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Puzzle: Molly Malone, Dublin

Molly Malone, Dublin, med

Size:  550 pieces
Dimensions: 60.5 cm x 46 cm

Notes: I brought this puzzle with me from Ireland in 2008. I do not have a record of the producer of this puzzle as I do not have the box anymore. A clarification is welcome – if you have any clue as to the details regarding this puzzle, I would much appreciate that information.

Molly Malone: “Molly Malone” (also known as “Cockles and Mussels” or “In Dublin’s Fair City”) is a popular song, set in Dublin, Ireland, which has become the unofficial anthem of Dublin City. The Molly Malone statue in Grafton Street was unveiled by then Lord Mayor of Dublin, Alderman Ben Briscoe during the 1988 Dublin Millennium celebrations, declaring 13 June as Molly Malone Day.

In Dublin’s fair city,
Where the girls are so pretty,
I first set my eyes on sweet Molly Malone,
As she wheeled her wheel-barrow,
Through streets broad and narrow,
Crying, “Cockles and mussels, alive, alive, oh!”
“Alive, alive, oh,
Alive, alive, oh”,
Crying “Cockles and mussels, alive, alive, oh”.

She was a fishmonger,
But sure ’twas no wonder,
For so were her father and mother before,
And they each wheeled their barrow,
Through streets broad and narrow,
Crying, “Cockles and mussels, alive, alive, oh!”
(chorus)

She died of a fever,
And no one could save her,
And that was the end of sweet Molly Malone.
Now her ghost wheels her barrow,
Through streets broad and narrow,
Crying, “Cockles and mussels, alive, alive, oh!”
(chorus)

[Wiki]

Beading: Spring Green Sheela-na-gig fertility necklace

On Etsy: https://www.etsy.com/listing/115779132/spring-green-sheela-na-gig-fertility

Puzzle: Doors of Dublin, Ireland


Size: 500 pieces
Notes: I brought this puzzle with me from Ireland in 2008. I do not have a record of the producer of the puzzle as I do not have the box anymore. A clarification is welcome – if you have any clue as to the details regarding this puzzle, I would much appreciate that information.

“If you’ve taken an escorted tour of Dublin you might have been told by your guide that the famous writer George Moore lived next to another famous writer, Oliver St John Gogarty, in Ely Place. Both were a bit eccentric and it’s said that Moore painted his door green so that the drunken Gogarty would not come knocking on it, thinking it to be his own door. Gogarty then painted his door red so that the drunken Moore would not come knocking on his door! And that’ supposedly is what started the fashion. The truth is a lot less colourful.

According to the history books, George Moore was generally abstemious, drinking only a little wine with dinner and repelled by displays of public drunkeness. More relevant to our story however, was that George’s home and those of his neghbours were built in the Georgian style and the exteriors had to adhere to strict architectural guidelines. In order to set themselves apart, the former residents of Georgian Dublin painted their front doors whatever color they fancied (“red was more durable”), added ornate knockers, elegant fanlights above the door, and wrought iron boot scrapers, near the the entrance. Decorated iron coal-hole covers were often embedded in the pavement. Today, most of the houses have their original fanlights, some still with box shaped glass recesses in which a lamp would have been placed. There are also examples of a simple security device in the form of a fan-shaped arrangement of spikes set into the wall beside a window to foil burglars. Sometimes a similar device was inserted inside the fanlight.” [Irish culture and customs site]

Puzzle: St. Patrick’s Cathedral, Ireland


Size: 500 pieces
Notes: I brought this puzzle with me from Ireland in 2008. I do not have a record of the producer of the puzzle as I do not have the box anymore. A clarification is welcome – if you have any clue as to the details regarding this puzzle, I would much appreciate that information.

Saint Patrick’s Cathedral, or more formally, the Cathedral of the Blessed Virgin Mary and St Patrick, is a cathedral of the Church of Ireland in Dublin, Ireland which was founded in 1191. The Church has designated it as The National Cathedral of Ireland. It is the larger of the Church’s two cathedrals in the city and is the largest church in Ireland with a 43 metre spire. [Wiki]

Built in honour of Ireland’s patron saint, Saint Patrick’s Cathedral stands adjacent to the famous well where tradition has it Saint Patrick baptized converts on his visit to Dublin.

The parish church of Saint Patrick on this site was granted collegiate status in 1191, and raised to cathedral status in 1224. The present building dates from 1220. The Cathedral is today the National Cathedral of the Church of Ireland (a church of the Anglican communion). [Saint Patrick’s Cathedral site]

Puzzle: Rock of Cashel, Ireland


Size: 500 pieces
Notes: I brought this puzzle with me from Ireland in 2008. I do not have a record of the producer of the puzzle as I do not have the box anymore. A clarification is welcome – if you have any clue as to the details regarding this puzzle, I would much appreciate that information.

The Rock of Cashel (Irish: Carraig Phádraig), also known as Cashel of the Kings and St. Patrick’s Rock, is a historic site in Ireland’s province of Munster, located at Cashel, South Tipperary.

The Rock of Cashel was the traditional seat of the kings of Munster for several hundred years prior to the Norman invasion. Few remnants of the early structures survive; the majority of buildings on the current site date from the 12th and 13th centuries. Cashel is reputed to be the site of the conversion of the King of Munster by St. Patrick in the 5th century. The picturesque complex has a character of its own and is one of the most remarkable collections of Celtic art and medieval architecture to be found anywhere in Europe.

