An Irishwoman’s Diary on lighthouses – beacons for artists and tourists

As children who spent the summer holidays in Passage East we were acutely aware of the tidal nature of the river Suir, the eternal passage of ships along the estuary and the pulsing beam of the Hook Lighthouse far off in the distance. It stood on the most south-easterly tip of Co Wexford and its light was steady and true. The fishermen always had it in their sights as they headed out to sea or came home on the tide.

To us it was the region’s silent guardian, all alone at the edge of our known world, a beacon of strength and illumination. In our juvenile minds it warded off evil.

When we walked up the hill to the chapel in Crooke on Sunday mornings we heard how Cromwell had threatened to lay siege to a local stronghold, promising to take it by Hook or by Crooke, and thus coining the famous phrase.

Storms

The Hook was a place of such antiquity to us as children that it may just as well have had supernatural powers. It harkened back through the annals of time to an era when monks had stoked fires on Hook Head to warn sailors. We knew above all that it was a vital link along the coast for all mariners and that it was a tall sentry at the edge of the land, keeping watch, motionless, battered yet indomitable and able to withstand the mightiest of storms.

Hook Lighthouse is believed to be the oldest operational lighthouse in the world. There has been a light on Hook Head since the fifth century.

Light-keeping families used to live there, maintaining and fuelling the light with paraffin in the early days. Before that it was fuelled by coal. In 1971, the light was connected up to electricity.

It was automated in 1991 and is now controlled via a link with the Commissioners of Irish Lights in Dún Laoghaire.

What is it about lighthouses that can transfix us, ignite us and stoke our deepest memories?

Artist Fergal McCarthy’s seven-metre replica of Dublin’s Northbank Lighthouse, which currently stands in the Science Gallery in Trinity College Dublin as part of the “Home\Sick” exhibition, is also testament to the eternal allure and beauty of lighthouses.

McCarthy set himself the task of creating this beautiful replica, complete with a flashing green light that casts a beam across the capital’s Pearse Street every night from dusk until midnight. The lighthouse is accessible via a ladder and inside it is furnished as a working studio for visitors to interact with and make work exploring the theme of home.

The Northbank Lighthouse itself sits at the entrance to Dublin at the mouth of the Liffey. It has been guiding travellers home since 1882.

“It’s an incredibly beautiful structure, resembling a giant mailbox on stilts”, says McCarthy, who has been fascinated for several years by the sight of the Northbank Lighthouse at the mouth of the Liffey estuary.

Tourism

Now in a new EU- funded cross-Border project, which was launched recently by the Commissioners of Irish Lights, 12 great Irish lighthouses will be linked, promoted and developed as part of an all-Ireland tourism initiative.

The scheme will involve the establishment of the individual lighthouses as visitor attractions and specialist self-catering accommodation.

On this all-round Ireland trail you’ll find the spectacular Hook. But also along the southern coast the chain of mighty lighthouses will include Ballycotton and Galley Head. Further along the western seaboard, you’ll be able to visit Valentia Island in Co Kerry, Loop Head in Co Clare and Clare Island in Co Mayo. The dozen also includes St John’s Point Lighthouse and Fanad Head Lighthouse in Co Donegal, Rathlin West Light and Blackhead Lighthouse in Co Antrim, St John’s Point in Co Down and Wicklow Head in Co Wicklow.

Energy

These are to be henceforth known as the Great Lighthouses of Ireland, chosen from over 70 of the lighthouses that are operated by Irish Lights around the coast. With a range of services on offer including visitor centres, guided tours and dramatic viewing areas, visitors from home and abroad will now have the chance to explore the lighthouses for themselves.

A powerful infusion of energy is promised to anyone who ventures out to experience the raw power and exhilaration of these stalwart buildings. For those wishing to visit or to enquire further go to greatlighthouses.com. For information about the exhibition in the Science Gallery go to dublin.sciencegallery.com/homesick.