The Spire of Dublin, alternatively titled the Millennium Spire or the Monument of Light (Irish: An Túr Solais), is a large, stainless steel, pin-like monument 120 metres (390 ft) in height, located on the site of the former Nelson's Pillar (and prior to that a statue of William Blakeney) on O'Connell Street, the main thoroughfare of Dublin, Ireland.
History
Nelson's Pillar
Following the bombing of Nelson's Pillar by former IRA members in 1966, and subsequent controlled demolition six days later of what was left, the site remained vacant for years as no decision could be reached on a suitable replacement. Eventually, the Anna Livia monument was installed on the site to celebrate the 1988 Dublin Millennium celebrations.
Re-development of O'Connell Street In 1998, as part of a planned multi-million euro re-development of O'Connell Street (as well as a memorial to the upcoming millennium and the aspirations of Ireland in the midst of its Celtic Tiger economic boom), a competition was launched to find a replacement for Nelson's Pillar. O'Connell Street had been in decline for a number of years due to the proliferation of fast-food restaurants, the opening of bargain shops using cheap plastic shop fronts, and proliferation of derelict sites along both sides of the road. The re-development plan, which was aimed for completion by 2004, hoped to move the street "away from the image of fast-food restaurants, to (that of) a 'family' place to go". As part of the project to improve the overall streetscape, a new granite plaza was promised and the number of trees in the central reservation, which had overgrown and obscured views and monuments, was reduced dramatically. This was controversial, as the trees had been growing for a century. Statues were cleaned and in some cases relocated. Shop owners were required to replace plastic signage and frontage with more attractive designs. Traffic was re-directed where possible away from the street and the number of traffic lanes was reduced to make it more appealing to pedestrians. The centrepiece of this regeneration was to be the replacement monument for Nelson's Pillar. In the editorial for the Irish Arts Review Yearbook 1999, art historian Homan Potterton wrote of his reservations regarding the plan, opining:
The announcement of an international competition for a new monument for O'Connell Street, Dublin to replace the Pillar which was blown-up on Easter Monday 1966 makes one shudder: absolutely shudder. That is because ninety-nine percent of the public sculpture which was (sic) been erected in Ireland over the last decade or so – not least the Floosie in the Jacuzzi on O'Connell Street itself – is, quite simply, dire. While Dublin Corporation are to be congratulated for promoting such a competition as part of its renewal programme for the city's principal thoroughfare (the O'Connell Street Integrated Area Plan) and few people would doubt that an appropriate monument – a focus and a symbol – is badly needed, it is the thought of the symbol which might be inflicted upon us – at a projected cost of £4 million – that considerably dampens our enthusiasm.
Competition and design
The Spire, or Spire of Light, was chosen from a large number of submissions in an international competition by a committee chaired by the Lord Mayor of Dublin, Joe Doyle. Following an appeal by an objector, the plans were taken to the High Court, meaning that the monument was ultimately not ready for the Millennium celebrations in the year 2000. On 28 December 2000, after an Environmental Impact Study (EIS) had been carried out, Environment Minister Noel Dempsey announced that construction of the Monument of Light, or The Spike, had been approved and that construction of the monument would take nineteen months to complete. The announcement constituted a defeat for An Taisce, Ireland's non-governmental organisation active in the areas of the environment and built heritage, which had called for the monument's height to be reduced. Dempsey noted that Dublin Corporation had previously failed to complete an EIS in its haste to complete the monument quickly. The spire was designed by Ian Ritchie of Ian Ritchie Architects, who sought an "elegant and dynamic simplicity bridging art and technology". The contract was awarded to SIAC-Radley JV and it was manufactured by Radley Engineering of Dungarvan, County Waterford, and erected by SIAC Construction Ltd & GDW Engineering Ltd. The Anna Livia monument was eventually moved away to make room for the Spire in 2002.
Modern era In December 2015, to coincide with the Irish premier of Star Wars: The Force Awakens, a large temporary lightsaber hilt was installed at the base of the Spire to light the Spire blue at night. In May 2024, The Portal was opened. It created a visual bridge connecting Dublin and New York with a live videostream of The Spire shown to New Yorkers, while the portal in New York was broadcast from the Flatiron Building. In September 2025, a large flag of Palestine appeared atop the spire, attached to a hoop. It is suspected that the flag was dropped by a drone. There have been no claims of responsibility, and the flag remains as of mid-2026, due to the difficulty and expense of removal.
… excerpt ends here. Continue reading the full article.
