Minister O'Donovan pays tribute to Professor George Eogan

Paying tribute to the late Professor George Eogan, Minister of State with responsibility for the Office of Public Works, Patrick O’Donovan, T.D., said:

“Professor George Eogan was a proud Meath man who through over 40 years of dedicated work at Knowth brought the monuments of the World Heritage Site of Brú na Bóinne to international attention.

It is every archaeologist’s dream to discover long hidden treasure, but few archaeologists can rival the discoveries made during Professor Eogan’s excavations at Knowth, which began in 1962.

He was one of the first people in modern times to enter the two great passage tombs of the Great Mound. The first was discovered in 1967 and the second in 1968. These two tombs are the longest passage tombs ever discovered in Western Europe. He went on to discover many other smaller tombs.

Professor Eogan’s excavations uncovered a treasure trove of ancient megalithic art, the abundance and quality of which is without parallel in any other place or country. The decorated macehead found in the eastern tomb at Knowth is one of the finest artefacts ever recovered from a Neolithic site anywhere.

Professor Eogan worked very closely with the Office of Public Works architects and engineers on the presentation of the site to the public after excavations were completed. The monuments at Knowth are rightly regarded as one of the most impressive prehistoric monuments that can be visited anywhere in the world.

When Knowth opened to the public for the first time in 1991, Professor Eogan was more than generous in his help with training the guides who worked there. His support and encouragement for the OPW guide service continued at Brú na Bóinne and will always be much appreciated.

Our sympathies go to his wife and to his children and grandchildren.”

-ENDS-

For further information, please contact pressoffice@opw.ie .

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