Vol. 398 No. 1
16 Mr. J. Bruton asked the Taoiseach if he will arrange that the exhibition on the Battle of the Boyne currently on display in the Ulster Museum, Belfast, will at some stage during 1990, be displayed either in Dublin or at another suitable location closer to the battle site.
17 Mr. J. Bruton asked the Taoiseach if he will make provision for the National Museum to accommodate, for public display, the special exhibition on the Battle of the Boyne currently on display in Belfast.
I propose to take Questions Nos. 16 and 17 together.
That exhibition includes material loaned from both our National Museum and National Gallery and there has been full co-operation with the Ulster Museum from the outset in arranging this.
The possibility of mounting the exhibition in Dublin under National Museum auspices was jointly examined with the Ulster Museum. It was fully accepted, however, that the very heavy costs involved would not be justified. A factor in this was the fact that the necessary space, with security and climatic control, in the National Museum was already reserved for an exhibition on Celtic metalwork which has been organised in conjunction with the British Museum. This exhibition opens next week and will run until September.
No site closer than Dublin to the Boyne would have the capacity or the secure facilities, to receive such a major exhibition.
Let me say first that I welcome the fact that the National Museum has co-operated with the Ulster Museum in mounting this exhibition, but would the Taoiseach accept that there will be considerable disappointment that this exhibition, which is contemporary and topical and of great interest and on which it would appear some public funds from this side of the Border have been spent indirectly, will not be put on display anywhere in this jurisdiction? Would he agree that, while we would all wish people to travel to Belfast to see the exhibition for themselves, it would make a great deal of sense if it could be displayed on this side of the Border as well? Will he consider having another look at the alleged heavy cost and the other difficulties that have been raised to see if at least some of the exhibition might be capable of being exhibited here?
I have such respect for the Deputy's artistic and cultural judgment that any suggestion of that kind he makes will certainly have to be considered, but I assure him the difficulties are pretty overwhelming.
Would the Taoiseach care to share these difficulties? What approximately was the estimated cost?
It was £300,000.
Is it possible that the Taoiseach will be able to consider an exhibition at a lesser cost of at least some of the material? Will he agree that the effort of assembling all this material for one exhibition is the one opportunity there will be to display it, that once it is dispersed again to its original home it will not exist again and it will cost even more to bring it together at that stage? Will the Taoiseach agree that he might find it useful in many ways to intervene personally with a view to finding a solution to his problem?
I have been giving it personal attention but the cost is only one of the factors. Another factor is that this major Celtic exhibition will be coming from the British Museum and will be taking up available space until September.
After September.
After September, sorry. I am not too sure that there will be any great value in splitting up an exhibition of that kind and putting bits of it on display here and there. The Deputy may not have heard my reply, but I mentioned two institutions: both the National Museum and the National Gallery contributed to it.
My congratulations to both.
Perhaps the Deputy and myself will take a little trip to Belfast and have a look around.
That is a capital idea.
It would do him no harm at all.
We would bring Deputy Currie too. He should not always feel aggrieved.
