Ireland/Irish > Black's guide to Dublin and the Wicklow mountains

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DUBLIN.
cost the sum of £6856, raised by public subscription
among the Irish admirers of the Trafalgar hero. The
statue, which stands thirteen feet in height, is a beautiful
specimen of art, and is from the studio of a native sculptor,
Thomas Kirk. On a fine clear day the visitor would do
well to ascend to the safely-railed summit of the monu¬
ment, from which a most extensive and delightful prospect
may be obtained, embracing a panoramic view of the city
and surrounding country, from the Moume Mountains* in
the county Down on the north, to the Wicklow Mountains
on the south; the plains of Meath and Kildare on the
west, parted by the Dublin Hills and Dublin Bay, and a
wide expanse of sea to the eastward.
8. CUSTOM-HOUSE.—The outline of this structure
is quadrangular, each side being highly and appropriately
decorated. The principal front faces the river. In the
centre is a tetrastyle portico supporting a neat pediment,
in the tympanum of which is a fine allegorical composition,
representing Britannia and Hibernia in a marine shell, a
group of merchantmen approaching, and Neptune driving
away famine and despair. An attic storey rises behind
the pediment, and on this are placed, right above the
Doric columns of the portico, colossal statues of Navigation,
Wealth, Commerce, and Industry. The wings are con¬
nected with the centre by arcades, and are surmounted by
the arms of Ireland. We pass round the west side of the
building to the north face, which has also a portico of four
columns of the Doric order ; they are, however, elevated
on a flight, of steps, which adds not a little to their beauty.
The entablature is here decorated with well designed
figures representative of Europe, Asia, America, and Africa.
A dome, in the style of that on Greenwich hospital, rises
above the building to the height of some 120 feet, and
bears on its summit a statue of Hope, sixteen feet high.
* These are only visible in peculiar states of the atmosphere.