Chester Beatty Library
Situated in the corner of
the Dublin Castle
Gardens, the Chester
Beatty Library's
collection of manuscripts,
prints, icons, miniature
paintings, early printed
books and objects d'art
open a window on the
artistic treasures of the
great cultures and
religions of the world.
Trinity College is probably Dublin’s most recognizable building. The student-led walking tour
passes through the four historic squares of the campus providing a history of the university, its
buildings and its historic context. The college, which was founded by England's Queen
Elizabeth in 1592.
Trinity College is best known for housing the Book of Kells which is Ireland’s greatest cultural
treasure and is the world’s most famous medieval manuscript. The 9th Century book is a richly
decorated copy of the four Gospels of the life of Jesus Christ.
The Long Room, at 65 metres, is the longest library in the UK and Ireland and it is filled with
200,000 of the Library’s oldest books. Since 1801 the Library had been given the right to claim a
free copy of every book published in Britain and Ireland. The Long Room is lined with marble
busts of the great philosophers and writers of the western world and also of men connected with
Trinity College. The harp in a glass case is the oldest of its kind in Ireland and probably dates
from the 15th century. It is made of oak and willow with 29 brass strings. It is the model for the
emblem of Ireland. The Long room was the inspiration for a room called the Jedi Archives in
‘Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones’.
Trinity College Tour + Book of Kells and Long Room
- €12
Access to the campus is free and a stroll through the
grounds is a very peaceful experience. Many visit to
watch the students play sports.
Trinity College
Little Museum of
Dublin
€7 or free with the Dublin
hop-on hop-off bus.
The Little Museum tells the
story of Dublin in the 20th
Century. The museum was
launched in 2011 with a
public appeal for historic
objects - there are over 5,000
artefacts in the collection.
Named as “Dublin’s best
museum experience” by the
Irish Times, the Little
Museum has been
nominated for the European
Museum of the Year Awards.
Fitzgerald Building, Trinity College
G. F. Fitzgerald, a physicist famous in relativity theory and
professor of the School of Physics, campaigned for a dedicated
Physics Building for Trinity College Dublin. It was the first purpose-
built physics laboratory in Ireland and is complete with a striking
Venetian window, lighting up the stair hall.
Our tour, led by the Head Professor of Applied Physics, included the Fitzgerald library and very old
Shrödinger lecture theatre.
Marsh’s Library
€3. Commissioned by
Narcissus Marsh, as
Archbishop of Dublin, it
houses important collections
of European books and
manuscripts from the
fifteenth to the eighteenth
centuries including more than
25,000 rare books.
Archbishop Marsh purchased
the collection for €2500.
When it opened in 1707 it
was the first public library in
Ireland. Many of the
collections in the Library are
still kept on the shelves
allocated to them by Marsh
and by Elias Bouhéreau, the
first librarian, when the
Library was opened.
The Book of Kells
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