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subedei — Wedge Tomb, Valentia Island
Published: 2010-02-27 02:15:46 +0000 UTC; Views: 1125; Favourites: 18; Downloads: 18
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Wedge Tomb, Valentia Island, Kerry, IrelandRight done a few of these now, so I suppose I should explain what they are. Wedge Tombs are neolithic burial chambers, one of four types in Ireland, they gain the name because they are shaped like a wedge. Other than Wedge tombs there are Portal tombs, court Tombs, and Passage Tombs here. A total of 1,200 neolithic tombs remain in Ireland.
Wedge Tombs are only found in Ireland, there are about 400 still standing, 200 of which are in the Munster region of Ireland. These were built over a 1,500 period in Ireland from 4000 to 2500 BC. Protected by superstition that these sites housed Fairies until the last 100 to 150 years when many have been lost to treasure hunters, human development and corruption by locals.
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Comments: 10
Interesting..Im suprised they are still standing (right?). I am curious as to what they other tombs look like. Do you know what types of people were buried in each type of tomb?
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Yep they are indeed still standing, some are in better condition than others, most arent marked, you would need to go out and find them, they are in places like fields and off the beaten track for the most part. But some are in great condition still. The best one is probably the Passage tomb Newgrange, built in 3200 BC about 600 years before Stonehenge and a 1000 before the first Pyramid:
[link]
[link]
In winter solstice the sun aligns with a hole in the roof of the tomb and illuminates all within. Its supposed to be beautiful but the numbers are limited to 50 each year, you need to apply to a lottery and random people get choosen every year, some people wait a long time to see it.
I dont think they know for sure who was buried within, the numbers of people inside are limited, long as I remember, and they are not sure if they royals or a choosen few to represent the whole village choosen by democratic vote. As it was so long ago and there was no written language at the time and the bodies were cremated we will probably never know for sure.
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Thanks alot Aidan, appreciated.
You heading to D&D next week?
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Hoping to. Bit of a cold at the mo, but should be gone in no time with some soup & hot one's =3
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Aye sex and soap makes most sickness evaporate 
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Nice drawing. And a very interesting story of their origin. Thanks for attaching the explaination. Barrie
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cheers Barrie, glad you liked the explaination, wasnt sure if any of this would be known outside of Ireland
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