Did we miss any?
For one piece of art, the spire sure does elicit a wide range of emotions. Dubliner's attitudes towards the piece which dominates O'Connell Street and the wider Dublin skyline, are as varied as you might imagine them to be.
What is the spire
Simply put it's a massive sculpture set in the middle of O'Connell Street, between North Earl Street and Henry Street. Standing at 120m it rises above O’Connell Street and the wider Dublin skyline. Designed by Ian Ritchie of London-based firm Ian Ritchie Architects, the design was chosen out of 205 entrants. According to Ritchie Architects, "the Spire was inspired by the ever-changing light and composition of the Irish skies," the unique shape is a nod to "the tradition of standing stones and obelisks". Passersby would say that the spire resembles a big silver pin that shoots out into the Dublin skies, during the day it reflects the skies and sways gently in the wind, at night its tip is illuminated to provide a beacon in the night sky over Dublin.
History
Erected between December 2002 and January 2003, the 120m high stainless steel sculpture cost €4.6m to erect. Intended as a permanent monument to replace Nelson's Pillar destroyed by the IRA in 1966, the site remained vacant for several years before the Anna Livia monument was installed during the 1988 Dublin Millennium celebrations. The 'floozy in the jacuzzis' time was up in the prime thoroughfare, and she moved down the Liffey to Croppies Memorial Park where she stays.
The Spire goes by many names, most Dubliners will have a different name for it depending on their attitudes towards the controversial sculpture and as a result, the list is pretty lengthy:
9. Syringe in the dinge
8. The spike
7. Stiletto in the Ghetto
6. The Needle
5. Stiffy by the Liffey
4. The Nail in the Pale
3. The Uninspiring Spire
2. Spire of Dublin
1. Monument of Light
Header image: (c) Barry Mason via www.ritchie.studio
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