A wee gem from Colm Toibin set at the Winter Solstice. An archaeologist visits an ancient site in Ireland where spirits from the past reside.143 s Paromjit2,880 25.3k

This is a wonderfully atmospheric short story from Colm Toibin set in Ireland, featuring a man of reason and logic, who puts his faith in facts and evidence, entertaining no speculations or fantasies, the archaeologist Professor O'Kelly from Cork. He is writing his notes on a passage tomb from the Neolithic period around 3200BC on a site above the River Boyne at Newgrange. Over time, he has become obsessive about the sacred burial chamber, taking down every small detail and drawings of the carvings of spirals and lines. Despite his logical persona, something within him feels the complexity and a great presence within the chamber, and in the days before Christmas travels there, planning to stay at a hotel and go to the burial chamber. Some locals harbour knowledge of the secrets of the winter solstice but keep their silence of the mysteries of the dead and the dead whisper among themselves. O'Kelly finds himself facing obstacle after obstacle, will he become privy to ancient secrets? Many thanks to Amazon Original Stories for an ARC.literary-fiction mystery netgalley ...more134 s1 comment Peter472 2,574

Illumination
Let me tell you about an ancient monument at Brú na Bóinne near Drogheda, Ireland, about 50 miles from where I live, called Newgrange. The monument is a large dome structure, built with stone that was carried from up to one hundred miles away, each shaped, and placed with precision to maintain a roof, covered in grass, that remained intact and waterproof since 3200 BC (well that’s a wishful extrapolation. Anyway, it has remained watertight when the visitors centre hasn’t). There is one passageway that leads from the entrance to a central chamber with three altars and many carved spiral images chiselled into the stone. The amazing aspect of this building is that it is 5200 years old, pre-dating the Great Pyramids and Stonehenge. Above the entrance is a small window called a roof-box and the remarkable objective of this feature is that it is part of the construction that enables a unique event to happen once per year, where on the morning of the winter solstice, The Shortest Day, the sun’s rays align perfectly to shine directly through the roof-box, down the passageway and illuminate the dark chamber in an awesome sight. I have visited Newgrange a number of times and I’m blown away by the unbelievable geometry of the place, how ancient farmers constructed a monument that perfectly designed a dome and passageway, taking into account elevation, angles and astronomy.

Colm Tóibín has crafted a beautiful tale centred on Newgrange where the spirits of the past remain in the dark and talk through the stories Dalc would bring them, being the only spirit amongst them that could wander in the world. They agreed to always tell the truth, even with the things they made up. More than anything they looked forward to the shortest day of the year, for the sun to bring light to their world and remind them of the lives they once had. “They basked in its glistening glory, knowing that it would soon disappear. The light carried hope into the burial chamber; it invoked the memory of what life had been. It reminded them of a time when the sun, in all its purity and beauty, had lit up the world for them.” But it was their secret and while they had shared this secret with the locals it had remained hidden for generations. The locals had respected this moment of majestic beauty and left it for the spirits to relish in private.

An archaeologist, Professor Michael O’Kelly has a fascination with the Newgrange site and intends visiting it in the week before Christmas, around 21st December - The Shortest Day. The spirits know he’s coming and while gentle in nature, they try to block and delay him getting to the site to witness the illumination phenomenon.

A precious short story from a master storyteller who weaves much of the factual details with a compelling supernatural tale that has us imagining wildly the awesome history of the place. The lives that were impacted either building the burial chamber or buried there remind us what was achieved stretching so far into our past. On a historical note, it was Prof Michael O’Kelly who was the first in modern times to witness the illumination event in 1967.short-stories supernatural124 s Kay ?*¨2,171 1,048

???Today is....The Shortest Day!???


Part history, part spooky with holiday vibes.

This is a short story that centers around archaeology Professor O’Kelly from Cork and spirits who reside in a 3200BC tomb. O’Kelly visits this prehistoric burial site called Newgrange on the shortest day of the year. A fascinating setting, I youtube to see what the tomb looks on Dec. 21st.
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