According to local mythology, the Rock of Cashel originated in the Devil’s Bit, a mountain 20 miles(30 km) north of Cashel when St. Patrick banished Satan from a cave, resulting in the Rock’s landing in Cashel. [Wiki]

Puzzle: Cottage Thatch, County Limerick, Ireland


Size: 750 pieces
Dimensions: 68.58cm x 48.26cm
Producer: Mega, Windows to the World series
Notes: Limerick is the third largest city in the Republic of Ireland, and the principal city of County Limerick and Ireland’s Mid-West Region. Population wise, it is the fifth largest city in all of Ireland.

A limerick is a type of humorous verse of five lines with an AABBA rhyme scheme: the poem’s connection with the city is obscure, however, the name is generally taken to be a reference to Limerick City or County Limerick, sometimes particularly to the Maigue Poets, and may derive from an earlier form of nonsense verse parlour game that traditionally included a refrain that included “Will [or won’t] you come (up) to Limerick?” [Wiki]

Puzzle: A wave of colour, County Cork


Size: 750 pieces
Dimensions: 68cm x 48.1cm
Producer:  Mega Brands, Windows of the World series
Artist: Fine photography by John and Debora Scanlan
Notes: County Cork (Irish: Contae Chorcaí) is one of the twenty-six traditional counties of the Republic of Ireland and one of the thirty-two traditional counties in the island of Ireland. The southernmost of the Irish counties, it is located in the province of Munster. It is Ireland’s largest county and is the second most populous county, with a population of 481,295 in 2006. Named after the city of Cork (Irish: Corcaigh), Cork is colloquially known as “The Rebel County”. In recent times, the name has referred to the prominent role Cork played in the Irish War of Independence (1919–1921) when it was the scene of most of the fighting; in addition, it was an anti-treaty stronghold during the Irish Civil War (1922–23). [Wiki]

Puzzle: Places of Interest – United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland


Size: 100 pieces
Dimensions: 38.2cm x 61cm
Producer: Early Learning Centre
Notes: 100 piece board jigsaw with outline guide featuring the United Kingdoms. [Puzzle box]

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK, or Britain) is a sovereign state located off the north-western coast of continental Europe. It spans an archipelago including Great Britain, the northeastern part of the island of Ireland, and many smaller islands. Northern Ireland is the only part of the UK with a land border with another sovereign state, sharing it with the Republic of Ireland. Apart from this land border, the UK is surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean, the North Sea, the English Channel, and the Irish Sea.

The United Kingdom is a constitutional monarchy and unitary state. It is a country consisting of four countries: England, Northern Ireland, Scotland, and Wales. [Wiki]

Ireland, described as the Republic of Ireland, is a state in Western Europe. It encompasses approximately five-sixths of the island of Ireland, which was partitioned into two jurisdictions in 1921. The country is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean, the Irish Sea to the east, St George’s Channel to the southeast, and the Celtic Sea to the south. [Wiki]

Puzzle: Dromoland Castle, Ireland


Size: 1000 pieces
Dimensions: 51.12cm x 66.52cm
Producer: Big Ben
Location: Dromoland Castle is a castle, now a luxury hotel, located near Newmarket-on-Fergus, County Clare, Ireland. The present building was completed in 1835. However the first building constructed here seems to have been a 15th or early 16th century tower house and is recorded as being erected by Thomas, the son of Shane Mac Anerheny. There were at least three houses on the site, at various times, called Dromoland. While Dromoland later became residence of eight generations of the O’Brien family, early records suggest that the area was also occupied by other local Gaelic families, such as the McInerney family during the 16th century. According to the historian James Frost, Dromoland translates as the “Hill of Litigation”.

Dromoland has been preserved with little change since 1855. The mansion is in “baronial” or “gothic revival” style. It has four linked irregular castellated  turrets. A gothic porch to the north front displays the O’Brien arms. The western portion faces out to the lake, and the east towards the hill where Thomond House now stands. The large walled gardens are to the south. In 1902 the 15th Baron Inchiquin, Lucius, took the old 17th century gateway from Leamaneh and erected it at the entrance to the large walled garden. A long curving drive leads from the gateway and classical lodge, passing north of the lake and round to the front door of Dromoland Castle. [Wiki]

Puzzle: Diarmuid and Gráinne

Diarmuid and Grainne, med
Size: 1000 pieces
Artist: Jim Fitzpatrick
Producer: Tailten Games
Story:  Diarmuid Donn Mac Duibhne “the master and charmer of women” was a member of the Fianna of Fionn Mac Cumhaill and one of his closest friends. Diarmuid, however, committed the unforgivable sin of eloping with Fionn’s bride-to-be, the beautiful Gráinne. For many years they were on the run from Fionn and the Fianna and wandered through Connacht and Munster.

They eventually made their peace with Fionn through the goodwill of Aongus, but in his heart Fionn never forgave Diarmuid. Fionn lured Diarmuid to the top of Ben Bulben, Co. Sligo and left him alone to face a fierce wild boar. After a long fight Diarmuid managed to kill the beast but was mortally gored himself. Fionn refused him the only thing that could save him, a draught of water from the hands of Fionn, who had the gift of healing. Twice Fionn brought water to Diarmuid and twice let it flow through his fingers, and by the third time he brought water, Diarmuid was dead. [Puzzle box]

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