National Geographic magazine's cover story for the June 2009 issue is "Ireland's Ancient Astronomers", an investigation into the 5,000-year-old cosmic monuments of the Boyne Valley based largely upon the book Island of the Setting Sun by Anthony Murphy and Richard Moore.
The cover image shows a sun or eclipse symbol from the 'Stone of the Seven Suns' at Dowth, which is one of the three major monuments of the Boyne Valley, along with Newgrange and Knowth.
The magazine's correspondent and photographer spent a month during the summer exploring the myths and monuments and the landscapes of the Boyne with Murphy and Moore.
'Island of the Setting Sun - In Search of Ireland's Ancient Astronomers' continues to inspire research and creative work across the globe, having sold out and gone to second edition within a year of being released.
Murphy and Moore continue to collaborate on future projects, including a more thorough project on The High Man - a giant landscape warrior reawakened.
(Note: The National Geographic cover is not intended to represent the real thing, but is rather wishful thinking on our parts!)
