Library Visits – Friday 29 July – Online Registration

Academic/Rare Books Library

Founded in 1592,  Trinity College is one of the oldest universities in Europe and the 47-acre campus is located in the heart of Dublin city. It is one of the seven ancient universities of Britain and Ireland, as well as Ireland’s oldest surviving university. The Library of Trinity College is a legal deposit library for Ireland and the United Kingdom, containing over 6.5 million printed volumes and significant quantities of manuscripts, including the Book of Kells. This tour will bring you to both the Old Library, and the Berkeley Library.

The Old Library first opened its doors in 1732. During the tour, we will explore the exhibition about the Book of Kells, called Turning Darkness into Light; next, we will visit the Treasury, containing the Book of Kells itself; and finally, we will enter the Long Room, the main chamber of the Old Library building which is filled with 200,000 of the library’s oldest books.

The Berkeley Library opened in 1967. It is widely regarded as Ireland’s finest modernist building. Designed in the brutalist style by Paul Koralek at the tender age of 28, it retains the power to provoke strong reactions in all who see it. The tour offers a unique opportunity to explore The Berkeley’s beautiful concrete forms and textures up close and learn about its history in context. It will also take in two linked library buildings: the Lecky Library (1978), also designed by Koralek’s firm; and the Ussher Library (2003), with its stunning central atrium.

For more information, please see the following websites:

Introduction to the Library of Trinity College Dublin: https://www.tcd.ie/library/about/history.php

Old Library and Book of Kells Exhibition: https://www.tcd.ie/visitors/book-of-kells/

Berkeley Library: https://www.tcd.ie/library/berkeley/

Time: 10:35 – 12:45 (30 delegates max), meeting point: College Green.

National Library. The mission of the National Library of Ireland (NLI) is to collect, preserve, promote  and make accessible the documentary and intellectual record of the life of Ireland and to contribute to the provision of access to the larger universe of recorded knowledge.

Visit Includes: a brief overview of the National Library of Ireland with an Introduction to the Yeats exhibition (Life and Works of William Butler Yeats). This will allow delegates more time to explore the exhibition and also some info on the NLI generally.

William Butler Yeats (1865-1939) was one of the great poets of the twentieth century. He created works that are widely known and loved. Yeats was a man of many interests – Ireland, literature, folklore, theatre, politics, the occult – and a significant influence on modern Irish cultural identity.

We are indebted to members of the Yeats family who donated a large and invaluable collection of WB Yeats’s manuscripts and books to the National Library of Ireland. This exhibition, based in our main building, celebrates that collection.

Follow in WB Yeats’s own footsteps, and make your way to the National Library on Kildare Street, where he was a regular visitor. Enjoy the award-winning exhibition where original manuscripts for poems such as The Lake Isle of Innisfree, and Easter 1916 are on display, find out more about the poet’s fascinating life – and even see the top hat Yeats wore when he collected his Nobel Prize in Sweden!

Option 1: 10:45 – 12:15 (15 delegates), meeting point: St. Stephen’s Green

Option 2: 11:45 – 13:15 (15 delegates), meeting point: St. Stephen’s Green

National Library (exhibition space). The mission of the National Library of Ireland (NLI) is to collect, preserve, promote  and make accessible the documentary and intellectual record of the life of Ireland and to contribute to the provision of access to the larger universe of recorded knowledge.

Visit includes: Guided tour of the exhibition Seamus Heaney: Listen Now Again. A partnership project between the NLI, the Department of Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht and Bank of Ireland, the exhibition draws on the National Library’s extensive archive of Heaney documents, and features Heaney’s original manuscripts as well as letters, unpublished works, diary entries, photographs, note books, and multi-media recordings.

The exhibition takes you on an intimate and moving journey from Heaney’s origins through his remarkable poetic career, drawing on the National Library’s extensive archive of manuscripts donated by Seamus Heaney and his family.

Option 1: 10:50 – 12:00 (15 delegates), meeting point: College Green

Option 2: 11:50 – 13:00 (15 delegates), meeting point: College Green

Rare books

Take a journey across continents, cultures and religions to discover treasures of exquisite quality and tantalising beauty from Chester Beatty’s collections, including manuscripts and rare books, miniature paintings, prints, drawings and decorative arts from across Asian, the Middle East, North Africa and Europe. Join one of the museum experienced Guides for a tour exploring some of the highlights and the stories in the collection.

