Write to save the Hill of Tara

Some of the most sacred ground in Ireland has become the focus of an intense controversy. The Hill of Tara, northwest of Dublin, has been a prehistoric burial place, a pagan sanctuary, and a seat of power for the Irish kings. This narrow valley is one of the most culturally and archaeologically significant places in the world. Many monuments predate the Egyptian pyramids. The Hill of Tara has been a sanctuary for every generation since. It is precisely because it has remained intact, unlike many comparable Continental sites, that it holds a special key to understanding the continuous progression of European civilization.


Now the Irish government is planning to build a four-lane highway through an adjacent valley. Early last year, archaeologists working on the route of the controversial highway near the village of Lismullin, stumbled across a vast Iron Age ceremonial enclosure, or henge, surrounded by two concentric walls. The 2,000-year-old site is just over a mile from the Hill of Tara, traditional seat of the ancient Irish kings and site of St. Patrick’s conversion of the Irish to Christianity in the fifth century A.D. The discovery of the massive henge, measuring more than 260 feet in diameter, confirms the long-held belief that the area around the hill contains a rich complex of monuments.

The extraordinary amount of archaeological remains on the Hill of Tara – burial mounds, religious enclosures, stone structures, and rock art dating from the third millennium B.C. to the twelfth century A.D.– makes it Ireland’s most spiritually and archaeologically significant site. Construction of the new M3 highway, meant to ease traffic congestion around Dublin, threatens not only the Hill of Tara’s timeless quality, but also newly discovered archaeological sites in the surrounding valley.

Lismullin and other sites that stand in the way of the new road are now approved for destruction. Although archaeologists and concerned Irish politicians are rallying support worldwide for the protection of the Hill of Tara, the iconic site remains in great peril. The European Commission has initiated legal action against the Irish government over the M3, charging Ireland with failing to protect its own heritage.


Tomorrow, Tuesday. January 11, 2008, there is a National Day of Action in Ireland, but it is important that protests are made internationally also. Many of you have asked how you can help.



We are asking that people write to important decision makers in the Irish government expressing your deep concern. You can either write your own letter of concern to Emer Deane, the Consul-General of Ireland in San Francisco, (address below) or cut and paste the following letter:



Dear Madam,

I am writing to you with deep and urgent concern regarding the freeway that is being constructed through the valley of the Hill of Tara, Lismullin and the Skyrne Valley in Ireland.



The Hill of Tara and its environs is famous worldwide and being a National and a World Monument sit, is one of the most culturally, spiritually and archaeologically significant places in the world . People from all over the world, come to Ireland because of its beauty, its heritage, and its history. Ireland is now in danger of losing a vital part of all three for the sake of a new road and a massive interchange by the hill of Tara.


We urge the Irish government to reconsider this decision and choose one of the many intelligent options that are still available : to improve the existing N3 motorway as per the original advertised scheme; to re-open the Navan-Dublin railway line, or just simply to move the M3 motorway from this delicate landscape, where it is currently environmentally unsound.


Every effort should be made to preserve this national/world monument and to halt this motorway, and stop what is ultimately the destruction of Ireland's heritage.


Yours sincerely,
etc...

The letter should be emailed to:

The Consul General of Ireland, SF. Her email address: Emer.deane@dfa.ie



Also, cc it to :
the Environment Minister, Minister Gormley : minister@environ.ie
The Taoiseach, Prime Minister of Ireland: taoiseach@taoiseach.gov.ie

Plus BCC it to Tarawatch: info@tarawatch.org (so that they have a copy, for safety).


Please write this email over the next 24 hours and forward it to interested people on your own list. Please BCC it so that everyone’s address does not become world property.

This moment of concern was brought to you by the letter I and the number 3000.