Historic Dublin

Click for larger image

Trinity College, in the middle of downtown Dublin, was founded in 1592 by Elizabeth I. In 1661 it became home to The Book of Kells, a lavishly illustrated Gospel manuscript and one of the oldest books in the world. The book was produced in the 9th century at the Iona Abbey in southwest Scotland, that we visited in August of this year.

In 1759, a century after The Book of Kells arrived at Trinity College, Arthur Guinness founded the brewery that eventually grew to 5,000 workers in the 1930s and encompasses 50 acres in downtown Dublin. We spent a great day visiting these two iconic Dublin sites, and taking in more of the city’s beautiful buildings and excellent restaurants.

Below are trip highlights from November 16th in Dublin, Ireland. Click any image for a larger view, or click the position to view the location on a map. And a live map of our current route and most recent log entries always is available at http://mvdirona.com/maps

Click for larger image
The Workshop


We started an afternoon trip to Dublin with an excellent lunch at The Workshop Gastropub along the River Liffey.
Click for larger image
Westin Dublin


The Westin Dublin opened a decade ago in the beautifully restored 19th-century Allied Irish Bank and Pearl buildings.
Click for larger image
Trinity College


Trinity College, in the middle of downtown Dublin, was founded in 1592 by Elizabeth I. Most of the buildings date from the 18th and 19th century. This is the chapel, completed in 1798.
Click for larger image
Campanile


The iconic Campanile (bell tower) at Trinity College was completed in 1853.
Click for larger image
Book of Kells Exhibit


The Book of Kells is a lavishly illustrated Gospel manuscript and one of the oldest books in the world. It was produced in the 9th century at the Iona Abbey in southwest Scotland, that we visited in August of this year. The book was transferred sometime before the 12th-century to Kells, Ireland for safekeeping from Viking raiders and later to Trinity College in 1661 where it has been on permanent display since the 19th century.
Click for larger image
Book of Kells


Photography isn’t allowed in the Book of Kells Exhibit, but here’s a picture we took in August of this year of the manuscript copy on display at the Iona Abbey where it was produced over a thousand years ago.
Click for larger image
Library


The Long Room in the Old Library Building contains 200,000 of the library’s oldest books and manuscripts. The computer-generated Jedi Archive in Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones was based on this room. It’s quite spectacular.
Click for larger image
Sphere Within a Sphere


In the striking Sphere Within a Sphere sculpture at Trinity College, the inner ball represents humanity and the outer Christianity. Versions of the sphere also are in Rome, New York and Tehran.
Click for larger image
Science Gallery


The Science Gallery at Trinity College is a combination art and science gallery that encourages young people to tackle scientific challenges through experimentation and interaction with the public. The program’s success has inspired Science Gallery International, with locations in Detroit, London, Melbourne, Bengaluru and Venice.
Click for larger image
Parliament House


Impressive Parliament House was built in 1729 for the Kingdom of Ireland parliament. The Act of Union joining Ireland and Great Britain abolished that parliament in 1800, and the build ling has housed the Bank of Ireland since 1808.
Click for larger image
City Hall


Dublin’s City Hall was built between 1769 and 1779, originally as the Royal Exchange.
Click for larger image
Christ Church Cathedral


Christ Church Cathedral was founded in 1030 and rebuilt or renovated many times over the centuries. It is the most impressive structure to survive from medieval Dublin.
Click for larger image
John’s Lane Church


The Church of St. Augustine and St. John the Baptist was founded in1874 and is popularly called John’s Lane Church from its location at the corner of John’s Lane.
Click for larger image
Guinness Brewery


At the Guinness Brewery before our tour of the Guinness Storehouse. In 1759 Arthur Guinness founded the brewery that eventually grew to 5,000 workers in the 1930s and encompasses 50 acres in downtown Dublin. The brewery currently produces 2.5 million pints of stout daily. Its proper name is St. James’s Gate Brewery, after their huge gate that once crossed St. James’s St.
Click for larger image
Waterfall


The Guinness Storehouse is a former grain storehouse that has been converted to a multi-media exhibit describing the iconic brewery’s history and production. This is an indoor waterfall, part of the section describing how water is used in the brewing process.
Click for larger image
Copper


A 172,800-pint copper dating from 1878 from Brewhouse 2 at the Guinness Brewery. Wort, the sugary substance used to make beer, was boiled in coppers heated from below by huge peat-fired, and later coal-fired, furnaces.
Click for larger image
Gravity Bar


The tour includes a pint of Guinness in Gravity Bar atop the Guinness Storehouse, with panoramic views of the city.
Click for larger image
Cafe Topolis


We finished the day with a delicious pizza at a window seat in Cafe Topolis Italian restaurant on Parliament St.


Show locations on map Click the travel log icon on the left to see these locations on a map, with the complete log of our cruise.

On the map page, clicking on a camera or text icon will display a picture and/or log entry for that location, and clicking on the smaller icons along the route will display latitude, longitude and other navigation data for that location. And a live map of our current route and most recent log entries always is available at http://mvdirona.com/maps.

   


If your comment doesn't show up right away, send us email and we'll dredge it out of the spam filter.


Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.