Margaret Stokes

Margaret Stokes was born in Dublin in 1832 into a home where leading antiquarians and historians gathered regularly, sparking her lifelong commitment to Irish ancient art. She spent decades illuminating manuscripts, editing unfinished scholarly works and documenting early Christian crosses before becoming the first Irish woman elected to the Royal Irish Academy. The house where that curiosity first caught fire remains a useful reminder that exceptional work often begins in an ordinary room filled with interesting company.