Museum History & Development
Carlow Town Council & Carlow County Council in association with the Carlow Historical & Archaeological Society are upgrading and improving Carlow County Museum. This includes the development of a new Museum premises on College Street adjoining the Tourist Office in Carlow Town. To facilitate these improvement works the Museum will be closed until further notice.
Photo Caption:
Carlow County Museum in the former Theatre of Carlow Town Hall.
Photo: Carlow County Museum.
The new County Museum is being established as part of its overall strategy for social, economic and cultural development of the county and the Museum will cater for the cultural and educational needs of the community and provide a much needed indoor heritage tourism amenity for the county. The Museum’s collection contains a growing collection of over 4,000 artifacts and represents a wide range of periods and topics.
Carlow County Museum’s new premises in the remainder of the former Presentation Convent, College Street, Carlow Town. Photo: Carlow County Museum
The new development involves the restoration of the former Presentation Convent on College Street, Carlow Town. The building is in a prime town centre location and is part of a complex that already houses the Co. Library, Archive and the Tourist Office. The vision of is to create a central cultural complex in Carlow town that provides easy access
to cultural amenities. The Tourist Office will act as the reception area for the County Museum.
Carlow Tourist Office which will be the entrance for Carlow County Museum. Photo: Carlow County Museum.
The role of Carlow County Museum will be to collect, preserve, conserve, document and display the history and material culture of the county. County Museums are significant in that they are a home for a county’s many historic treasures and they become centres for research, education as well as maintaining high standards of collections care. In Ireland an official County Museum is one that is operated and funded by a Local Authority. Currently there are thirteen County Museums in Ireland.
The County Museum is being developed in partnership with the Carlow Historical & Archaeological Society (CHAS). The Society has been collecting artifacts and archives relating to all aspects of County Carlow’s history since the late1960’s. The Society opened a museum in 1974 and it was relocated in 1979 to the former Theatre of the Town Hall, a space provided by Carlow Town Council.
The Society will retain a role in the development of the County Museum, through the medium of a Museum Board that will oversee the strategic development and devise the County Museum’s policies.
The first meeting of the newly established Museum Board was held on June 14th 2005. The Board comprises seven members:
- three from the Town Council. Cllr. Declan Alcock, Cllr. Rody Kelly & Cllr. Walter Lacey;
- Joe Watters, Town Clerk is the County Manager’s nominee.
- The Carlow Historical & Archaeological Society is represented by three of their members, Dan Carbery, Seamus Murphy & Martin Nevin.
Dermot Mulligan, Curator of Carlow County Museum acts as Secretary to the Board.
National Museum of Ireland
Carlow County Museum works closely with the National Museum of Ireland, particularly in the area of Archaeological Finds.
All archaeological objects found with no known owner are the property of the Irish State.
The National Museum of Ireland is the authority responsible for the care of all archaeological artifacts that are found with no known owner and they receive their powers from the National Monuments Act, 1930 and its subsequent amendments of 1954, 1987, 1994 and 2004. Also, under the National Cultural Institutions Act, 1997 and the National Monument Act (amendment) 1994 the Director of the National Museum was given the power to desiginate the collection and display of archaeological material to County Museums which are operated by a Local Authority.
For County Carlow the Designation Person is the Curator of Carlow County Museum, Mr. Dermot Mulligan and he has the authority to collect archaeological artifacts from
County Carlow on behalf of the National Museum of Ireland. Significiantly when the Museum reopens archaeological artifacts found in Co. Carlow can finally be displayed in the county in which they were found. Also under the Designation Status Carlow County Museum will be able to request archaeological artifacts previously sent to the National Museum to be returned to the County Museum for display.
If you have or find such on object please report it immediately to the County Museum, the National Museum or your local Garda station.
Archaeological Find on Kennedy Street, Carlow Town during road works in September 2004. Excavation coordinated by Carlow County Museum. Photo: Carlow County Museum.
Reporting an Archaeological Find
If you have found an archaeological item (or suspect you have found one) you must report it within 4 days (96 hours) to any of the following:
The Curator, The Duty Officer,
Carlow County Museum, National Museum of Ireland,
Carlow Town Council, Kildare Street,
Town Hall, Dublin 2
Carlow
Tel: 059 - 9131759 Tel: 01 - 6777444
Fax: 059 - 9142249 Fax: 01 - 6766116
or your nearest Garda Station (consult the “State Directory” at the start of the Eircom Telephone Directory for contact details)
What is an archaeological object
An Archaeological Object is an object “whether in a manufactured or partly manufactured or an unmanufactured state which by reason of the archaeological interest attaching thereto or of its association with any Irish historical event or person has a value substantially greater than its intrinsic (including artistic) value, and the said expression includes ancient human, animal or plant remains”. National Monuments (Amendment) Act 1994
A Designation Brochures regarding the above is available from Carlow County Museum.
Archaeological Find on Kennedy Street, Carlow Town during road works in September 2004. Photo: Carlow County Museum.
