Exhibitions and Events

Admission prices include entrance to all current exhibitions in the Old Library building.

Tercentenary 1712 - 2012

2012 marks the Tercentenary of the Old Library building as the foundation stone was laid on 23 May 1712. As part of the celebrations two exhibitions will be on view in the Long Room:

‘A great many choice books’: 300 years of the Old Library - April to October 2012
Drawn to the Page: Irish Artists and Illustration 1830 to 1930

Please see our Tercentenary site for more details.

The Book of Kells

The Book of Kells "Turning Darkness into Light" Exhibition is currently on view in the Colonnades of the Old Library. It can be viewed prior to visiting the original manuscript in the Treasury. The exhibition places the 9th- century manuscript in its historical perspective and allows the visitor to acquire a greater appreciation of the work than is usually possible. Related manuscripts are also on show and may include the Book of Armagh, the Book of Durrow, the Book of Mulling and the Book of Dimma.

Long Room Exhibitions

The Long Room is lined by 48 marble busts; look out for the bust of Jonathan Swift by Louis Francois Roubiliac. Also look out for one of the few remaining copies of the 1916 Proclamation of the Irish Republic and Ireland’s oldest harp, dating from the 15th century. As an emblem of early bardic society, this is the harp which appears on Irish coins. The attribution to Brian Boru, a High King of Ireland (died 1014) is legendary rather than factual.

For details of current and future exhibitions in the Long Room please see the Trinity College Library Dublin Exhibitions and Events page.