The Equinox in Ireland: An ancient celebration of the light

“There's a grand stretch in the evenings” is a phrase you hear quite a bit from Irish people in spring. With daylight hours increasing from the lowest level at the winter solstice, everyone is ready to welcome spring, and sunlight, again.

The March equinox marks the real shift in the light in Ireland and across the Northern Hemisphere, with more hours of daylight than darkness once it has passed. Read on to find out more about the March equinox in Ireland and how it has been marked here for thousands of years.

An Ancient Obsession

The Irish obsession with daylight is certainly not new. The equinox, or Cónocht an Earraigh in Gaelic, has held a special place in Ireland for thousands of years. Cairn T at Loughcrew in Co. Meath was built over 5000 years ago in precise alignment with the rising sun on the March equinox.

Goodbye to the Winter Witch

A "cairn" is a mound of rough stones, typically found on hilltops, and thought to be built as monuments. Known as Sliabh na Caillí, the Hill of the Crone in Gaelic, Cairn T is also known as the "Hag's Cairn" for a local legend that tells of the "winter witch" or "cailleach" who hopped from hill to hill with an apron full of stones. The dropped stones formed Cairn T, the most impressive monument in a large complex that dots the hills in this part of Ireland and other stone structures. The unfortunate cailleach then slipped an, breaking her neck, fell to her final resting place on a nearby hill.

People have gathered here for thousands of years to mark the March equinox, when the rising sun illuminates the intricately carved stones inside Cairn T. This enigmatic monument works a bit like an ancient astronomic clock, marking the point when the sun 'returns' to Ireland each year.

It is easy to imagine ancient people being reassured to see this return of the light in spring and all that it entails. Even today it lifts the spirits to see lighter mornings and evenings too.

Stone Age Ireland

But Loughcrew is just one of the 15,000+ ancient stone structures in Ireland. The great passage tombs of Brú na Bóinne, Newgrange, Knowth and Dowth, are the most famous, and they were all built in alignment with important solar markers thousands of years ago.

Built around 5000 years ago, Brú na Bóinne is home to over a quarter of all known neolithic art in western Europe!

Inspiring design

We've been inspired by these Irish neolithic treasures in our jewelry design. Merging abstract art, such as the triskele or tri-spiral, with modern contemporary designs, our jewelry provides a wonderful connection to ancient Ireland and it's reverence of the light.

Welcome Back the Light

Irish folklore marks the start of spring at Imbolc, making the Equinox mid-spring, and a time for cleansing, creativity, and celebration. Today we might instinctively welcome back the light with a good spring-clean, a spot of gardening or spending more time outdoors.

Here in Ireland it is perhaps no coincidence that we manage to squeeze in a celebration around this time too with St. Patrick's Day. Like many ancient rites in Ireland, traditions seem to have a way of evolving to fit changing times.

Get in Touch

If you would like to welcome back the light this year with a piece of our jewelery, our own modern interpretation of ancient Ireland, please do get in touch.