Exhibition: The Great Industrial Exhibition of 1853

In 1853 the Royal Irish Academy contributed artefacts to one of the largest ever international events of the nineteenth-century – the Great Industrial Exhibition – which took place from 12 May until the 31st of October 1853 on the grounds of Leinster House, the headquarters of the Royal Dublin Society. This year marks 170 years since the exhibition, which welcomed over a million visitors to see highlights of Irish industry and craft. A substantial number of objects from the Royal Irish Academy Museum (now held in the National Museum of Ireland) were exhibited as part of the Great Industrial Exhibition including the twelfth century Cross of Cong, one of the greatest examples of Irish art, and the Tara Brooch.

We have been working with colleagues from the RDS Library & Archive on an exhibition to tell the story of the Great Industrial Exhibition which will be on display in the Meeting Room of the Royal Irish Academy in November and December.

The exhibition is available for viewing in the Royal Irish Academy from Wednesday 8th November – Thursday 21 December, 10am – 5pm, Monday to Friday. On occasion the Meeting Room may be inaccessible due to events, so please contact the Library on (01) 609 0601 or email library@ria.ie before travelling.

Image credit: The Exhibition Expositor and Advertiser (1853)