Megalithic art stone found during M3 works
Irish Times
3 December
2007
A decorated stone bearing megalithic art similar to that at
Newgrangeand Knowth has been found incorporated into part of an early
historicsouterrain being dismantled as part of the M3 archaeological works
inthe vicinity of the henge at Lismullin, in the Gabhra Valley, Co
Meath.
The nearest example of megalithic art is to be found in the
passage tomb of the Mound of the Hostages on the summit of the Hill of
Tara, which bears a similarity to that found in this monument.
The decorated
stone was noticed on Friday last by campaigners who oppose the building of
a motorway near Tara.
The art, which possibly dates to around 3,000BC,
exhibits a series of motifs commonly found in passage tomb contexts -
concentric circles,nested arcs and zig-zags and is similar to a stone
removed from a nearly passage tomb centuries ago.
The excavation of
the henge and the souterrain continues and will probably be completed before
Christmas. This will allow the National Roads Authority to begin the
construction phase of the
motorway.
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click for more pictures of the stone |
