merrion street

President Michael D. Higgins was in Dun Laoghaire this morning to officially open the newly refurbished National Maritime Museum of Ireland. The Museum is housed in the Mariners’ Church on Haigh Terrace and has been carefully conserved and refurbished to act as a state-of-the-art maritime museum, library and heritage centre. Works carried out between 2006-2011 included detailed restoration and refurbishment of the external and internal fabric of the building, as well as a fit-out of the interior to house the Museum’s circa 7,000 artefacts and documents. All work was carried out to the highest standards and was monitored by OPW’s Conservation Architecture section.

Minister of State Brian Hayes, who also attended the opening this morning, commented: “It is wonderful to see such a vibrant and worthwhile museum opening today and indeed gratifying to see that the State’s substantial grant funding has facilitated the creation of a museum which will attract overseas visitors and locals alike. I am delighted that OPW was instrumental in contributing to the conservation and restoration of this prestigious Museum”.

During his visit, President Higgins was given a short tour through some of the exhibitions and inspected the newly conserved Church building.

Note to Editors:

In the 1830s the Port of Kingstown was built as a ‘Harbour of Refuge’ for sailing ships waiting to enter the Port of Dublin. Safety restrictions meant that hundreds of Naval and Merchant ships could be waiting in Kingstown Harbour for an opportunity to enter Dublin Port. It was considered important that a Church should be built to look after the spiritual needs of the Officers and Sailors, so in 1837 the Mariners’ Church was built. In the mid-20th century the congregation dwindled and the Church closed in 1971. The property was then leased from the Representative Church Body by the Maritime Institute of Ireland for use as a museum and opened in 1976.

The Maritime Institute of Ireland is a voluntary organisation and has charitable status.