National Library of Ireland
Ireland’s library of record in a Victorian building on Kildare Street, with a free permanent exhibition on the life and work of W. B. Yeats.
Have only individual sections read aloud
About the museum
The National Library of Ireland was established by an act of 1877, when most of the library holdings of the Royal Dublin Society passed into state ownership. A large donation of books, prints, music and manuscripts made to the Society in 1863 by Dr Jaspar Robert Joly became the core of the collection. The library first used rooms in Leinster House and moved into its present building at 7/8 Kildare Street, formally opened in 1890. The building was designed by the architects Thomas N. Deane and Son, who also designed the neighbouring archaeology museum, and its domed Reading Room has long been one of Dublin’s best-known interiors. James Joyce set one episode of Ulysses here.
Since 1927 the library has had legal deposit status for everything published in the state, and today it holds more than 12 million items, including books, manuscripts, newspapers, maps, prints and photographs. It became an autonomous national cultural institution in 2005. Further buildings were added over the years: the Manuscripts Reading Room on Kildare Street in 1990 and the National Photographic Archive in Temple Bar in 1998.
Visitors can enter the main building free of charge. The permanent exhibition on the lower ground floor tells the story of the poet W. B. Yeats through manuscripts, photographs and personal objects from the library’s Yeats Collection, which is the largest of its kind in the world. A separate exhibition on the poet Seamus Heaney is shown at the Bank of Ireland Cultural and Heritage Centre on Westmoreland Street. The reading rooms are open to registered readers only. A multi-year redevelopment of the Kildare Street building is under way and is meant to add new exhibition galleries, learning spaces, a shop and a café.
Highlights
- Permanent Yeats exhibition with manuscripts, Nobel Prize medal and personal items
- Victorian building from 1890 with a domed Reading Room
- Free admission to the exhibitions
- Seamus Heaney exhibition at the Bank of Ireland Cultural and Heritage Centre
- Collection of more than 12 million items on Irish history and culture
Permanent exhibition
- Yeats: The Life and Works of William Butler Yeats – Permanent exhibition on the poet W. B. Yeats with manuscripts of well-known poems, his Nobel Prize medal, school reports, photographs and other personal items from the library’s Yeats Collection.
- Founded
- 1877
- Operated by
- National Library of Ireland (national cultural institution)
Admission & discounts
Admission is free.
Admission to all exhibitions is free and no booking is needed. A Reader’s Card, which is free, is required only for the reading rooms and the family history service.
Accessibility
- Partially wheelchair accessible
- Elevator
- Accessible restroom
- Accessible parking: no information
- Service dogs welcome: no information
- Tactile models & exhibits: no information
- Sign language tours: no information
- Easy-to-read materials: no information
- Audio description: no information
The main building has a ramp at the Kildare Street entrance and automatic doors with an access button. The Yeats exhibition on the lower ground floor and the Joly Lecture Theatre can be reached by lift, and accessible toilets are on the ground floor. Wheelchair users are accompanied to the Main Reading Room by a staff member. The Manuscripts Reading Room (2/3 Kildare Street) is reached by a ramp through an adjoining building and needs advance notice, and the Family History Room is currently reachable by stairs only. Sensory toys are available at reception, and a visual guide to the building can be downloaded. The access officer can be reached at access@nli.ie.
Kids & families
The museum hasn’t published any information on this.
Getting there & parking
By public transit
Dawson Street (Luas Green Line) · 300 m
Luas Green Line to Dawson Street (about 300 metres); Pearse Street DART and commuter rail station (500 metres); Dublin Bus routes 40, 25, 7B, 7D, 11, 11B, 37, 38, 38A, 38B, 39, 39A, 70, E1 and E2 and the Aircoach stop on Kildare Street and Dawson Street. From Heuston Station bus 4 runs to Nassau Street, a 3-minute walk away.
By car
No on-site parking at the museum.
The library has no public parking. There is metered on-street parking on Merrion Square, a set-down lay-by in front of Leinster House (about 45 metres), wheelchair parking bays on Molesworth Street (about 100 metres) and commercial car parks at Schoolhouse Lane (five accessible spaces) and Setanta Place (one accessible space).
The nearest Dublinbikes station is on Leinster Street South, 150 metres away. The library is less than 500 metres on foot from St Stephen’s Green, Grafton Street and Trinity College.
Get directionsAmenities & dining
- Lockers
Lockers behind reception are provided for readers, who have to leave bags, food and drink there. Wi-Fi is mentioned only for the reading rooms. A shop and a café are planned as part of the building redevelopment.
Events & venue rental
The museum hasn’t published any information on this.
Plan your visit
| Guided tours | yes |
|---|---|
| Good to know | Guided tours are listed in the What’s On calendar, for example daily tours of the Seamus Heaney exhibition and occasional director’s tours of the library. Online tours and captioned events are also offered. |
