Robert O’Byrne is a writer and lecturer specialising in the fine and decorative arts. He is the author of more than a dozen books, among them Luggala Days: The Story of a Guinness House (Cico Books) and The Last Knight: A Tribute to Desmond FitzGerald, 29th Knight of Glin (Lilliput Press). A former Vice-President of the Irish Georgian Society and trustee of the Alfred Beit Foundation, he is currently a trustee of the Apollo Foundation. Among other work he writes a monthly column for Apollo magazine (http://www.apollo-magazine.com), and also contributes to each issue of the quarterly Irish Arts Review (http://www.irishartsreview.com). All opinions expressed herein on Ireland, her landscape, architecture and artefacts are his own.
Dear Sir – thank you for wonderfully informative and attractively presented features – being from Donegal I particularly enjoyed your feature on the Bishops Palace in Raphoe with its clever title, “From Bishops to Bullocks”. I have enjoyed all your articles on historical sites in Donegal and look forward to seeing some more in due course – Raymond Blair, Vice-President, County Donegal Historical Society
Raymond as you are the VP of the Co Donegal Historical Society I wonder what details you have, if any, on Carricknagore House, Killybegs. I know that it was occupied by a Post Captain, Stephen Fovil in 1833 the year he died. It was subsequently occupied by William Barrett his son-in-law and sessional crown solicitor for the County. I believe it was last occupied in 1952 by the Hamilton’s who were related to the original owners. Following this it fell into disrepair. It has recently been purchased by my cousin, Chris Joyce of Killybegs and of the Joyces of Merview, Co Galway. Kind Regards Brian F Ross-Murphy
You may have spotted this already but the painting of Oonagh Guinness by Philip de Laszlo which you described in your (excellent) book on Luggala as being whereabouts unknown since 1995 has turned up at auction at Ahlers & Ogltree Auction Gallery, Atlanta, Georgia (via The Saleroom). $30-50K + fees and it could be yours! Rgds, Cathal
Thanks, yes indeed I saw that (and was in touch with the auctioneers some time ago – not least to correct their spelling of the Guinness name…). Fingers crossed it goes to a good (Irish) home.
Dear Sir
I just wanted to subscribe to receive your posts.
Thank you in advance
Yvonne Bishop
Switzerland
Thank you for getting in touch: I think you have managed to do so?
Hi,
We are looking into the possible restoration of St. Brigid’s Hospital Ballinasloe and were wondering if we could use your images and report and any other information you have to support our proposal?
Warmest regards
Apologies for the delay in responding to your message. Yes, of course feel free to use the material for such a good idea: it really is terribly wasteful to leave the buildings deteriorating as is the case at present…
Thank you so much! We greatly appreciate your kindness and generosity.
Apologies if you already got this, I’m not sure if it went…I was wondering whether a house built in 1870 was a bit too modern?! Slevoir House near Terryglass, Victorian Italianate on the edge of Lough Derg in Tipperary. Australian-owned which must be a bit unusual, and currently lived in and run as an Airbnb by Australians who are friends of the owners. Not the most beautiful house but a wonderful location.
Thank you for getting in touch. As you’ll appreciate, everything is rather on hold – not least the opportunity to visit anywhere – so I really can’t comment on the building in question. Perhaps when travel outside a 5km radius is permitted again… Meanwhile, stay well.
Slevoir seems to be influenced by Queen Victoria’s Osborne House on the Isle ofWight with asymmetrical elements.
In case Annabel is interested, Slevoir House was once a classic Georgian country house — and home to my great great grandfather, Francis Synge, between 1840 and 1870 — after which it was sold to a General Hickey who rebuilt it in its present Italianate style. The General’s descendants continued there for some time afterwards but it has indeed changed hands in more recent years. The lakeside location is very special.
Hello Richard, My wife and I live in part of Glanmore castle which was once the home of Francis Synge. Our drawing room was originally the library which housed a fine collection of books including, Newtons Principia and Darwins origin of the species which I believe proved to be so inspirational to the young J.M. Synge who was a regular visitor to Glanmore.