Option 1: 10:30 – 12:30 (30 delegates), meeting point: College Green

Option 2: 11:30 – 13:30 (30 delegates), meeting point: College Green

Rare Books

Step into the Eighteenth Century. Unchanged for three centuries,  Marsh’s Library is a well-preserved library of the early Enlightenment. When it opened to the public in 1707, it was the first public library in Ireland. It is both a working research library and a cultural heritage attraction in the heart of Dublin, welcoming tourists and scholars.

We regret that due to the nature of this historic building, the library galleries and exhibition are not wheelchair accessible. Access to the garden and the shop can be arranged if requested.

Time: 11:40 – 13:15 (30 Delegates), meeting point: St. Stephen’s Green

Special/Rare Books Library

The Royal Irish Academy (RIA) is Ireland’s premier learned body. It was founded in 1785, with the Earl of Charlemont as first president. Its royal charter, granted the following year, declared its aims to be the promotion and investigation of the sciences, polite literature, and antiquities, as well as the encouragement of discussion and debate between scholars of diverse backgrounds and interests. The library is a major research resource for those studying aspects of Irish history, archaeology, language, culture and natural history. Unique holdings include the invaluable collection of seventeenth to nineteenth-century pamphlets bequeathed by the Dublin merchant Charles Haliday, the Ordnance Survey of Ireland Archive and the photograph collection of the Irish naturalist Robert Lloyd Praeger. Even more important are its manuscripts, including the famous Cathach of Colmcille, and the library holds the largest collection of Irish manuscripts in a single repository, prime among those being the Book of the Dun Cow (c. 1100), the later medieval Leabhar Breac, the Book of Ballymote, and the Annals of the Four Masters.

Option 1: 10:35 – 11:20 (Visit – 10:45 – 11:20) (10 delegates), meeting point: St. Stephen’s Green

Option 2: 11:15 – 11:55 (Visit – 11:25 – 11:55) (10 delegates) , meeting point: St. Stephen’s Green

Option 3: 11:50 – 12:35 (Visit – 12:00 – 12:35) (10 delegates) , meeting point: St. Stephen’s Green

Option 4: 12:30 – 13:15 (Visit – 12:40 – 13:15) (10 delegates) , meeting point: St. Stephen’s Green

Medical/Academic Library

In July 2017 RCSI opened its state of the art ten storey health sciences education building at 26 York Street. At the heart of the building is the RCSI Library occupying three floors, ground floor to level two, with advanced clinical and surgical simulation facilities above, and a five hundred-seat auditorium and sports facilities below.  The new library has provided a once in a generation move for the library team and opportunities for deeper integration within the College community and the curriculum, and for enhancing the student experience.  Library spaces have played a large part in creating a new and vibrant culture of learning that has arisen through the convergence of multiple learning, study, and recreational environments in this award-winning building including the 2019 SCONUL Small Library Design Award.

Dun’s Library, Royal College of Physicians of Ireland – Dun’s Library was founded in 1713 with the bequest of the personal library of Sir Patrick Dun, former President, to the Royal College of Physicians of Ireland. Developed by the College for over 300 years the collection of approximately 30,000 items is housed in the College’s magnificent Victorian home in the centre of Dublin.
No longer a current medical library, Dun’s Library is now part of RCPI’s Heritage Centre, which promotes the study of, and public engagement with, the history of medicine in Ireland through its unique library, archive and object collections. RCPI’s Heritage Centre has just received Full Accreditation under the Museum Standards Programme for Ireland.

Time: 10:30-13:15 (20 Delegates), meeting point: St. Stephen’s Green

Special Library/School

The Goethe-Institut is the Federal Republic of Germany’s cultural institute, active worldwide. The Institut contains a Library service for the public. Get acquainted with the latest works by German authors in our library (available in English and German) and catch up on current trends and developments in present-day Germany. Relax with a German newspaper or magazine in our reading room. Also included is the Teachers’ Library for German as a foreign language, which offers materials for German lessons in primary and secondary schools, as well as in higher and adult education. The focal points of the collection are 20th and 21st century German literature, art, culture, society and history.

