Contacting Mythical Ireland

IMPORTANT INFORMATION BELOW: Please read BEFORE emailing!

Richard Moore (2nd left) and Anthony Murphy (2nd right) on TV talking about their book.

Contact webmaster Anthony Murphy at the following email addresses. If you need me urgenty try the gmail one because I get notifications on my mobile phone:

mythicalireland (AT) eircom (DOT) net

mythicalireland (AT) gmail (DOT) com

In order to make a life a little bit easier for me, and to help you get what you're looking for, please consider the following BEFORE you e-mail me:

* If you're looking to exchange links, please please please ensure that your site has some relevance to this website and the categories listed on the links page. If your website has no similar material or themes, then please DO NOT request a link, as it will be ignored.

* I am inundated by requests to use images. Here are some simple guidelines. So long as the image is copyrighted to Anthony Murphy (not all photos on this site were taken by me), you can use an image from Mythical Ireland for an academic paper, non-profit publication or website, or a community/charity use so long as the copyright author is attributed and the photo is accompanied by the URL www.mythicalireland.com . Permission for all other use (commercial etc.) must be requested by e-mail.

* If you are just looking for more information on any of the subjects covered on the website, your first point of call should be the Forum. Here, there are a community of members who should be able to help you with your request. You could also try the excellent mail group Irish-Stones for inquiries about ancient Irish megaliths, archaeoastronomy and mythology.

* If you wish to book a tour of Newgrange, or to enter the Winter Solstice lottery, please do so by contacting the Brú na Bóinne Visitor Centre directly by emailing brunaboinne AT opw DOT ie.

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WHAT IS IT ABOUT??

Mythical Ireland began in January of 1999 as a research project between two Drogheda-based men, the journalist, astronomer and photographer, Anthony Murphy, and artist and researcher Richard Moore.

It was born out of a quest by Moore to establish whether the ancient Stone Age sites of the Boyne Valley were astronomical in nature. At that time, he was working on a proposed stone sculpture project which would feature alignments with certain stars. In this astronomical quest, he turned to amateur astronomer Anthony Murphy for help.

Very soon the two realised that the importance of the astronomical nature and function of the ancient sites had been largely overlooked, and in some cases, ignored, by establishment archaeology. The research project mushroomed to become much more than a planned sculpture.

In the time which has elapsed since their first meeting, the research has led to a number of discoveries, including the Winter Solstice alignment discovery at Baltray, among others. The project has also unearthed evidence that some of the ancient Irish mythology may contain astronomical references, and among the major proposals in this arena was the suggestion by the two that Newgrange, the Whooper Swans and the constellation Cygnus, the swan, are connected. Recently, evidence has been put forward that a gigantic, 12-mile warrior figure in the landscape of County Louth and Meath could be an ancient representation of Orion.

MYTHICAL IRELAND WEBSITE

In early 2000, Anthony Murphy established the Mythical Ireland website in order to present at least some of the research work to the public, in a highly-digestible form. The website continued to expand during 2000 and into 2001, and won a number of awards and received a number of commendations, including the prestigious Doras Abu award, and a review by the Sunday Times internet magazine, Doors. The site is always expanding, and throughout the most recent period from 2006 into 2007, has been receiving 2,500 visits per day, sometimes more.

There has been a strong effort made to present as much visual evidence as possible, hence the many photographs and paintings which adorn the site. This visual presentation, the researchers believe, helps to bring the sites to the people, in order to give them a fuller exploration of the ancient wonders of Ireland.

MISSION STATEMENT

Put simply, Mythical Ireland is an exploration of ancient Ireland, and in particular the Stone Age sites of the Boyne Valley, in the context of astronomy, mythology, art, photography and archaeology. We believe the ancient people were master astronomers, confidently able to mark the solstices and to understand the cosmic cycles like the Metonic Cycle of the moon and Precession of the Equinoxes. They were an advanced culture, with a keen understanding of the Cosmic principle that nothing exists in isolation - everything is connected. We also believe they placed their gods and heroes among the stars, and many of their stories may contain the hidden language of astronomy.

We are both creative and imaginative people, and view our research in that light. We believe the people we are trying to understand were also a very creative and imaginative people.

Mythical Ireland is essentially an artist's look at the ancient landscape, but encompassing some scientific disciplines, such as astronomy, in order to present to people a fuller and wider investigation of the past, so that the archaeological textbooks and volumes, although highly valuable in their own right, should be seen as only a part of a unified vision of the past.

And there is much yet to be learned and discovered. It is the belief of Mythical Ireland that the exploration of the past should be encouraged as much as possible, and should include many disciplines. We have much to learn from our ancient forebears. This exploration is only the beginning.

Anthony Murphy
Richard Moore

ABOUT ANTHONY MURPHY

You can read more about my hobbies and interests on this page.

CONTACT US

You can contact us through the e-mail address below.

mythicalireland AT eircom DOT net