Dublin is home to nearly a third of Ireland's population and this is where most of our major museums and collections can be found.
On Kildare Street in the city centre is the National Museum, with its great collection of gold jewellery from the Bronze Age, ornate early Christian church plate and sumptuous 18th century Irish silver - a splendid showcase for the expertise of Ireland's craftsmen over the last two thousand years. There are outstanding collections of rare books and manuscripts in the National Library, also on Kildare Street, and in the great library at nearby Trinity College.
The National Gallery of Ireland, in Merrion Square, has a fine collection combining Old Masters, Impressionists and works by Irish artists, while the nearby Natural History Museum is home to a vast collection of stuffed animals and birds from all over the world, and some interesting exhibitions of Ireland's flora and fauna.
There are two museums of Modern Art. The Hugh Lane Municipal Gallery of Modern Art is housed in the former town house of Lord Charlemont, Ireland's foremost 18th century collector, patron and connoisseur, in Parnell Square, and The Irish Museum of Modern Art occupies a large proportion of Dublin's most important 17th century building, The Royal Hospital at Kilmainham.
The National Museum of Decorative Arts and History is a new off-shoot of the National Museum in the former Collins Barracks, overlooking the River Liffey and the Quays, with a superb permanent display backed up by frequent smaller exhibitions. The Chester Beatty Gallery houses one of the world's most important collections of Islamic and Oriental Art; the Dublinia Museum tells the history of mediaeval Dublin; there is a Writer's Museum in Parnell Square, a James Joyce Museum in the Martello Tower at Sandycove, a Guinness Museum in the Guinness Hopstore, a Whiskey Museum in the Jameson Distillery in Smithfield and even a GAA Museum (Gaelic Athletic Association) in Croke Park.
In addition, there are shows of contemporary art in numerous galleries, and major exhibitions in the Royal Hibernian Academy in Ely Place. You can visit the State Apartments and Chapel Royal in Dublin Castle, the two great mediaeval cathedrals, St. Patrick's and Christ Church, and the gaol at Kilmainham where many of the leaders of the 1916 Uprising were executed.
But this is not all, for there are museums in the country too, and many of these are ideally located for when staying in Hidden Ireland's historic private houses.
Among these are:
The Beit Collection in Russborough House, near Blessington in County Wicklow, consists of old master paintings, Irish and European furniture and objects, all housed in one of Ireland's finest surviving eighteenth century Palladian houses, and equally renowned for its outstanding collection and for several spectacular art heists. The nearest Hidden Ireland house is Martinstown.
In the converted stables of Birr Castle is a science museum, devoted to the life and work of the Parsons family. Oustanding among other Anglo-Irish aristocrats, two successive generations in the 19th century were among the world's leading scientists and engineers. They designed and built the world's largest telescope at home, using their own farm and estate workers, and with it made discoveries which vastly increased our knowledge of the solar system. In the engineering field their inventions were of huge practical benefit, particularly for ship construction and design.
The Crawford Municipal Art Gallery, in the centre of Cork City, has a fine collection of paintings and sculpture, largely by Irish artists or of Irish interest.
In the former Custom House, Limerick's finest 18th century building, is the Hunt Museum, an eclectic collection of paintings, works of art and objects formed by Mr. & Mrs. Hunt from the late 1940's and bequeathed to the people of Limerick.
The Steam Museum at Lodge Park in County Kildare is a collection of working steam engines and associated paraphernalia, all beautifully restored and maintained. Originally assembled as a private collection, it has now been opened to public view.
The purpose-built new National Museum of Ireland's Country Life, in the grounds of an important Victorian House, Turlough Park in County Mayo, is now home to the national collection of all objects connected with rural life in times gone by.
Until the mid-18th century, when it was overtaken by Cork, Waterford was Ireland's second city. The Waterford Treasures Exhibition in Reginald's Tower, a very large circular tower which formed part of the cities mediaeval defences, holds an impressive collection of objects connected with the city's rich history.
These are just a few of the regional museums and collections to be discovered throughout Ireland. Your hosts will be delighted to let you know of particular treasures to be visited while staying in their area.