From the 23 – 29 July, the Goethe Institut houses The Infinite Library exhibition, a travelling installation that uses virtual reality and other media to reimagine the future of Libraries as interactive spaces that engage visitors through multisensory forms of storytelling.The visit to the Goethe Institut includes a viewing of the Infinite Library Exhibition and a visit to the Institut’s Library.

Time: 13:45 – 15:00 (20 Delegates), meeting point: St. Stephen’s Green.

Special/Rare Books Library

Edward Worth (1676-1733), an early eighteenth-century Dublin physician, was a connoisseur collector of rare books and fine bindings. His uniquely preserved library is a must see for all those interested in the history of the book as object.

Option 1: 10:30 – 12:00 (20 delegates), meeting point: O’Connell Street

Option 2: 11:30 – 13:00 (20 delegates), meeting point: O’Connell Street

Option 3: 13:30 – 15:00 (20 delegates), meeting point: O’Connell Street

Option 4: 14:30 – 16:00 (20 delegates), meeting point: O’Connell Street

Special Library

The Royal Dublin Society (RDS) is an Irish philanthropic organisation founded in 1731 with the aim to see Ireland thrive culturally and economically.  The RDS Library & Archive has been a part of the Society since its foundation. Its interests and collections focus on the areas of agriculture, science, enterprise, equestrianism and the arts. The Library & Archive Service houses the Archive of the famous, as well as the RDS Treasures of paintings, sculptures, prints and scientific instruments.

Time: 14:00 – 15:45 (40 delegates), meeting point: College Green

Art Library

Highlights of the National Gallery of Ireland Library and Archive collections

The  National Gallery of Ireland’s Library and Archive collection is an invaluable resource, encompassing the country’s most extensive and important collection for the study of art history. This tour will present treasures from the special collections, including significant early Italian volumes as well as unique material representing our national heritage from the Irish collections.

National Gallery of Ireland – Highlights of the collection

The National Gallery of Ireland houses the national collection of Irish and European fine art. The Gallery has an extensive collection of Irish paintings and is also notable for its Italian Baroque and Dutch masters paintings.  The Gallery’s mission is to care for, interpret, develop and showcase art in a way that makes it an exciting place to encounter art.  They aim to provide an outstanding experience that inspires an interest in and an appreciation of art for all and are dedicated to bringing people and their art together.  The tour will provide an introduction to the permanent collection, history of the Gallery and an opportunity to view some of the highlights of the collection such as Caravaggio’s The Taking of Christ and Vermeer’s Woman Writing a Letter with Her Maid.

Option 1: 09:40 – 10:45) Tour of the National Gallery of Ireland – Highlights of the Collection (30 delegates), meeting point: St. Stephen’s Green

Option 2: 10:40 – 11:45 Highlights of the National Gallery of Ireland Library & Archive Collections (12 delegates), meeting point: St. Stephen’s Green

Option 3: 11:40 – 12:45 Highlights of the National Gallery of Ireland Library & Archive Collections (12 delegates), meeting point: St. Stephen’s Green

School Library

The JCSP Libraries initiative is a government-supported project that sets-up high-quality School Libraries throughout the country. There are currently 30 JCSP School Libraries as part of the network.

The visit will consist of a walking tour of the Dublin North-East Inner City followed by an introduction to the JCSP Library Project – a government-supported initiative that has set up high-quality School Libraries in 30 second-level schools across the country – all in designated areas of disadvantage. Take a short tour of Dublin, hear about the JCSP Library Project and visit the JCSP Library in Larkin Community College as part of this visit.

11:00 – 13:00 (30 delegates), meeting point: Dublin Convention Centre

Public Library

Pearse Street Library & Archive has been serving Dublin City for over 100 years and had a major renovation project  led by Dublin City Architects completed 20 years ago.

The complex comprises of a public library branch, with spaces for conferences and meeting rooms;  Dublin City Archives; Dublin & Irish Collections; and the administrative headquarters of Dublin City Library Services.

Kevin Street Library was designed by Charles J McCarthy and opened to the public in 1904. It was renovated to a high standard in 2018 with a library for adults, children, and a dedicated room for computer use. It is considered a living room for the local area with its pleasant interior reading area.

Option 1: 10:30 – 1:15pm (15 delegates), meeting point: St. Stephen’s Green

Option 2: 10:30 – 1:15pm (15 delegates), meeting point: College Green