Proclamation Sculpture

Explorer Tom Kilmainham Gaol walls have been holding people in since 1795, seeing every major struggle for independence. It’s not just a prison, it’s a national icon with bastions at the corners. Stand outside and feel the history weighing you down!

Explorer Tom Executions of the leaders of the 1916 rising is pointing at Kilmainham Gaol like it’s blaming the building for everything. Fourteen guys got the axe, but this spot just wants you to feel dramatic about the whole bloody affair.

Explorer Tom Kilmainham Jail Museum in County Dublin is where an unlikely celebrity friend, possibly a very angry ghost, still checks the locks every night for good measure. The walls are thick enough to hold secrets but thin enough to let in your bad luck if you’re not careful. Go in good boots and better humour.

Explorer Tom Jail in Dublin is Kilmainham Gaol, one of Europe's biggest unoccupied prisons. It saw heroic and tragic events from the 1780s to the 1920s. Go in and feel the weight of all those political prisoners.

Explorer Tom Kilmainham Gaol, Inchicore Road in County Dublin was once ruled by a goat that just decided to sit on the throne and eat the paperwork. The east wing has ninety-six cells arranged around a central atrium, so you can imagine how much chaos that one animal could have caused. Tell your friends about the time silence was broken by a very loud bleat.

Explorer Tom Spencer Terrace in County Dublin is a row of red brick houses that think they’re better than you because of their granite quoins. They were built for the middle class who wanted to look fancy without trying too hard. Check out those timber panelled doors!

Explorer Tom The Royal Hospital Kilmainham sounds like a place to ask for a bandage, but its modern job involves pictures rather than patients. Sir William Robinson built it between 1679 and 1687 as a home for retired soldiers. It became Ireland's first large classical building outside church use, a grand ambition in a city with few seventeenth-century buildings left standing. I would have spent most of the building money on the courtyard and forgotten to buy a bed. A much older priory stood here before the hospital, while today the Irish Museum of Modern Art fills many of its rooms. That gives you several centuries under one roof and art to argue over with your travelling companion. The museum and grounds have visiting arrangements, and events can change which parts are open, so check before coming. Look at the courtyard before the galleries; the old building is already making a strong opening statement.

Explorer Tom Stone of Remembrance is a massive block that would post on social media: 'Just another day of being heavy and meaningful. #DeepThoughts'. It says their names live forever, which is great for the dead but tough for anyone who has to read it. Stand there long enough and someone will ask if you're lost.

Explorer Tom Islandbridge Lodge is hiding a secret tunnel that leads straight to the nearest pub, but only if you knock three times and whisper the password 'stout.' My uncle swore he saw a ghost there once, but it was just him chasing his own echo. Find the date carved somewhere and feel clever.

Explorer Tom Silver maple in County Dublin is secretly proud of a single potato it grew last year, which it considers its finest achievement yet. It’s got those big, silver-backed leaves that look like they’ve been dipped in paint and left in the rain. Bring curiosity, leave with a better story than mine, but maybe don’t tell the maple about your own gardening disasters.

Explorer Tom Horse-chestnut in County Dublin is waiting for a cow that tried to buy it with a milk ticket last Tuesday. The cow left without paying and the tree is still fuming about the audacity of the whole situation. It's the kind of place that makes a dull Tuesday interesting, trust me.

Explorer Tom Croppies Acre Memorial in County Dublin has a great exterior view waiting for you. It’s a memorial, so keep it dignified, but also check out the surroundings. The whole place looks like it’s posing for a history book cover.