The Little Museum of Dublin, 20th-century history

The Little Museum of Dublin – The history of the city in the 20th century

As a civic museum for the city of Dublin, the Little Museum chronicles the history of the city in the 20th century. It provides visitors with an intimate and informative glimpse into life in Dublin during that time period. You can get there in 10 minutes by walking from the Dublin Citi Hotel.

The museum has a collection of over 5,000 artefacts, donated or loaned directly from the people of Dublin. It has three floors of exhibition space in the Georgian townhome, one floor for office space, and an acclaimed Irish café, Hatch & Sons Irish Kitchen, in the basement. Areas of interest within the museum exhibitions include 1916 Rising, U.S. President John F. Kennedy’s visit to Dublin, and many other landmark events in Irish political and social history. In 2014 the museum opened an exhibit that focuses on the success of the rock band U2.

The Little Museum of Dublin
Inside The Little Museum

The museum received a new wave of publicity when it purchased an archive of work by artist and poet Christy Brown. As a result on March 19, 2014, the Little Museum and the National Library of Ireland were the proud joint owners of a collection that includes private letters and previously unseen sketches, paintings, and poems. Bonhams in London sold the collection for nearly 45,000 euro.

U2: Made in Dublin

Ireland’s greatest rock band has finally got the exhibition it deserves. U2: Made in Dublin charts the story of the band over the last 40 years. This fan-curated exhibition features musical rarities, signed albums and some great photography. Alongside delights such as a Trabant car, an oversize Gibson Explorer, a life-size sculpture of MacPhisto.

The exhibition was created by fans of the band along with some of Ireland’s best photographers and artists, as a tribute to U2 and a celebration of their roots in the local music scene of the 1970s. 

The Little Museum of Dublin
U2 Exhibition

A soundtrack narrated by Tom Dunne tells the story of the band with rare live recordings from the Dandelion Market all the way through to Croke Park. The exhibition is hugely popular with fans of Ireland’s most famous musical export.

The Wings of Ireland

The history of aviation is filled with Irish people. These record-breaking, death-defying, endlessly inventive men and women took to the skies – and made history.

In a stunning new exhibition, the Little Museum of Dublin pays tribute to the explorers, tycoons and hare-brained eccentrics who were our pioneering aviators.

  • Visitors to the exhibition can follow the flight of Irish aviation from the thrills and spills of the earliest aviators to a world-class industry.
  • Learn why one out of every five passenger planes in the world is managed from Ireland.
  • See the evolution of Irish aircraft, from hot-air balloons to flying boats to jumbo jets.
  • Meet the air hostesses who dressed like supermodels, the priest who built an airport, and the cat, the sheep and the cow who all played a part in Irish aviation history. 

Admission

  • Adult: €10
  • Senior/Student: €8
  • Family: €20
  • Group: €8

You can get there in 10 minutes by walking from the Dublin Citi Hotel. They open their doors every day from 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. (Thursdays until 7 p.m.)

COVID Update: For the benefit of staff and visitors, they are following the government guidelines around Covid-19 (for more information click here).

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