Re: Re: Dublin Street Lighting

Could not agree with you more – amongst the finest lampposts in the city, they’re one of my favourites too 🙂
Early electric, though maybe a bit later than most at 1910-20 (?), they can be found along many of the major arterial routes of the north and south inner suburbs, Harrington Street being a classic example.

They’re so wonderfully elegant: slim profile, streamlined components, and attractive detailing: they unobtrusively fit into any streetscape. And strangely, the later ugly sodium lamps kinda add to their thin profile! Love to know what the original ones were like though.

But yes it would seem DCC are actively going about cleansing the capital of concrete posts – as mentioned all of Richmond Street was being wiped of them a few months ago and being replaced with the usual tacky silver repro rubbish. (Had a pic but seems to have gone missing). The fact that the Lighting Division can’t even be arsed to come up with decent replacements speaks volumes as to their attitude to the city’s lighting stock. It’s unfortunate to have to say it, but really much of the city’s 20thC lighting is in grave danger of disappearing if not watched closely – it might as well be 1973 in terms of what’s going on, and that extends to ‘modern’ standards going in which are so often the usual skinny repro trash, or simply galvanised motorway stock. There seems to be no grand plan or coordinated approach, particularly as the the future of concrete – this should have been researched and sorted years ago! And yet only now when the city’s stock is crumbling away are they finally being investigated, and even then many are simply being replaced before any chance is made to assess them!
The curved c.1950 ones pictured above by CM00 are an integral part of Dublin’s subrbs and are very much worthy of conservation.

Agreed about the new posts in Phibsboro too DFG – not very attractive at all either, though saying that the new black posts going in on the East Wall Road beside the Point and Dublin Port entrance are quite striking if anyone has a pic.

The new posts at Clontarf seem to be identical to the black posts erected a few years ago in Sandymount as Stephen says:

They do look rather odd alright beside the modernist shelters and wall (lovely things btw), but certainly are suited to the Sandymount Strand Road setting (above) anyway with the Victorian villas opposite – don’t know Clontarf very well.