ABOUT THIS PUBLIC PARK

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THE CROPPIES MEMORIAL PARK

The antlers may have been added as a joke by a member of the public.

The monument is a personification of the River Liffey (Abhainn na Life in Irish) which runs through the city. Anna Livia Plurabelle is the name of a character in James Joyce's Finnegans Wake who also embodies the river. In the monument's original location, the river was represented as a young woman sitting on a slope with water flowing past her. Dubliners nicknamed it the "Floozie in the Jacuzzi", a nickname that was encouraged by the sculptor.

The memorial space is a triangular-plan park, enclosed c.1860, former recreation grounds associated with Collins Barracks. Cut granite plinth wall having wrought-iron railings with cast-iron spear heads. Having London Plane trees, lawn, perimeter shrubs, timber and cast-iron benches and water feature. Asphalt paths having stone edgings. Limestone paved surround to water feature. Bronze 'Anna Livia' sculpture by Eamonn O'Doherty to centre. Recent flat-roof stone ancillary building to south-east corner. Stone fountain, built c.1983, to centre of south boundary on axis with Frank Sherwin Bridge.

Croppies Memorial Park was dedicated in 1983, and together with the Esplanade or 'Croppies' Acre' commemorate those executed during the 1798 rebellion. The park is much older however, formerly part of the Military Recreation Grounds of Collins (formerly Royal) Barracks, it was known as the Crimean Trophy Plot due to the presence of guns captured during the Crimean war. Its age is evident in the mature planting and the patina of age to the boundary railings. It was owned by the OPW until it was made over to Dublin City Council in 1969. In 2011 the Memorial Park became the new home to Eamonn O'Doherty's bronze sculpture. Anna Livia, a representation of the River Liffey, was formerly located on O'Connell Street 1988-2001. The sculptor adapted the monument for its new location. It was commissioned for the Dublin Millennium celebrations of 1988. The park received a civic award in 1984. Dublin Chamber of Commerce presented the stone fountain on the south boundary to the city of Dublin in 1983 to commemorate the bicentenary of the chamber. It is formed from Wicklow granite and columns from the former Guinness Mansion in Saint Anne's Park. The park is well maintained and offers tranquillity amidst its busy surrounding streets.