Famine Memorial

Freestanding commemorative sculpture, erected 1967, comprising four figurative lost-wax bronze castings fixed via steel rods to rectangular six-slab granite platform with rock-faced sides. Three human figures, southernmost standing leaning on stick with head downcast, extending ladle to mouth of second figure sitting; tall third figure facing north with head back and arms outstretched, with dog lying at feet. Bronze plaque to northwest of platform with lettering 'Famine by Edward Delaney R.H.A.' Facing southwest into Saint Stephen's Green, with composite concrete-paved hard standings, and with backdrop of roughly hewn granite screen of Wolfe Tone Memorial companion piece.

The Famine Memorial in St. Stephen's Green was crafted by the noted sculptor Edward Delaney and is of both artistic and social historical interest. Marking a tragic period in Irish history, it commemorates the victims of the Great Famine of 1843-53, in which over a million of Irish people died and after which millions emigrated. Delaney was one of the leading figures in Irish sculpture in the second half of the twentieth century, and is best known for his later works that exemplify modern expressionism, of which the Famine Memorial is one such example, as is its companion piece, the Wolfe Tone Memorial. An exemplar of the lost-wax method of bronze casting, the minimalist and skeletal forms have a striking and haunting presence which evokes reference to this historical watershed, as well as typical Famine motifs. This sculpture is a worthy and important addition to the important group of monuments in St. Stephen's Green.