St Patrick's Cathedral
Patrick’s Close; Lower Dublin 7
475-4817
9-6 Mon.-Fri. April-Oct.; 9-11AM and 12:30-3PM Sat.
Services: 8:30 daily and 11:45AM Sunday.
St. Patrick’s is the oldest Christian site in Dublin. It is said that it was built on the grounds where St Patrick baptized converts during the 5th century. The present building dates from 1190 (or possibly 1225). Writer Jonathan Swift was dean here from 1713-1745, and his tomb is in the church. The cathedral choir school dates back to 1432, and is still in existence.
Dublin Castle
Dame Street 677-7129 Bus 49; 50; 54A; 77; 77A
10-5 Mon-Fri. 2-5 Sat; Sun.
Admission charged
More a palace than a fort, it was originally built on the orders of King John in 1204. The state chambers contain a large collection of antiques. The castle has been rebuilt, renovated and extended. Deep scars in the stone work can be seen in the Guardroom at the main entrance. They are the result of bayonet sharpening by the guards during the 950 years of British rule. Many of the state apartments are open to the public. The Chapel Royale is an elaborate area designed and decorated in 1814 in the neo-Gothic style. It contains some 90 carved heads of famous historical figures. The interior has lavish plaster vaulting and carved oak galleries.
Temple Bar
An area of the city that has been renovated in recent years and now contains many restaurants and pubs that have become the center of Dublin’s nightlife. It is located behind Dame Street and offers excellent views of the River Liffey. In addition to the restaurants and pubs there is also the Irish Film Center which shows a wide range of rare films and the Art House, a multimedia center where one can surf the Net The well known Irish rock band U2 performs at The Kitchen nightclub in the Temple Bar area. Rounding out the offerings are a number of trendy shops, book stores, antique shops and boutiques.
National Museum of Ireland.
Kildare Street Dublin 2
677-7444
DART Pearse Station/ bus 10,11,13 or Museumlink.
10-5 Tues.-Sat. 2-5 Sunday Admission: Free
This is one of Dublin’s most popular attractions. It is split between the 19th century building on Kildare Street and the newer section at the restored Collins Barracks (see below)
The Kildare Street site concentrates on archeological material and artifacts relating mostly to Ireland. There is a permanent display of Bronze Age Irish gold and another of metalwork from the Iron Age to the Middle Ages. There are also displays of artifacts from prehistoric and Viking Ireland and from ancient Egypt.
National Museum of Ireland, Collins Barracks
Collins Barracks Benburb Street,
Dublin 7
677-7444
Buses: 90 (from Busaras, Connolly and Tara Street DART station) , 25, 25A, 66, 67 (from Middle Abbey Street)
Open: Tuesday to Saturday 10 - 5, Sunday 2 - 5 Closed Good Friday
On display are artifacts ranging from weaponry, furniture, folk life and costumes to silver, ceramics and glassware.
Natural History Museum
Merrion Street, Dublin, 2
6777444
Buses: 7, 7A, 8 (Burgh Quay). Nearest DART Station: Pearse Station (Westland Row) or Museumlink.
Tues.-Sat. 10 - 5, Sunday 2 - 5 . Closed Good Friday
Admission: Free
The Natural History Museum which is part of the National Museum of Ireland is a zoological museum containing collections illustrative of the wild life, both vertebrate and invertebrate, of Ireland. Skeletons of two whales found stranded on the Irish coast are suspended from the roof.
National Gallery of Ireland
Merrion Square West, Dublin 2
661-5133 Fax: 661-5372
DART Pearse station/ bus 5,6,7,7A and 10 10-5:15 Mon-Fri., Sat. Thurs. 10-8:30 Sun. 2-5 Admission: Donation
Ireland’s National Gallery houses a premier collection of European and Old Master works from the 14th – 20th centuries. George Bernard Shaw was a major benefactor. There is also an excellent collection of the work of Irish masters. Jack Yeats, Roderic O’Connor, William Arpen, Nathaniel Hone and Walter Osborne are all represented. Caravaggio’s “The Taking of Christ” is on permanent display. There is a multimedia center where the collection can be researched via computer.
Heraldic Museum
2 Kildare Street
677-7444
Bus 10,11,13
10:00-8:30 Mon.-Wed. 10:30-4:30 Thurs.,Fri. 10:30-12:30 Sunday
Admission: Free
The museum is an integral part of the National Library, and is housed in a colorful mid-nineteenth century building, the former Kildare Street Club. Decorative birds and monkeys playing billiards and musical instruments form the window carvings. Modern banners of Ireland’s ancient chieftains hang from the ceiling. Visitors seeking to trace their Irish ancestry and family history can make inquiry at the Consultancy Service at the National Library itself which is located just a few doors away.
Dublin Civic Museum
58 South William Street Dublin 2
679-4260
All cross city buses 10-6 Tues.-Sat. 11-2 Sunday.
Admission: Free.
The highlights of this small museum for history buffs are: Charles Brookings’s 1728 map of Dublin and a set of James Malton aquatints from 1793 that show Dublin at the height of it Georgian development.
