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TEMPLE BAR AREA OF DUBLIN

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I do not know how true the following story is: An elephant owned by Mr Wilkins who kept in a specially constructed building near the old Custom House near Essex Street. Members of the public could view the elephant on payment of a fee. On Friday the 17th of June 1681 the wooden building caught fire killing the unfortunate elephant. Almost immediately the very first elephant dissection, in the World, began. A team of local butchers carefully took the animal apart under the watchful eyes of a doctor who recorded everything. A few months later the elephant’s skeleton was put on display generating even more cash for Mr Wilkins as he no longer had to feed it.

https://www.rcseng.ac.uk/library-and-publications/library/blog/an-unlucky-elephant/

Essex Street was opened in 1674, and named after Arthur Capel, the Earl of Essex and Lord Lieutenant of Ireland at the time.

Temple Bar is a busy riverside neighbourhood, spread over cobbled pedestrian lanes. Crowded pubs host live folk music and DJ sets, and diners pack restaurants serving Asian, American and Irish cuisine. Quirky boutiques stock clothes and crafts by local designers.

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