Mound of the Hostages

The Mound of the Hostages takes its name from Irish Dumha na nGiall—'dumha' meaning mound and 'giall' meaning hostages—a medieval appellation attached to the monument when 11th-century manuscripts were matched with visible Tara landmarks. In antiquity, however, the monument served entirely different purposes: it is a Neolithic passage tomb constructed around 3000 BC, making it the oldest visibl...