merrion street

Kevin ‘Boxer’ Moran, TD, Minister of State with special responsibility for the Office of Public Works (OPW) and Flood Relief this morning, (21 December), welcomed the winners of the OPW Winter Solstice Lottery to Newgrange. Their prize granted them access to the Chamber this morning to witness the Winter Solstice but unfortunately the sun was obscured by cloud.  Nevertheless, the atmosphere at the Monument is weather-proof and all the visitors enjoyed the unique experience of Winter Solstice. The winners were from as far away as Canada, Italy, Norway and the United Kingdom.  They were joined at the Monument by a large group of media and onlookers, all seeking to share in the excitement of this unique event.

Speaking this morning Minister Moran said: “I am delighted to welcome the lucky winners of this very popular OPW Solstice Lottery competition to witness at first hand this archaeological phenomenon.  In September, these lucky winners were chosen by local school children from over 30,000 applications from all around the world. That some of the winners have come this week from as far afield as Belgium, Canada, Germany, Norway and the United States of America shows the continuing fascination the Solstice has the world over”.

Minister Moran went on to say “2019 was a phenomenal year for overseas tourism to the Island of Ireland and now with the addition of the new state of the art visitor experience here at the Brú na Bóinne visitor centre we will hopefully build on these numbers in 2020.  The new immersive visitor experience showcases the archaeological and historical heritage of Brú na Bóinne in a way that is evocative, absorbing and entertaining for visitors while increasing the capacity of visitors to the site and monuments. Finally, I would like to acknowledge the strategic partnership of Fáilte Ireland, Dept. of Culture Heritage and the Gaeltacht and the OPW for their investment in the new visitor experience which will help drive sustainable growth in the Irish tourism sector.  Further strategic plans are in place to work with Fáilte Ireland to enhance and improve the facilities on offer at other OPW sites over the coming years.”

Editor’s Note:

Winter Solstice:

Winter Solstice is an astronomical phenomenon which marks the shortest day and the longest night of the year.  In the Northern Hemisphere, the winter Solstice occurs on December 21 or 22, when the sun shines directly over the tropic of Capricorn; the summer Solstice occurs on June 20 or 21, when the sun shines directly over the tropic of Cancer.

Sunrise on the shortest days of the year begins at 8.58am and the light shines into the chamber for 17 minutes.  The Office of Public Works opens the monument early from December 18 until December 23 inclusive. General admission on those mornings is free of charge.