58. Literary Dublin

Where: Dublin, Ireland
When: April 2001
With: Loren, Doug, Jon

So, I embarrassingly didn't realize this until very recently, but there are a TON of authors that come from Ireland. All these writers that I assumed were British are actually my ancestors' compatriots. The list is extensive, including Oscar Wilde (who wrote The Picture of Dorian Gray), W.B. Yeats (whose poetry was inspired by the county I am from), and Bram Stoker (who used his mother's recount of Ireland during the cholera epidemic as inspiration for Dracula).

All of this has given Dublin a reputation as being a writer's town. In fact, in 2010, the United Nations made Dublin an official City of Literature, bestowed on cities that excel in honoring literature. From street names to monuments in honor of their celebrated authors, it is pretty clear that Dublin is proud of its literary contributions.

Jonathan Swift, who wrote Gulliver's Travels, is buried in Saint Patrick's Cathedral. 

This statue honors James Joyce, author of Dubliners and Ulysses. Dubliners is a collection of fifteen short stories all depicting life in Dublin in the early 1900s from different social classes, ages and perspectives. These characters ultimately became minor characters in Joyce's most celebrated novel Ulysses which follows an Odyssey-like day in the life of Leopold Bloom, specifically June 16th, 1904. In fact, every June 16th, Dublin celebrates Bloomsday, with enthusiasts of the book in period dress recreating Leopold's steps through the city. 

The main piece of literature that Dublin is famous for is one of the oldest in existence. It is the Book of Kells, held on campus at Dublin's Trinity College, ironically the place where most of Ireland's famed novelists attended university. 

The Book of Kells is effectively a chunk of the Bible, specifically the New Testament, but transcribed over 1,000 years ago. The pages were decorated elaborately with colorful lettering and pictures, and was miraculously preserved until now. It's considered Ireland's greatest national treasure.

The book is housed under heavy security down in a basement where the lighting can't harm it's delicate pages. It's almost easy to miss within the extensive exhibit because it's not very big and hidden under so much glass. The main reason we realized we were looking at it was the security guard leering at us from the corner.  

While the Book of Kells is very cool and impressive to see, I actually prefer to see what sits just above it: Trinity's Long Room. It is like something out of a movie, a great, long hall that was built in the early 1700s and houses 200,000 of the college's oldest books. The smell of old books smacked us both right when we walked in. 

The shelves extend so far up on two open stories, it feels like it goes on forever. Flanked by marble busts and a rounded ceiling, and I could take photos here for days.  

The hall also contains lots of old manuscripts. Some of these look a touch like the Book of Kells, though they are bigger and not nearly as old. 

One of the most impressive relics in the Long Hall is the Brian Boru Gaelic harp, one of the oldest harps in the world. Dating from the 14th or 15th century, this has become the symbol of Ireland and the one that the Guinness logo is based off of!

Well, if there is one thing I have gathered from my visit back to Dublin, it's that I need to add some books to my reading list and get up to date on my Irish literature. That way, I can go back and celebrate Bloomsday in 1900s style and appreciate all the literature that spills out of the pubs and onto the streets all over Dublin.