#phibsboro

THE IRISH VOLUNTEER MONUMENT IN PHIBSBORO [PHOTOGRAPHED 2 OCTOBER 2017]-133012 by William Murphy Via Flickr: Dublin City Council refer to this as the ‘Irish Volunteer Monument in Phibsboro’. As this monument was not included on Google Maps I recently added a pin so that you can locate it if you ever nearby. For many years I could not gain full access to this memorial because the gates were usually locked which I assumed was to protect against anti-social behaviour. The monument was vandalised in the 1970’s, and the Volunteer stood for many years with no rifle in his hand, until his restoration in 1991. However it would now appear that Dublin City Council are adopting a different approach and are now leaving gates open twenty four hours per day and from what I seen so far indicates that vandalism has reduced … all that is needed now is a reduction in litter. It was only recently that I noticed that this monument was originally build as a fountain but the water supply must have been removed as is often the case in Dublin. The Irish Volunteer Monument commemorates members of the Dublin Brigade of the Irish Volunteers who fought and died during the Easter Rising (1916) and the War of Independence (1919-21). The monument depicts a soldier and below the soldier scenes from Irish mythology and ancient Irish history: the arrival of the Milesians (the first inhabitants of Ireland), Cuchulainn fighting at the ford and the death of King Brian Boru at Clontarf in 1014. The limestone monument was created by Leo Broe (1899–1966) who himself had been a member of the Volunteers. It was unveiled on 19 February 1939.

Dublin UNESCO City Of Literature Show Garden [From Swerve of Shore to Bend of Bay]-133021 by William Murphy Via Flickr: When I last visited back in January 2016 I commented as follows: "When I last visited in March 2014 I said that “I was somewhat unimpressed if not totally disappointed by this garden now located in the grounds of Phibsboro Public Library. The setting is not at all suitable and elements [the pool to name but one] appear to be missing from the prize winning garden. I suspect that little of this will remain in two or three years due to lack of maintenance and appropriate attention. Note: The water pump may need a service as it appears to be rather noisy.” Unfortunately it is now in worse condition than it was back then." Today I must must say that it may be a bit better than it was almost two years ago, it certainly is not in a worse condition so someone must have made some attempt to maintain it over the last year or two. From Swerve of Shore to Bend of Bay: 'riverrun, past Eve and Adams, from swerve of shore to bend of bay, brings us by a commodius vicus of recirculation back to Howth Castle and Environs.' Finnegans Wake. The Dublin UNESCO City of Literature Show Garden won two awards at the Bloom Garden Festival in 2011. The garden won best in its category (small gardens) and a Bloom silver medal for small gardens. 'River Run' was designed by Dublin City Council Parks and Landscape Services to honour Dublin's designation as a UNESCO City of Literature.