Regards
Brendan Farrell
General hickey kept a steamboat called the Meta at Slevoir. The steering wheel is now on display at Lough Derg Yacht Club at Dromineer
Dear Brendan,
Am very interested to know that you live at Glanmore, which I have never visited (but hope one day to be able to!). I should point out there were several Francis Synges over the course of the 19th century, and my ancestor at Slevoir was in fact a nephew of the Francis who built Glanmore. All thanks to Robert O’Byrne for allowing us to share such insights… Richard Synge
Hello Richard, Thanks indeed to Robert for indulging this conversation. You may contact me on https://www.brendanjosephfarrell.com/ then perhaps you could visit when conditions permit.
Glanmore Castle was originally an earlier 17c country house which was subject to gothic embellishments by Francis Johnston who added turrets,bartizans and castellations to the structure which was then rendered in portland cement. Unfortunately due to the indifference of the local council a large part of the building has been lime rendered, a treatment normally associated with medieval castles.
Regards
Brendan Farrell
In relation to Slevoir house, General Hickey had a fine steam yacht called the Meta which was wrecked on the slipway and quay near the house. The steering wheel of the Meta survives in the current Lough Derg yacht Club (founded in the 1830s).
Dear Mr O’Byrne, I have just watched the 4 videos on Mount Talbot. Fascinating, and sad. In the mid 1970s my mother attended the auction at neighbouring Clonbrock (since destroyed by fire, sadly). In the pages of a book acquired at the auction we found a copy of the Roscommon Herald dated 1897. It had been kept because it contained an article about a presentation by the Mount Talbot tenants to mark the occasion John Talbot’s arrival at with his new wife. I think you have seen that article, because the drawings of Mr and Mrs Talbot shown in the video appear in that article.
Thank you for your message. Yes, I am familiar with the article in question. If you’re interested in reading more about Mount Talbot, and other houses in that part of the country, I recommend a Facebook page called the Landed Estates of County Roscommon, run by Paul Connolly who also produced a very fine illustrated book on the same subject a couple of years ago…
Dear Mr. O’Byrne, A wholehearted thank you for making available to all this wonderful resource of Irish design history. Your passion for the subject is much appreciated. Greetings from France.
How very kind, thank you so much.
Dear Mr. O’Byrne,
I was in touch some weeks ago – via FB. I am currently conducting research for an upcoming art film project involving Georgian architecture. This research is supported by two organisations. I was hoping to get in touch.
Kind regards,
Mieke
Thank you for getting in touch. I did post on my Facebook page some weeks ago that for reasons known only to FB I am unable to read my messages, and therefore asked to be contacted via here, as you have now done so. Please let me know what is the nature of your enquiry?
Thank you for your reply. I have made contact with Vincent Delany and he has kindly offered to help me with my research.
Best wishes,
Mieke
Georgian Architecture is too big a subject to take on. You need to focus:
A focus could include:
Italian influences on Ireland’s great houses.
The streetscapes ofGeorgian Ireland.
Georgian craftsmanship.
The developers of Georgian Dublin.
Etc
If you need any information- perhaps I can be of assistance.
Vincent Delany FRIAI MA(hist)
Dear Robert, many thanks for your continued interesting articles. I know I mentioned it before but could you do a piece on Kilsaran House, Co.Louth please. I could assist in the later years if you wish as I had a close relation growing up with Mrs. Frida Chester Walsh. Regards, Gareth McMahon
Thanks for getting in touch. Kilsaran House was demolished some time ago, wasn’t it?
Alas, at the moment I can’t even visit the site owing to travel restrictions, as you will appreciate…
Dear Robert. Is it too late to say Happy New Year ? Or at least Good Riddance to the Wretched Old One ? I wanted to ask your expert opinion; in all your years in Damer House, did you ever develop an opinion as to whether the building was originally rendered ? Hope you are well. Looking forward to hearing from you. Regards. Mairtin
Dear Mairtin
Thanks for getting in touch (and for belated HNY greetings, reciprocated). Yes, it is perfectly feasible that the house was at some stage rendered; the unevenness of the stonework suggests this possibility. I don’t know of any investigation that has been undertaken into the matter – does anyone else?
