For 5,000 years, people have been welcoming the sun at Loughcrew for the autumn equinox.
Loughcrew is the site for a megalithic cemetery near Oldcastle in north Meath. The site has passage tombs, which contain some of the best examples of art dating from the Neolithic period in western Europe.
One of them, Cairn T, is aligned to catch the rays of the rising sun at the autumn and spring equinox, the halfway mark between the summer and winter solstice.
Clare Tuffy from the Office of Public Works (OPW) explains how the stone carvings made five thousand years ago were of significance and may have been used in counting the days that the sun went into decline.
Rock art expert Tony Hopkins describes how the elaborate geometric patterns and concentric circles would have been carved onto the surface of the stone using a large flint.
Over the next two days, the OPW will facilitate visitors to the site for the autumn equinox, but they are advised to,
Turn up well before sunrise.
An RTÉ News report broadcast on 20 September 2005. The reporter is Richard Dowling.
