Newgrange is the Irish passage tomb aligned with the winter solstice sunrise.
Built in the Neolithic period, Newgrange is the best-known monument in the Brú na Bóinne complex in County Meath. Its large circular mound encloses a long passage leading to a cruciform chamber, where human remains and megalithic art have been found.
At midwinter, sunrise enters through a specially designed opening called a roofbox above the entrance. The narrow beam travels down the passage and illuminates the chamber floor for roughly 17 minutes. The effect appears to have been carefully engineered, although the monument’s exact religious purpose remains uncertain.
Newgrange is often confused with Knowth and Dowth because all three are major passage tombs in the Boyne Valley. They are not interchangeable: Newgrange is famous for its winter-solstice sunrise illumination, while other monuments have different orientations and astronomical associations. The tomb dates to about 3200 BC, making it older than both Stonehenge and Egypt’s earliest pyramids.