Dear Robert. I am on the look out for people who might know; I have asked Rr. Andrew Tierney. Do you know if there is a collection of old prints or drawings in Roscrea ? So Far I have found a grim Laurence collection of the house. I am told the walls leak; was that your experience whilst in residence ? Very good to hear from you. Warmest Regards. M
Mairtin,
Apologies for the delay in responding. No, I’m not aware of any prints/drawings of Roscrea: you might try the OPW as it is now responsible for the Damer House? As for living in it, yes it was extremely cold (I remember heavy snow in the winter so everything was frozen) and a certain amount of damp, but not nearly as bad as was the case in other houses where I have spent time…
Dear Robert. You house guardians are a hardy lot. Magda Loeber also recalled the cold of the year in Castletown. As Maurice Craig said of Mount Ievers; ‘One would endure much to live in such a house. Many thanks for your help.
Ah well, I was young in those days. Now these bones need a little more heat…
You are still young
Dear Robert,
I was reading the article about Professor Kevin B Nowlan, who was my first cousin once removed. Great work and it brought back memories… https://theirishaesthete.com/2013/02/06/a-man-of-some-importance/
David Nowlan
Hello, I wonder would you be able to point me in the direction of information about a house called Seafield that was located just north west of St Helens and north east of Merville in Stillorgan. It seems to have been demolished about 1918 and had been lived in by the Hardys up until then and the Croziers until about 1875 Best wishes with this marvellous site. Brendan
Thank you for getting in touch. I’m afraid that I don’t know of any information on the house in question; interestingly, it is not mentioned in Peter Pearson’s ‘Between the Mountains and the Sea’ (1998) which covers this part of the world. The Irish Architectural Archive has information on a number of properties called Seafield, but whether any of these relate to this specific house is unclear; unfortunately, you will have to wait until the present restrictions are lifted and the IAA reopens to investigate. Apologies for not being of greater help…
Dear Mr O’Byrne, I am currently completing a book on the history of the Crosbies or Talbot-Crosbies of Ardfert Abbey, Co Kerry. I am compiling a few appropriate images for the book and while I have plenty on Ardfert Abbey I would like to include one of Mount Talbot of Co. Roscommon which was one of the Talbot/Talbot-Crosbie estates through the centuries. I note that you had some excellent images of Mount Talbot in the superb ‘The Irish Aesthete’ series (3-8-2019) and I with to ask permission to include one of these in the book, Michael Keane
Dear Robert,
I am wondering if you could tell me if Lady Jane Lane/Fisher (of King Charles II infamous exile) is related to Sir George Lane of Lanesborough?
I am trying to put the pieces together for a project as I am aware the Sir George Lane was a royalist supporter and followed King Charles II into exile.
Is there anywhere I can get further information on this?
With many thanks for your dedication to the history of peerages in Ireland.
Best regards,
Sarah
Thank you for getting in touch. I can’t find any connection between Jane Lane (never Lady Jane Lane, she was not the daughter of an earl) and Sir George Lane, first Viscount Lanesborough. His grandfather, also George Lane, seemingly had come to Ireland in the 16th century as a typical adventurer soldier, but from whence he came I don’t know I’m afraid. Of course, Lane is a fairly common name, so it’s not easy to trace. Apologies, and good luck with your search…
Thank you so much Robert for your quick reply – I genuinely appreciate it.
Yes, Lane is a common name and I am having a bit of difficulty in tracing some further information regarding it, but I will continue to do so and hopefully find more as I dig deeper.
With best wishes,
Sarah
Dear Aesthete,
Thank you for your blog. You have created something of importance.
I enjoyed ‘Two Houses,One Mystery’ – and the speculative attribution of Arch Hall to Edward Lovett Pearce citing the stylistic similarities in the garden arches at Arch Hall and Gloster as a link to Pearce. I wonder if you have also considered linking the remains of the garden building at Wardtown to Pearce as further bit of the jigsaw.
When I last saw it (broken and peeping from a gigantic briar patch) it appeared a palladian brick arch flanked by oculi. The Stillorgan grotto shows Pearce using just this arrangement. This little piece of garden architecture doesn’t yet seem to have made it into the books.
Best wishes,
John Stewart.
Thank you for getting in touch.
I don’t know the garden building at Wardtown, having only looked around the house. Do you, by any chance, have photographs of the building in question?
I have just found it. How can I best email it to you?