By Lar Joye In this issue I will talk not about artefacts but about replicas. Most museum collections have gaps and omissions that reflect their own institutional history. In 2002, the design team of the Soldiers & Chiefs exhibition in Collins Barracks faced a number of challenges with regard to the military history collections in … Read more
By Fiona Fitzsimons The Anglo-Norman invasion introduced novel social and cultural practices into Ireland, including heraldry. In eleventh-century Europe, coats of arms developed out of military practice. Knights had to be able to distinguish friend from foe on the battlefield and in tournaments. The use of armorial bearings signalled the bearer’s status and nobility. Heraldic … Read more
By Damian Murphy The leafy shores of Lough Ennell, near Mullingar, are the setting for a spectacular sham ruin, Ireland’s largest folly, the rugged silhouette of a medieval palace providing an appropriate backdrop for a true-life Camelotian tragedy that saw the early promise of marriage descend into jealousy and recrimination, with brother pitted against brother—the … Read more
By Brett Bowden I have a friend who likes forwarding bits of internet advice. One nugget of wisdom sticks in my mind: ‘Yesterday is history. Tomorrow is a mystery. Today is a gift. That’s why it’s called the present.’ Catchy, perhaps, but that is not why it’s called the present. Advice about ‘living in the … Read more
A chara,—Thanks to Peter Murray for a well-written and entertaining piece on the Dublin Corporation employee Stephen J. Hand (HI 33.1, Jan./Feb. 2025). However, there is an error with the identifications in the Ernest Kavanagh cartoon. While that is indeed Lorcan Sherlock on the right, the figure with bowler hat and relying on two walking-sticks … Read more