Benefits of keeping castle in the family

Much was lost when Malahide Castle and its contents were put up for sale in the mid-1970s. Thankfully, much was also saved and the castle, purchased by Dublin County Council, is now open to the public, the principal rooms furnished with a rich collection of Irish pieces.

What always marked Malahide Castle apart was that the same family, the Talbots, lived there almost uninterrupted for some 800 years after they first arrived in this country in 1185. That association meant that the house, and its interior decoration, were carefully developed by successive generations and therefore had a greater coherence than might have been the case otherwise.

The oldest part of the building, the 14th century keep, was altered as other sections were added, but at all times the Talbots remained in residence.

An invaluable guide to the contents of the castle was published three years ago by antiques dealer Gerald Kenyon. Copies of The Irish Furniture at Malahide Castle is still available, priced £8.50, in the bookshop on the ground floor, and the information provided will greatly enhance any visit to the house.

As his book's name implies, Mr Kenyon focuses solely on pieces manufactured in Ireland and he does not write about the decoration of the rooms. Therefore, the first-floor oak room is not mentioned in the guide, the finest surviving panelled room in the country. Although the present entrance and large latticed window was added in 1820, most of the work here dates from the 16th century, including a Flemish carving over the fireplace showing the coronation of the Virgin.

Also Flemish are six early 17th century carved panels carrying Biblical narratives based on frescoes by Raphael in the Vatican. The Empire-style fireplace with Egyptian motifs was installed in 1812. Furniture in this room includes a large, late 17th century oak marriage chest and a selection of chairs in oak, walnut and fruit-wood.

The Great Hall was added during the reign of Edward IV around 1475. Although many such halls survive in Britain, they are rare in the Republic. That in Malahide Castle was re-roofed and re-windowed at a later period, but its essential form remains unchanged. The walls are hung with a large collection of portraits, many of them on loan from the National Gallery of Ireland. The largest canvas by Van Wyck shows the Battle of the Boyne, in which the Talbots fought for the Jacobite cause.

The Great Hall holds a number of 18th century Irish mahogany side-tables, easily identifiable by their paw feet and lion's mask or shell motif in the centre. One pair of tables originally came from Ballinacor, Co Wicklow. Also in this room is a red walnut love chair from circa 1745 and a fine pair of early 19th century oval, urn-shaped mahogany wine coolers, which came from Doneraile Court, Co Cork.

Off the Great Hall is the library, part of a series of west-wing rooms added to the castle around the middle of the 16th century. The library walls are hung with gilt and handpainted leather, probably Flemish and from the first decades of the 18th century. The floral-design hangings remain in excellent condition despite their age and form a backdrop to the mahogany-framed library armchairs, upholstered in leather. Made by Arthur Jones & Co of Dublin around 1830, they came from Clonbrock, Co Galway, and are fitted with swivelling book easels of a later date. While the circular stairway at the front of the castle is contemporaneous with the keep walls around it, there is also a second staircase in the back hallway, constructed between 1765 and 1782 after a fire gutted the west wing. In this hallway is a mahogany grandfather clock with swan neck pediment made by Charles Craig of Dublin around 1770, as well as a large George IV mahogany-framed sofa and a Regency yew wood sofa table, both the latter also Irish.

From here, the visitor enters the castle's large drawing-room, which together with the adjacent small drawing-room was refurbished at the same time as the hallway. More portraits from the National Gallery's collection hang here, including images of Lord Edward Fitzgerald and his wife, Pamela, and their daughter, and William Connolly (who built Castletown House).

The finest single piece of furniture in the large drawing-room is an inlaid marble tabletop by Bossi, which sits on a later base, possibly by James Hicks of Dublin; the top came from Russborough House. Just as marvellous are a pair of carved giltwood George II console tables, circa 1740, with paw feet and central lion's masks, their tops made from two early 18th century Japanese lacquer panels, which were probably added at some later date. These tables seem always to have been in Malahide Castle. The drawing-room's white marble fireplace is Italian, with a fine central frieze. There is a wealth of fine Irish furniture in the room which merit close examination. These include a pair of late 18th century giltwood bergeres made in the French manner around 1780, a slightly later carved giltwood "confidante" sofa and a semi-circular satinwood card table, circa 1795. The large drawing-room also contains a set of four George II carved gilt-wood, upholstered single chairs with cabriole legs and a Regency painted and gilded side cabinet with white marble-top, which has reeded edging.

The small drawingroom's ceiling is considerably more elaborate than that of the large, with exotic birds, fruit and flowers all being rendered in stucco. Over the white marble fireplace with supporting columns in variegated marble is an outstanding giltwood mirror. Made by John and Francis Booker of Essex Street, Dublin, around 1760, its brackets carry fluted columns with Corinthian capitals, while the double-broken pediment frames a classical urn draped with a lion's mask. Again, there are several mid18th century mahogany tables in this room, not least of which is a console with polished Kilkenny shale top.

While the three bedrooms open to the public hold a certain interest, the most fascinating area on the upper floors contains the collection of antique miniature furniture presented by the late Ronald McDonnell and his wife, Doreen. Cabinet makers often produced such pieces to demonstrate their abilities to potential clients. The earliest example here, a mahogany bureau some seven-and-a-half inches high, dates back to 1730, while the latest - a Victorian mahogany glass-fronted cupboard 21 inches tall - was produced 130 years later.

From between these two dates may be seen secretaire bookcases, tall-boy chests and cabinets, all impeccably made. The same room has some full-sized pieces of Irish furniture too, not least of which is a George III mahogany linen chest on carved stand and a mid-18th century carved armchair. Furthermore, the walls are densely covered by a very large collection of 18th and 19th century silhouette pictures, including 15 by Monsieur Edouart, a Frenchman who worked in Ireland during the 1830s. Malahide's rich contents and manageable size make it well worth a visit.

There is a pre-recorded commentary on the principle contents of each room, but visitors are not obliged to stick to any rigid time-frame and may remain as long as they wish in the building. On the ground floor is an excellent craft shop, as well as a popular coffee shop and restaurant, which is open daily for lunch.

Malahide Castle, Malahide, Co Dublin (tel. 01-8462184) is open at the following times: April to October: 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday to Friday (11 a.m. to 6 p.m., weekends and pub- lic holidays). November to May: 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday to Friday (2 p.m. to 5 p.m., weekends and public holidays). The castle is closed for tours from 12.45 p.m. to 2 p.m. every day but its restaurant remains open during this time.