The following are some of the ways to get in touch with each other:Some museums are portals of the past. The Frick Collection and Marcel Proust’s cork-lined room at the Musée de la Frick in New York. Musée Carnavalet In Paris, both vibrate with an energy that transcends their exhibits. The Little Museum of Dublin It is also a place like that.
In just a few seconds, the four-storey Georgian Townhouse at 15 St Stephen’s Green seems to be transported into another era. I forget about the modern world and imagine myself in Georgian times when this terrace with red bricks was built, along with many beautiful parks and squares throughout the city center.
Dubliner Trevor White In 2011, he convinced Dublin City Council to loan him the building to open the city’s first museum dedicated to everything Dublin. He went on the radio with an idea but no collection and asked listeners to help him. Marian Finucane show on RTÉ The Irish national broadcaster (Irish Broadcasting Corporation) will trawl their attics and cabinets for unique curiosities and souvenirs related to Dublin.
More than 1,000 exhibits were received, including a pair Bono’s famous sunglasses and a ticket to the Beatles’ only Dublin concert, held in 1963. James Joyce’s Death Mask was donated with a first-edition of Ulysses. Unopened lemonade from a wrecked mail ship torpedoed near Dublin during the First World war, as well as an unopened jar from 1931 of Sudocrem (the antiseptic was invented in Dublin), were displayed together. Uncovering a 1980s ledger (from a Magdalene Laundry, where pregnant women and unmarried women who were forced to work in the laundry) with clients such as the President’s Residence and state agencies was a fascinating discovery. All items were carefully displayed according to their decade and displayed throughout the museum’s high-ceilinged spaces.
In the past 14 year, the museum has been a huge hit with both locals and tourists. More than a half million people have taken a 29-minute tour of the exhibitions. Tripadvisor ranks it as one of the best museums in the world. third best visitor attraction in IrelandThe. 12th best in Europe.
On Sunday mornings, I find myself sitting on the top floor of the Irish Times office, which is a recreation of Bertie Smyllie’s former office, with views over Stephen’s Green and the Dublin Mountains. Eccentric Bertie rode a bicycle to the paper until 1954, with a Typewriter balanced on its handlebars. He championed many of Ireland’s most famous writers, including Patrick Kavanagh. In the U2 Room, I love to find the teenage versions of the band in a black and white class photo taken at Mount Temple School, where they first met. This photo, like the entire museum, gives a sense of how history can be accessed.
The museum was able to secure funding for the installation of a lift that would allow universal access to the entire building. After a year of renovations, at a cost of €4.3m, the museum reopened on 5 June with a new library and archive, a screening room and a new exhibition of fearless women snaking up the stairwell, taking its cue from a quote by President Mary Robinson: “I was elected by the women of Ireland, who instead of rocking the cradle, rocked the system.”
On the first floor, one of the finest doll’s house in the world has been installed. Tara’s Palace, a replica of Leinster House, the seat for the Irish government located just around the corner, took over 20 years to construct. It was donated to the museum with a slew new donations in celebration of the reopening. Mary McAleese sent her rosary beads to the museum. The original model for the statue of Luke Kelly from the Dubliners, located in Docklands Docklands found a home.
Dublin celebrated its millennium in 1988 with a series of civic events. The famous Dublin City milk bottle embossed with its coat of arms is still displayed in many homes today. You can also find it on the mantelpiece of the museum. After decades of neglect, inner-city decay and a lack of pride in the city, 1988 was a turning point for many Dubliners. Trevor White traces his passion for Dublin back to 1988. His team and he have worked tirelessly to create the Little Museum of Dublin in order to inspire a lifelong love of Dublin.
Little Museum of Dublin Open 9:30am to 5pmEnjoy the guided tour bookable for €18, littlemuseum.ie
