O'Connell Bridge

The Wax Museum

A few photos taken on Westmoreland Street, while walking towards O’Connell Bridge.

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Crowned coats of arms with a lion: the Royal Banner of Scotland. Number 7 Westmoreland Street is the result of an architectural competition, to house the Northern Fire and Life Assurance Company (assurance company from Aberdeen in Scotland). The building was designed in 1886 “to resemble a French Renaissance corner pavilion.”

^ Nice sculpted winged lions as stone supports under the balcony.

What a mix of styles!

< In 1988, a series of 14 bronze plaques called In the Footsteps of Leopold Bloom were embedded in the pavement in Dublin. They follow the route of Bloom as described in Chapter 8 of the novel Ulysses by James Joyce. Though the 1st plaque quotes chapter 7 – it is on Abbey Street a couple of hundred metres from a statue of James Joyce north of the river (see next post).

Artist Robin Buick, art installed as part of the Dublin Millennium celebrations.

Currently, with the work due to the expansion of the tram network, it is difficult to see where the pavement starts and the road begins, but on a traffic island at the southern end of O’Connell Bridge was a 12 x 12 metre section of pedestrian island where Irish sculptor Rachel Joynt had installed some brass footprints (shoes and animal). Partially obstructed at the moment.

But it’s a fun piece of artwork called People's Island (1988).

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I have been led the wrong path...

From here one can see a five-lantern streetlamp on O’Connell Bridge and so many flag poles and other grey vertical rods that the 120 metre-high Spire of Dublin can hardly be seen.

^ At least the weather stayed nice 😁
None of my photographs have been photoshopped...

The Green Harp flag, a seagull on a streetlamp, The Spire, O’Connell Monument, road works barriers

(more pics of The Spire, O’Connell Monument, seagulls, barriers and streetlamps in the next post)

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O’Connell Bridge is 50 metres wide and therefore slightly larger in width than in length.

The previous Carlisle Bridge was reconstructed, widened and renamed in 1882.

The lamp standards have been restored, the ones on each side of the bridge have 3 lanterns, the ones on the central part of the bridge have 5 lanterns.

Next post: O’Connell Monument and other landmarks on O’Connell Street
http://picturesofdubhlinn.blogspot.co.uk/2017/07/oconnell-street.html