Dublin books by Peter Pearson

**An interview with Peter Pearson, author of the recently published “The Heart of Dublin”, one of the best books ever written about the centre city. I’ve also included John Harding’s original article from a couple of year ago on Peter’s other best-seller “Between the Mountains and the Sea”, the story of Dun Laoghaire and the surrounding areas.

Getting to the heart of Dublin**

pearson.jpg (39404 bytes)A few years ago Peter Pearson had a Christmas best-seller with his epic book on Dun Laoghaire “Between the Mountains and the Sea.” It sold out within weeks and, after a quick re-issue, has never been out of print since.

“I was pretty sure that it would sell, but thought it would be over a period of time. It generated a lot of correspondence and is now in its fourth edition, each new one containing little changes,” he says. “No matter how many times I include new material there will always be somebody who lets me know that something is missing.”

His new book “The Heart of Dublin: Resurgence of an Historic City” is certain to be just as successful. It draws many threads together to plot the growth, decline and eventual rebirth of the capital. Much of the research is original and the lavishly illustrated volume, which runs to 480 pages, has many photographs, billheads and illustrations which have never been published before.

He cheerfully admits that it’s a book for dipping into, not one to be read all at once. “A friend of mine told me he had read it in one go, I thought he was crazy. I don’t think I could bring myself to read more than a few pages at a time,” he says.

It’s not because the pages lack interest but rather that each is crammed with information, sometimes you need to concentrate, perhaps go back a few pages to pick up the thread, and proceed with caution.

The new, bright “Celtic Tiger” Dublin is badly in need of its own museum, he believes. “It’s not a criticism of the Dublin Civic Museum but a recognition that it has been underfunded to the extent that it cannot plan for the future and is unable to expand.”

“These days every county town has a better local museum than Dublin,” he says, suggesting that Kevin Street Garda Station (site of the original Palace of Saint Sepulchre) could be an idea site. “It’s in an area that needs a lift but is also beside some of the most historic buildings in the city, Marsh’s Library, St. Patrick’s and Christchurch Cathedrals. What’s needed is a joint commitment from the State and Dublin Corporation.

He freely admits that the idea is not at the top of the agenda of the Corpo (“they’ve spent quite a lot recently on City Hall and the creation of a museum of the Corporation”) or the State at the moment, but then, who would have believed him all those years ago when he campaigned for the creation of a new city attraction, Temple Bar.

“On balance I’d say Temple Bar is good, it does have a vibrant quality. But, behind the facade there’s not a lot left that’s old. With a few exceptions it’s about pubs and restaurants - I would have loved to have seen the bookshops, locksmiths and cutlers. Where are the crafts, the artisans? The creative people, the makers, just aren’t there. It will take time for the dust to settle and maybe then cultural organisations could thrive there.”

Pearson’s home, in the former home of one of Dublin’s oldest charities, the Sick and Indigent Roomkeepers Society (founded 1790), opposite the Olympia Theatre, could certainly provide much of the material needed for any Dublin Museum, from old maps and prints, rescued pieces from demolished buildings and a fine collection of books about the city.

dublinheart.jpg (24844 bytes)But, he points out, there is more of old Dublin hidden away or rarely seen than most people realise. “Christchurch has the original statues of Charles II and James II and the coat of arms from the Tholsel (demolished in 1807), there’s the Lord Mayor’s coach, the elaborate coat of arms of the Baker’s Hall can now be found outside the National Museum in Kildare Street, the oldest fire engine can be found in St. Werburgh’s church, Daithí Hanley has the old Abbey Theatre facade in storage in Dalkey - the list just goes on and on. And that’s before you start thinking about the other aspects of the city, the history of the port, Dublin’s guilds, trade and shopping, the poor, breweries and industries, etc.”

“If we could bring the artefacts together, or into several themed buildings, from the National, Print, Maritime and Civic Museums, the art galleries, the Architectural Archive, then Dublin would something very special.”

Originally from Monkstown, Pearson says he is “alarmed” at the pace of development in Dun Laoghaire Rathdown. “It seems as if they want to build a new city and anything goes. The explosion of development in the county has placed historic buildings in jeopardy,” he says, ruefully recalling that his own book on the area was once used at a planning hearing to argue for demolition. “The argument was that if it wasn’t in my book, it wasn’t worth preserving!”

As a young man he says he wasn’t particularly interested in architecture or history. “I was more interested in castles and ruins and old stuff then. I didn’t like Georgian Dublin, I found it very forbidding.”

“I began to get interested in the ’70s when I got upset seeing piles of cut granite from demolished buildings being thrown into Dun Laoghaire harbour. Later, after studying painting in Italy, I worked for a year in Castletown House and got involved in what was happening in the city, the road-widening and the dereliction of the quays.”

He points out that the destruction of Dublin is not new. “From one point of view you could call the Wide Street Commissioners the greatest vandals ever to afflict the city. But they also created much of the Dublin we know today.”

But, he is convinced, there were real vandals destroying Dublin not so long ago

Peter Pearson, despite his success as an author, doesn’t rely on writing to pay the bills. His passion and main activity is painting. “I enjoy the historical stuff and it is an element in my paintings - you’d know that the scenes were painted now. I tend to include something contemporary, a crane or a building for example.”

“The Heart of Dublin: Resurgence of an Historic City” by Peter Pearson, is published in hardback by O’Brien Press and is priced £30.

The Definitive Dun Laoghaire Rathdown

By John Harding (Originally published in the Southside People.)

First of all a warning: If you have Peter Pearson’s new book lying conspicuously around your house be very careful. It’s the type of book that will be picked up frequently by visitors and eventually taken away “for a loan”, never to be seen again.

Quite simply this is because there’s something here for everybody with an interest in the Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown area. This well-illustrated and detailed work breaks the county’s architectural and sociological history down into thirty local areas which are each dealt with in depth.

You’ll start with your own area, picking out buildings and features familiar perhaps from childhood, but which now take on a new significance as their history and that of the people who built them is uncovered.

Then you’ll progress to more prominent landmarks: Dun Laoghaire Harbour or perhaps the Leadmines.

And there’s great scope for solving intriguing local mysteries here too. That colourful statue of the sailor on Sorrento Point, for instance which can best be seen from the seaward side, was probably the creation of MacAnaspie family, owners of the McAnaspie Roman Cement and Stucco Works, Pearse St, the original owners of Nerano House where the stucco statue is sited.

Braemor Road is a placename so familiar that you wouldn’t give it a second thought, so it’s all the more surprising to discover the unusual origin of the name

• two of the original developers of the area, Brady and Morton, amalgamated their surnames to come up with it.

Modern estate names like Beechwood, Ballinclea and Moreen are shown here to reflect the underlying history of their areas - these were the original names of the big houses - now long since demolished - and their accompanying estates which defined the landscape in Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown.

And what emerges from the detail is the first comprehensive and cohesive picture of Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown, of the various phases of development it went through before it was carved up into self-contained dormer villages and towns, each with a stronger link with the city centre than to their neighbouring communities.

Pearson has meticulously researched and recorded all of these houses and reproduced accompanying photographs, including interesting interior details in some cases.

In his introduction he says that work began on ‘Between the Mountains and the Sea’ in 1987. But it’s clear that it is the culmination of Pearson’s lifetime’s work as a historian, artist and conservationist in the county area.

Much of what you’ll find can be found in various other books, but never before has it all been brought together in one volume. The many photographs also make it excellent value.

‘Between the Mountains and the Sea’ is published by O’Brien Press in hardback and costs £25.

General Index .