Newgrange and the Bend of the Boyne

by Geraldine Stout

Overview

The first offshoot of the internationally successful "Atlas of the Irish Rural Landscape," "Newgrange and the Bend of the Boyne" is the exploration of an outstanding archaeological landscape centered on Newgrange Passage Tomb and its greater environs. In ancient times it was called the Brugh na Boinne. Today this area is designated as a World Heritage site and is Ireland's first protected Archaeological Park. Its rich fertile soils and south-facing slopes are set in County Meath in the most accessible, low-lying part of Ireland, close to the Irish Sea. This is where the great pre-historic tomb-building tradition of Atlantic Europe reached its zenith. It is where legend says the foundations of Irish Christianity were laid and is also the home of Ireland's first medieval Cistercian monastery at Mellifont. On the banks of the Boyne in 1690 one of the most important battles in Irish history was fought.



The Bend of the Boyne had a pivotal role to play in Irish history and this is evident in its abundant physical remains, which can be traced among its fields and riverbanks. Through the interpretation of these remains this book presents an understanding of how this landscape was organized and exploited by communities over seven thousand years of settlement. This book draws heavily on the results of an extensive program of excavation at Knowth, Newgrange and Monknewtown and archaeological survey, which has greatly increased our knowledge of prehistoric societies. Using a wide range of maps, color photographs and historic as well as new drawings, it traces the gradual evolution of the landscape to the present day. The book is also concerned with the future of this protected cultural landscape and recommends actions to ensure its protection and preservation.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781859183410
Publisher:	Cork University Press
Publication date:	01/31/2003
Series:	Atlas Series , #10
Pages:	233
Product dimensions:	9.25(w) x 11.75(h) x 1.10(d)

About the Author

Geraldine Stout is an archaeologist with the Archaeological Survey of Ireland, Department of Arts, Culture and the Gaeltacht. She assisted on the excavations at Knowth and Newgrange and has undertaken postgraduate and doctoral research on the Boyne valley. She is the author of Newgrange and the Bend of the Boyne (Cork, 2002).

Table of Contents

	Preface and Acknowledgements	vi
	The Bend of the Boyne	2
	The Prehistoric Landscape	18
	Newgrange Passage Tomb	40
	Knowth Passage Tomb	48
	Dowth Passage Tomb	54
	Newgrange Pit Circle	58
	Monknewtown Henge	60
	Heroes and Saints: The Early Historic Landscape	62
Case Study 1	Landscape Development at Newgrange	82
	Monks and Knights: The Medieval Landscape	84
Case Study 2	Landscape Development at Monknewtown	104
	'Briseadh na Boinne': Battles on the Boyne	106
	Eighteenth-Century Economic Boom	124
Case Study 3	Landscape Development at Oldbridge	144
	Buildings in the Nineteenth-Century Landscape	146
Case Study 4	Landscape Development at Donore	164
	The Modern Landscape	166
Case Study 5	Landscape Development at Dowth	178
	The Challenge of Change	180
	Boyne Valley Envisioned	190
	Appendix 1	206
	Endnotes and Bibliography	212
	Index	228

Editorial Reviews

"Dowth, Knowth, Newgrange--over 7000 years of human art and artefact--are but a few of the treasures to be found on the valley of the Boyne. Through this ancient valley with its own fascinating physiographic history, each successive wave of human occupance has deposited landscape evidence of its lifeways, beliefs and symbols. Tara, Rossnaree, Cormac Mac Airt--from pre-historic legend and archaeological record through the well-documented episodes of Saint Patrick, Norse and Saxon, Mellifont monks and medieval merchants, battles of the Boyne, Cromwellian surveys and settlers, rich eighteenth century estates to twentieth century agribusiness--it is all here, Ireland's entire story in microcosm--including, of course, illustrations of its literary and artistic representations. Geraldine Stout's "Newgrange and the Bend of the Boyne" is a truly delightful read. With its splendid graphic illustrations and ingenious cartography serving succinct vignettes from cultural history, this book... Is historical geography at its best."

Anne Buttimer

"Dowth, Knowth, Newgrange--over 7000 years of human art and artefact--are but a few of the treasures to be found on the valley of the Boyne. Through this ancient valley with its own fascinating physiographic history, each successive wave of human occupance has deposited landscape evidence of its lifeways, beliefs and symbols. Tara, Rossnaree, Cormac Mac Airt--from pre-historic legend and archaeological record through the well-documented episodes of Saint Patrick, Norse and Saxon, Mellifont monks and medieval merchants, battles of the Boyne, Cromwellian surveys and settlers, rich eighteenth century estates to twentieth century agribusiness--it is all here, Ireland's entire story in microcosm--including, of course, illustrations of its literary and artistic representations. Geraldine Stout's "Newgrange and the Bend of the Boyne" is a truly delightful read. With its splendid graphic illustrations and ingenious cartography serving succinct vignettes from cultural history, this book... Is historical geography at its best."

From the Publisher