A unique exhibition of photographs, architectural plans and drawings, maps and elevations, video and salvaged records has opened, marking the centenary of the destruction of the Public Record Office on 30 June 1922.
Speaking at the Public Record Office exhibition opening, Minister Catherine Martin TD, Minister for Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media said: “This is a truly remarkable story of a building, built to house and protect centuries of precious records from Elizabethan times to the present day. Yet on that day in 1922, fire destroyed not only the building but most of the records inside. The commitment and vision of the staff to salvage what they could was a powerful gesture of resilience and fortitude. Their work has enabled staff today at the National Archives to continue in their footsteps and preserve and conserve the records they salvaged from the rubble in 1922.
The photographs, plans and drawings presented here today have never been on public display before. Visitors will also have unique access to the inside of this extraordinary Victorian records treasury through contemporary film footage of a building closed to the public for over 150 years. I am delighted that as part of the State’s Commemorations Programme, this exhibition provides us with an opportunity to step back into the history and story of a building that continues to protect and preserve the archives of the State as a second site of the National Archives.”
The exhibition is part of the Government of Ireland’s Decade of Centenaries Programme 2012-2023. It is open until 19 August, 2022, Monday to Friday from 10am to 5pm at Irish Architectural Archive, 45 Merrion Square E, Dublin 2.