Most venues for a royal visit make do with a fresh coat of paint for the occasion, but not the National Gallery.
When Prince Charles dropped in to see the new extension yesterday, the gallery also had a portrait exhibition of former occupants of the English throne to display. Pure coincidence, a spokeswoman said - The Monarch's Head opened with the rest of the extended gallery in January, long before details of any visit were known, and until yesterday it had been overshadowed by the impressionists show upstairs.
Still, the visitor can only have been impressed by the gallery's foresight at displaying the heads of so many of the prince's predecessors. Not a monarch himself - and there's still no sign of him becoming the royal family member formerly known as Prince - he must nevertheless have admired the portrait of a "careworn" Charles I. And he was said to be "fascinated" by the giant portrait of George IV's visit to Dublin in 1821, when the latter brought a company of dragoons with him for safety.
Before the death of his aunt, Princess Margaret, the prince was to have visited the Burren in Co Clare to indulge his interest in fauna.
In the event, the only flowers he saw were by Monet and Renoir, and the only strange stone landscape he visited was the gallery extension on Clare Street.
Having strong views on architecture - he famously described another extension as a "monstrous carbuncle on the face of a well-loved friend" - his views on the new wing would have been interesting. But despite a lengthy conversation with the architect responsible, Gordon Benson, the royal visitor kept his views to himself, although a spokesman for the Taoiseach said he later called the building "very impressive".
Mr Ahern and he also discussed the need to improve community relations in the North. But although their relations were genial, the prince's first visit to the Republic under a Fianna Fáil administration inspired no repeat of the 1995 event, when the then Taoiseach, Mr John Bruton, said it was the happiest day of his life.
There were no dragoons on duty yesterday and security was relatively relaxed. Apart from some heckling by Sinn Féin protesters when the prince visited the Merchant's Quay drug rehabilitation project, and a bomb hoax at Dublin Castle, there were no incidents.
In general, this was a much lower-key occasion. There were small crowds and polite applause at some venues. But the most exciting event of the day was the conferring of an honorary MBE on Daniel O'Donnell.
The singer, who was accompanied by his sister Margo and other family members for the event, at the British Ambassador's residence, declared himself a great admirer of the royal family.
And placing the honour in the context of the continuing peace process, he commented: "You can never move forward by looking back". Prince Charles's short tour ends today after a visit to the Glencree Centre for Reconciliation in Wicklow.
