Marsh’s Library is a superb example of late Renaissance architecture, its tall windows and red brick walls a tantalizing encasement of the many valuable tomes within. Built in 1707 next to St. Patrick’s Cathedral, the library has doubtless contracted and contributed to the locality’s air of olden elegance – where the Cathedral brings medieval piety, Marsh’s Library brings the intellectualism of the Enlightenment era.
Within are more than 25,000 distinct texts; open for the public, the library conducts a daily tour that explains the history of both the building and its most noteworthy texts. Visitor numbers are on the rise; almost 20,000 tourists in 2015 stopped by to soak in the atmosphere and majesty the library’s original fittings and architecture impart so gracefully. A small fee of 3 euros applies to non-member visitors, with the whole amount going to the preservation of both the structure itself and the many valued volumes comprising its collection, while also funding the exhibitions Marsh’s occasionally hosts.
| Address: | Archbishop Marsh’s Library, Saint Sepulchre’s, Saint Patrick’s Close, Dublin 8, D08 FK79, Ireland. |
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| Phone: | +353 1 454 3511 |
| Email: | keeper@marshlibrary.ie |
| Website: | http://www.marshlibrary.ie/ |