Gates of Heaven (Kilranelagh)
The Gates of Heaven (also called Kilranelagh Cemetery ) are located on Kilranelagh Hill between the townlands Kilranelagh ( Irish Cill Rannaileach ) and Colvinstown Upper, east of Baltinglass in County Wicklow in Ireland and are rock formations of unknown type in a fence.
An arrangement of four large stones lies roughly in the middle of the enclosure . The stones are not recorded in the archaeological database, but have the appearance of megalithic portals . There are two large, southeast-facing orthostats with a stone between them. In the context of the western orthostat, a slightly smaller plate stands in the same line.
It was a local custom at funerals to place the coffin between the two portal stones before it was buried in the cemetery, where old tombstones still stand. According to tradition, this was to ensure that the deceased went straight to heaven, hence the name "Gates of Heaven". It is believed that the stones are the original access to the enclosure.
literature
- Jürgen E. Walkowitz: The megalithic syndrome. European cult sites of the Stone Age (= contributions to the prehistory and early history of Central Europe. Vol. 36). Beier & Beran, Langenweißbach 2003, ISBN 3-930036-70-3 .
Web links
Coordinates: 52 ° 56 ′ 42.5 " N , 6 ° 37 ′ 55.3" W.