Irish monuments

Sceala Clann T.D. Location: Wicklow

The prompt about monuments was ...this from The Indo.
Peace monument to break down borders
By Elaine Keogh

Artists from across the world will compete to design a landmark peace monument on the Dundalk-Newry border on the scale of Dublin's Spire or the Angel of the North in Britain.
It is hoped the structure will become a major tourism attraction with up to 100,000 visitors viewing it a year.
Its size ensures it will be visible on both sides of the border and by the thousands of people who use the M1 motorway which it will be adjacent to.
Minister for Foreign Affairs Dermot Ahern yesterday formally announced that the location will be a former customs post at Carrickarnon, north of Dundalk and a few metres from the border.
He also announced that an international competition to design and construct it would commence very shortly.
Irish monuments
"This is an appropriate moment to mark the dramatic strides that have been made in building peace on the island of Ireland," the minister said.
"Many people from a wide range of backgrounds have contributed to the ending of conflict and the realisation of peace, and it is fitting to honour and recognise that collective achievement through public art in an appropriate setting.
"I very much hope that the exceptional success of the peace process will resonate with its audience on two levels -- to never, ever be complacent about our hard-won peace, and to look towards a brighter future, one of exciting new possibilities for the island and its people."
He said the decision to erect the monument was a commitment made in the Programme for Government, and at Arbour Hill last April the Taoiseach said it would "stand as a symbol of the achievements of all communities and individuals who have worked so hard to deliver peace these past decades. It will send out a clear message to the coming generations that the peace we have built is to be cherished. It should never be taken for granted".
Irish monuments
An expert jury to include appropriate representation from the north of Ireland will assess the entries.
The monument is expected to be erected by 2010.

I was talking to colleagues about Ireland's monuments of note. There was unanimous agreement that the current most famous monument in Ireland ..in terms of most widely known by the population ..has to be the Dublin Spire.
The Dublin Spire has quickly become much appreciated ...if for no other quality ....as a most convenient meeting point in Dublin city centre.
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Irish Architects notes
The Dublin Spire is one hundred and twenty metres tall ... making it by far the tallest structure in Dublin city centre ...and a claim to be the world's tallest sculpture. It is three metres wide at the base ....tapering to just a 15 centimetre wide beacon at the top. The top section is perforated and lit by small LEDs.
The spire looks different under every lighting condition. At night as in the photograph above ...its stainless steel surface resembles black satin ...while early morning and last light gave it a steely blue colour. In daytime under bright sunlight ...it doesn't look real from a distance, instead it looks like a computer simulation.
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The spire is located on the site of the former monument ....Nelson's Pillar on O'Connell Street ...which was also a meeting place ...and was for over a century ..until the IRA blew it up.
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What of the many vandalized Irish monuments of the great John Henry Foley ...Internationally regarded as one of the greatest Iconic monument sculptors of all time.
He was the sculptor of the Daniel O'Connell statue and he was a Irishman ...a Dubliner.
We do not really acknowledge him as of Ireland ...because Foley was commissioned in the wrong century ...for the Irish to regard him as one of the greatest monument sculptors of all time.
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Irish monuments