SAINT BENEDICT'S GARDENS - MARIAN GROTTO 003

SAINT BENEDICT'S GARDENS - MARIAN GROTTO

SAINT BENEDICT'S GARDENS - MARIAN GROTTO


I discovered this grotto in 2015 but the photographs that I took back then were not really useable so I needed to revisit the street but did not manage to do so until 2017.

In 2017 I made the mistake of asking someone who I thought was a local about the history of the statue and things went downhill very quickly ... they did not like photographers and they were against everything including religion.

As Ireland has become much less religious over the last few decades I am surprised that these statues and grottos still survive and all that I have seen to date are in good condition.

According to some studies there are at least 28 ‘Marian Statues’ in Dublin and most, if not all, are located in working class areas. I am not sure if this particular statue is one of the 28 because I cannot find any mention of it. It might not be even be a so called ‘Marian Statue’

My understanding is that the majority were erected in 1954, the first Marian Year, on what would have been public property without formal permission so I suppose that there is a possibility that some of them may eventually be removed but that would be a great pity.

There is a map showing the location of statues throughout Ireland
https://www.google.com/maps/d/viewer?mid=1hma9sq84sLdMvYMuqWuOCVXCheQ&hl=en_US&ll=53.088536507040885%2C-7.041859296875032&z=8



SAINT BENEDICT
SAINT BENEDICT
SAINT BENEDICT
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