Kick off Heritage Week 2025 at Collins Barracks with a special programme of tours and family-friendly activity books!

Tours

Saturday, 16th August 2025
14:00    The Way We Wore: Representations of Social Change through Clothing
Explore the history of clothing in Ireland, and in particular, how clothing can be seen as a representation of social change for women in Ireland. Visitors will explore examples of clothing that highlight how women were expected to dress, how clothing could be used to show status in communities, and how clothing could be a symbol of personal freedom and activism.

15:30    A Taste of the Past - The History of Food and Drink
This tour gives a flavour of the wealth of artefacts on display in the Museum that show the continuity and change of food preparation over time and the fascinating insights dining can give us into life, society and culture in Ireland. Discover the many different  ways people used dining to express themselves and the hidden stories and values attributed to everyday domestic objects.

Sunday, 17th August 2025
14:00    LGBTQIA+ Tour of Collins Barracks
This tour views the exhibitions at the National Museum through alternative lenses, bringing some hidden histories and perspectives to the fore, and reveals a wide variety of identities, genders and sexualities along the way. Spanning the establishment of the Barracks itself to Ireland’s passing of the Marriage Equality Referendum in 2015, highlights include the non-conformist chair by world renowned designer and architect Eileen Gray and artefacts belonging to some of the women of Ireland’s revolutionary period.

15:30    Game, Set, Match: The History of Sports in Irish Society
From hair hurling balls dating from the 1500s to ladies camogie dresses from the 1960s, join an engaging and interactive tour focuses on the development and evolution of Ireland's societal and sporting past. This tour will explore the development of a variety of sports in Ireland, including Gaelic games, soccer, rugby and horse racing. It will also place the evolution of these sports in a wider societal context, such as the concept of domestic and garrison games, social class, nationalism and independence, and gender. 


Saturday, 23rd August 2025
14:00    Music Makers in the National Museum's Collection
Find your rhythm by exploring the instruments on display in the National Museum of Ireland – Collins Barracks. Join a guide on a free public tour of the galleries and learn about the history of Irish music-making throughout the centuries.

15:30    An Introduction to Collins Barracks featuring Harry Clarke
This tour focuses on the story of Royal Barracks (now Collins Barracks) and the lives of soldiers who lived here between 1706 until 1993. Learn about their daily activities, living conditions, drilling and marching practices and experiences going to war. This tour also explores the story of Collins Barracks becoming a Museum, and will introduce students to some of the most fascinating artefacts in the Museum's collection. As part of this tour, visitors will also be brought to the new Harry Clarke’s-Stained Glass exhibition, to learn about one of Ireland’s most famed stained-glass artists.


Sunday, 24th August 2025
14:00    Music Makers in the National Museum's Collection
Find your rhythm by exploring the instruments on display in the National Museum of Ireland – Collins Barracks. Join a guide on a free public tour of the galleries and learn about the history of Irish music-making throughout the centuries.

15:30    Symbols of Ireland in the National Museum's Collection
The harp is one of the most common symbols of Ireland, which we see on everyday objects such as coins, and the shamrock is synonymous with St Patrick’s Day, but did you know that there are lots of other symbols that designers and artists have used over the centuries to express Irish culture and history? This tour explores a range of fascinating Irish symbols through artefacts on display in the Museum. Visitors will learn about the importance of symbolism in shaping and declaring national identity, and how they have been used by social and political organisations to express their ideas of what Ireland is. 


Tours will begin in Reception at Collins Barracks. Booking is not required. However, places are limited and will be offered on a first-come, first-served basis. Children must be fully supervised by a parent or adult who is in loco parentis.

Family Heritage Trails

Explore the Museum’s collections and discover Ireland’s rich and varied national heritage with a free family Activity Book at the National Museum this Heritage Week. As the trail leads through the Museum’s galleries, it will take you all over the island of Ireland, revealing stories and histories from Dublin to Donegal, from the Aran Islands to Armagh. Suitable for children aged 9 - 13 years old and their families to complete. Available for free to pick up from the Museum's reception area through the month of August.

For more information about the items listed above, contact bookings@museum.ie or call 01 648 6453. You can find the full programme of events taking place across the country as part of Heritage Week at the following link: National Heritage Week 16th – 24th August 2025