In this time of uncertainty UCD Cultural Heritage Collections will continue to post blogs about the historical gems in our collections. Hopefully these will provide you with a little ray of sunshine in this dark time. From the work of the Irish Folklore Commission’s first full-time folklore collector of the Donegal Gaeltacht, Seán Ó hEochaidh, … Continue reading As wonderful a woman as ever I did meet
The walls of the National Folklore Collection are home to a unique collection of art which often goes unnoticed. Acquired by the Irish Folklore Commission and its successors, the collection comprises a selection of paintings of which some were bought and commissioned, but which were mostly gifted by the Commission’s network of contacts throughout the … Continue reading Come look at our art!
With the Month of Merriment arriving tomorrow, so too does the tradition of the advent calendar. And here at UCD Cultural Heritage Collections we are not ones to shirk away from tradition! So for the month of December we will be showcasing festive material from UCD Special Collections, National Folklore Collection and UCD Archives on … Continue reading The Holidays are coming!!
Most of us have at one time or another been unlucky enough to experience some unpleasant illness or ailment which lays us low. Thankfully, our recoveries from such infirmities are in the main, rapid and full. In days gone by however, and prior to the arrival of the flu-jab, our forebears had to resort to … Continue reading A cough? Here’s some snails!
With summer a distant memory, and the harvest period having drawn to a close, Hallowe’en (All Hallows Eve) or Oíche Shamhna was considered a turning point in the traditional calendar year. Cattle were brought from summer pastures to fields closer to the family homestead, and corn, apples, turnips and potatoes were all harvested and stored … Continue reading Get Your Ghoul On!
‘One of the greatest sources of information we have in Ireland is the Ordnance Survey Books, which were made about a century ago by three men, John O’Donovan, Eugene O’Curry, and George Petrie. They went around and took down all the place names of the country and recorded material of very great importance. But the … Continue reading Dear Diary…
On July 20, 1969, Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin landed the Apollo Lunar Module (Eagle) on the moon, as Michael Collins orbited the moon in the command module (Pilot). Apollo 11 was launched by a Saturn V rocket from Kennedy Space Center on Merritt Island, Florida, on July 16 and returned to Earth on July … Continue reading Fly me to the moon!
Tomás Ó Muircheartaigh was one of Ireland’s most prolific photographers of the early 20th century. He’s perhaps best remembered for capturing the everyday life of ordinary people living in Ireland’s rural districts. Ó Muircheartaigh was born in Dublin in 1907. His father Tomás and his mother Bríd Ní Mathúna both worked as teachers in the … Continue reading The Ethnologist’s Eye
Thoughts and dreams of foreign lands are beginning to bubble beneath the surface as another academic year passes from the urgent hues of the present to the harmless sepia tones of the past. Some of us might be thinking of short breaks from the office, whilst others prepare for longer adventures after the lengthy toil … Continue reading There was little romantic intrigue and gigolos were as rare as snakes…
We have all, at one time or another, forgotten to return a borrowed book, or hung on to one lent to us for longer than we ought. Indeed, despite the best of intentions all manner of tomes and texts may at times holiday among our own collections for weeks, months or even years. Such is … Continue reading Your book is well overdue!