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Pictures as lucky few experience the Winter Solstice sunrise at Newgrange

New Age revellers and sun worshippers celebrate the Winter Solstice as the sun rises over Newgrange Neolithic Monument on December 21 (Image: Charles McQuillan/Getty Images)

SIXTEEN lucky people from around the world were lucky enough to experience the Winter Solstice sunrise from the chamber at Newgrange near Drogheda in Co. Meath.

The group were the winners of the annual lottery organised by the Office of Public Works, which saw more than 18,000 people bid to get their hand on the exclusive tickets.

The lucky few were comprised of people from Cork, Donegal, Dublin, Kilkenny and Meath as well as Austria and the USA.

Newgrange lottery winners queue to gain entrance to the monument (Image: Charles McQuillan/Getty Images)

They got to experience the phenomenon of sunlight entering the monument at Brú na Bóinne through the roof box and along the passage to illuminate the chamber inside.

As the sun ascends, it dramatically bathes the central chamber and its megalithic art in its warm glow.

The light travels 19m, from the roof box at the entrance through the passage and into the chamber, and the effect usually lasts just 17 minutes.

Revellers link hands as the sun rises in Co. Meath (Image: Charles McQuillan/Getty Images)

The architectural phenomenon at the 5,000-year-old passage tomb is a reminder that brighter days are coming.

Around 2,000 other revellers and sun worshippers flocked to the site of the neolithic monument to see the sun rise on the shortest day of the year, the largest crowd for more than 10 years.

Outside the monument, the usual joyful atmosphere of the Solstice could be felt, while people from across the globe tuned in to view the event through a special livestream.

The sun rising at Newgrange on December 21, the shortest day of the year (Image: Charles McQuillan/Getty Images)