Marsh's Library
Encyclopedia
St. Patrick's Cathedral, Dublin
Saint Patrick's Cathedral , or more formally, the Cathedral of the Blessed Virgin Mary and St Patrick is a cathedral of the Church of Ireland in Dublin, Ireland which was founded in 1191. The Church has designated it as The National Cathedral of Ireland...
, Dublin, Ireland
Republic of Ireland
Ireland , described as the Republic of Ireland , is a sovereign state in Europe occupying approximately five-sixths of the island of the same name. Its capital is Dublin. Ireland, which had a population of 4.58 million in 2011, is a constitutional republic governed as a parliamentary democracy,...
is the oldest public library in Ireland. It was built to the order of Archbishop Narcissus Marsh
Narcissus Marsh
Narcissus Marsh was an English clergyman who was successively Church of Ireland Bishop of Ferns and Leighlin, Archbishop of Cashel, Archbishop of Dublin and Archbishop of Armagh....
in 1701 and has a collection of over 25,000 books and 300 manuscripts.
Foundation
The library was built for Narcissus Marsh, Church of Ireland Archbishop of Dublin, and formerly Provost of Trinity College, DublinTrinity College, Dublin
Trinity College, Dublin , formally known as the College of the Holy and Undivided Trinity of Queen Elizabeth near Dublin, was founded in 1592 by letters patent from Queen Elizabeth I as the "mother of a university", Extracts from Letters Patent of Elizabeth I, 1592: "...we...found and...
, in 1701. The design was by the then Surveyor General of Ireland
Surveyor General of Ireland
The office of Surveyor General of Ireland was an appointed office under the Dublin Castle administration of Ireland in the 17th and 18th centuries. The Surveyor General was typically responsible for the surveying, design and construction of civic works, and was often involved in overseeing the...
, Sir William Robinson
William Robinson (architect)
William Robinson was the Surveyor General of Ireland from 1670/71 until 1700. Born in England, Robinson was appointed to the post of Surveyor General by John Berkeley in his first year of office as Lord Lieutenant of Ireland....
, also the architect of the Royal Hospital Kilmainham. Marsh donated his own library, which included the former library of Bishop Edward Stillingfleet, of over 10,000 volumes, regarded as one of the finest in England, which he had bought for 2,500 pounds.
Dr. Elias Bouhereau
Élie Bouhéreau
Élie Bouhéreau was a French Huguenot refugee in Ireland and the first librarian of Marsh's Library in Dublin.-Career:...
, a Huguenot
Huguenot
The Huguenots were members of the Protestant Reformed Church of France during the 16th and 17th centuries. Since the 17th century, people who formerly would have been called Huguenots have instead simply been called French Protestants, a title suggested by their German co-religionists, the...
refugee from La Rochelle
La Rochelle
La Rochelle is a city in western France and a seaport on the Bay of Biscay, a part of the Atlantic Ocean. It is the capital of the Charente-Maritime department.The city is connected to the Île de Ré by a bridge completed on 19 May 1988...
who fled from France in 1695, was the first librarian or Keeper, and also donated his personal library.
The Library was formally incorporated in 1707 by Parliament, which vested the house and books in a body known as the Governors and Guardians of the Library, comprising religious and state dignitaries and officials, and their successors still oversee it. Narcissus Marsh died in 1713, and is buried just beyond the library, in the grounds of the cathedral.
In 1745, John Stearne, Bishop of Clogher, bequeathed his books to the library; these included a volume from 1472.
Recent history
In 1989, Muriel McCarthy, a long-serving staff member, was appointed the first female Keeper and has held the position since. She has published a history of the library.Recently, reader and visitor facilities have been enhanced, a bindery and conservation facility added, and the catalogue fully computerised, and published online.
Holdings
The library contains over 25,000 books from the 16th, 17th and 18th centuries, in addition to around 300 manuscripts, and around 80 books (incunabula) from before 1501. Subjects covered include medicine, law, science, travel, navigation, mathematics, music, surveying and classical literature, and especially theology.The Marsh collection includes works in oriental languages, and in Hebrew, Arabic, Turkish and Russian, as well as an important collection of Latin Judaica. The Bouhéreau collection relates especially to France, and French religious controversies, and also medicine.
Among the manuscripts is a volume of the Lives of the Irish Saints in Latin from ca. 1400, as well as 16th century madrigals and other musical pieces, and manuscripts on theological, legal and medical matters.
Books and periodicals relating to Ireland and published in the lst hundred years are held in a separate room from the main collection.
Interior design
The library still features its original fittings, including seating and shelving. The bookcases are made of dark oak with carved and lettered gables. There are three wire alcoves where readers would be locked in with rarer booksToday
The library is one of the last 18th century buildings in Ireland still used for its original purpose. It is open to visitors for a fee (in 2009) of €2.50, or €1.50 for students and senior citizens. Researchers are admitted free of charge, as long as they have made prior applications. Around 750 people visit the library on a monthly basis. Of these, the majority are non-Irish.The Library holds exhibitions, and occasional conferences, and has published a range of material, primarily related to exhibitions and the catalogue.
As a charitable institution the library accepts donations, which are recorded in a special ledger.