11 The Tuatha Dé Danann, who ruled Ireland in ancient mythology, were said to have erected Newgrange as a burial place for their chief, Dagda Mór, and his three sons. One of his sons, called Aonghus, is often referred to as Aonghus of the Brugh, and it was traditionally believed that he, in fact, was owner of the Brugh, and that a smaller mound between Newgrange and the Boyne was owned by the Dagda.

12 According to the Oxford Dictionary of Celtic Mythology, Newgrange (Brug na Bóinne) offered hospitality to countless guests in hundreds of stories.

13 Newgrange was said to have provided endless supplies of ale, three trees that were always in fruit, and two pigs, one of which was living, the other cooked and ready to eat.

Professor Michael O'Kelly at Newgrange

14 The Winter Solstice event was known about in local folklore before the alignment was rediscovered by Professor Michael J. O'Kelly in 1967.

15 In some texts, Newgrange was said to have been the burial place of Lugh Lámhfada (Lugh of the Long Arm) who was the spiritual father of the great mythical hero Cúchulainn.

16 Newgrange was said to have been the mansion to which Aengus (Oengus) brought the body of Diarmaid after his death on Ben Bulben so that he could "put an aeriel life into him so that he will talk to me every day."

17 O'Grady's Silva Gadelica (1892) records that according to an ancient tradition, "three times fify sons of kings abode for three days with their three nights".

18 Newgrange was said to have been the place where the great mythical hero Cúchulainn was conceived by his mother Dechtine. His spiritual father, Lugh, visited Dechtine in a dream while she stayed at the Brugh.

19 The fact that Newgrange was referred to as "Mac an Og's brugh brilliant to approach", "yonder brugh chequered with the many lights" and "the white-topped brugh of the Boyne" has led some to believe these are references to the white quartz which adorns the cairn.

20 The romantic tale of Aonghus and Caer, who both flew to Newgrange and lived there in the form of swans, could be linked to the stars. Interestingly, Newgrange is a wintering ground for the Whooper Swan which migrates from Iceland every October and returns in March.