Island of the Setting Sun: In Search of Ireland's Ancient Astronomers (2020 edition)

Ireland is home to some of the world’s oldest astronomically-aligned structures, giant stone monuments erected over 5,000 years ago. Despite their apparent simplicity, these megalithic edifices were crafted by a scientifically knowledgeable community of farmers who endeavoured to enshrine their beliefs in a stellar afterlife within the very fabric of their cleverly-designed stone temples.

Finally back in print, this reissued edition presents evidence suggesting the builders of monuments such as Newgrange and its Boyne Valley counterparts were adept astronomers, cunning engineers and capable surveyors. Their huge monuments are memorials in stone and earth, commemorating their creators’ perceived unity with the cosmos and enshrining a belief system which resulted from a crossover between science and spirituality.

As investigation of this awe-inspiring civilisation of people continues on many levels, evidence is emerging that significant archaeological sites dating from deep in prehistory are linked – not just through mythology, archaeology and cosmology – but through an arrangement of complex, and in some cases astonishing, alignments. Some of these alignments of ancient sites stretch from one side of Ireland to another.

Join us on this fascinating exploration of stones, stars and stories.

“The sheer amount of information contained within the book is mind-boggling. It is well thought out and structured . . . The more you read the evidence the more convinced you become.” – Astronomy & Space magazine

“Refreshing and fascinating . . . a wonderful magical book, sumptuously illustrated and a must for anyone who loves to delve deep into our past.” – Kenny’s Irish Bookshop

About the Authors

ANTHONY MURPHY is a journalist, author, photographer, astronomer and tour guide who lives in Drogheda in the Boyne Valley, close to the great monuments of Brú na Bóinne. He runs the website www.mythicalireland.com. He is married to Ann and they have five children. Other titles by Anthony Murphy:

Newgrange: Monument to Immortality

Land of the Ever-Living Ones

The Cry of the Sebac

Mythical Ireland: New Light on the Ancient Past

Dronehenge: The Story Behind the Remarkable

Discovery at Newgrange

RICHARD MOORE is an artist, working mainly in oils and acrylics, who has been painting the ancient sites of the Boyne Valley region for over three decades. He has exhibited at the Brú na Bóinne Visitor Centre and the headquarters of the Department of Heritage in Dublin among other venues. He runs popular a s popular art classes from his studio in Drogheda.