Keeping their distance but together, artist Richard Moore (left) and Drogheda journalist and Author Anthony Murphy with a copy of their iconic book, Island of the Setting Sun which has been re-released. Photo by Jimmy Weldon.

Second-hand copies have regularly been sold on Amazon for $1,000 dollars or more!

Two Drogheda friends, journalist and author Anthony Murphy and artist Richard Moore, are celebrating this week as their iconic book 'Island of the Setting Sun: In Search of Ireland's Ancient Astronomers' has been re-released in a special 2020 commemorative edition.

The book was initially published to much acclaim in 2006 and, having sold out very quickly, a second revised and expanded edition was published in 2008.

However, the book has been out of print for about eight years now and due to strong demand, publisher Liffey Press commissioned a 2020 edition with a new foreword.

In the years since the second edition sold out, second-hand copies on Amazon (particularly first editions) have regularly been sold for $1,000 dollars, and sometimes even more.

The book explores the ancient monuments of the Boyne Valley region in the context of astronomy and mythology, and Island of the Setting Sun has been described as "a wonderful, magical book, sumptuously illustrated and a must for anyone who loves to delve deep into our past" by Kenny's Irish Bookshop.

Anthony is nothing if not prolific, he is currently working on his eighth book. Richard Moore is planning a major exhibition of his art in Drogheda to be held in the next couple of months.

The book can be purchased here: https://mythicalireland.com/purchase/pre-order-island-of-the-setting-sun-2020-edition/