Public art in Letterkenny

Letterkenny like many towns in Ireland has tried to improve its aesthetic appeal and commemorate its history and achievements with the commissioning of Public art and Monuments. Described below are examples of some of these.

Pole Star

The Pole Star is a monument located on the Port Bridge Roundabout on the Derry Road. Its creator is a Derry man, Locky Morris. The project cost approximately €100,000. The site of the Polestar, on the Port Bridge Roundabout, has had an historic past where trade and goods were landed by boat and transported to the surrounding areas by rail and road. The monument is made of 104 timber poles and rises to a height of 12 metres. Its shape alludes to the outline of a boat, as well as having a locomotive (train track)theme, to commemorate the fact that both forms of transportation played a major part in the town's development in the past.

The Workers

The Workers is a monument made from stainless steel and stone and is located at The Dry Arch Roundabout in the town. The monument was created in 2001 by Maurice Harron. The monument commemorates a generation of men who worked on building the original bridge and train track at the Dry Arch. The piece of stone in the monument, which the workers are lifting, is a piece saved from the original bridge.

The Celtic Cross

The Celtic Cross is located in Cathedral Square, just across from St. Eunan's Cathedral in the town. It was erected to celebrate 2000 years since the birth of Jesus and is the largest Celtic Cross in Europe.

The Rabble Children

This monument was created by Maurice Harron and was erected in December 1994. Hiring Fairs were held in Letterkenny in years gone by when children between the ages of 11 and 16 were sold for periods of six months to wealthy farmers of the Lagan Valley. These Rabble Days were held annually in May and November at Speer's Lane, at the corner of Upper Main Street and a lasting memory to that era can be seen in Market Square where a beautiful monument of Rabble Children is located.

The Fireman's Helmet

Fireman’s Helmet is a monument located outside the fire station in Letterkenny. It is constructed of a galvanised steel tube with copper sheeting and is a fine example of the work being done in the Travellers' project, Mountaintop, Letterkenny. This project is a government funded effort to educate and train Travellers in the dying skills of their culture in a modern world, through culture and art.

The Chair

The Chair is also located on Market Square. Built from woodFact|date=July 2007, its design contains various etchings and it has been present for about over two years at its current location following its first appearance in the summer of 2005 at the Fleadh Cheoil na hÉireann. Two more chairs were mysteriously added in the months/years that followed.

The Blacksmith's Ball

The Blacksmiths Ball is located outside Letterkenny Courthouse, between Upper Main Street and Port Road. It was constructed by 100 blacksmiths on Saturday 30 March 1991. The ball supports are four giant horseshoe nails. The ball displays symbols associated with the countries which the blacksmiths came from.

External links

* [http://www.letterkennysculpturecenter.com/courses.html Letterkenny Sculptor Centre]