old tomb thought to have been destroyed in the nineteenth century have been found on southern Ireland’s Dingle Peninsula by folklorist Billy Mag Fhloinn, according to a report in The Guardian. The wedge tomb, known as Altóir na Gréine, or the sun altar, was sketched by an English aristocrat in 1838, but some 14 years later it was reported that the stones had been carried away from the site, presumably for building purposes. Mag Fhloinn filmed the site where the tomb was located as part of an archaeological mapping project, and then noticed a stone resembling one from the historic sketch while converting the video into a 3-D scan. Archaeologist Caimin O’Brien confirmed that a capstone and several large upright stones, which made up about one quarter of the original structure, survive at the site. “For the first time in over 180 years, archaeologists know where the tomb is situated and it will enhance our understanding of wedge tomb distribution,” O’Brien said. Most of the known wedge tombs in Ireland point west or southwest, toward the setting sun, Mag Fhloinn added. “They may be tied into their broader cosmological understanding of the world,” he explained. To read about Neolithic sites in western Ireland, go to "Off the Grid: Rathcroghan, Ireland."