In the Little Museum we are obsessed with history, hospitality and humour. The museum captures these three things in a collection that was created by public donation. If you want to discover the story of Dublin, book your ticket now.
The Little Museum tells the remarkable story of the Irish capital. It was launched in 2011 with a public appeal for historic objects. The response to that appeal illustrates the generosity of the Irish people. Today there are over 5,000 artefacts in our collection.
Recently described as “Dublin’s best museum experience” by the Irish Times, the Little Museum has twice been voted as the number one museum in Ireland on the TripAdvisor website.
Children attend free civics classes here every morning, we host several temporary exhibitions each year, and our greeter programme, City of a Thousand Welcomes, has been described by the Sydney Morning Herald as “the best free thing to do in Europe.”
Our goal is not to sell an ideology but simply to remember the past. If you like the sound of what we’re doing, please visit the museum today.
Curator & Founder
Trevor White
trevor@littlemuseum.ie
Our curator and founder, Trevor White, was born in Dublin in 1972. Educated at St. Columba’s College and Trinity College, he created The Dubliner magazine, published Ireland’s best-selling restaurant guide, and is the author of three books. “Working with our team is a privilege,” says Trevor. “Together our goal is to create the Noma of museums – a small but perfectly-formed jewel that people come from all over the world to admire.”
CEO
Sarah Clancy
sarah@littlemuseum.ie
Our CEO, Sarah Clancy, is a Dublin native. She studied in University College Dublin and has been part of the Little Museum team since 2012. Responsible for overseeing the museum expansion, Sarah says, “I’m so proud to be able to work with our incredible team to build a full-scale permanent museum for Dublin – a museum where our kids and grandkids will learn about the rich history of our city.”
Guests enjoying one of our famous guided tours.
The Little Museum is one of the most charming cultural institutions in Europe. But don’t take our word for it. This is what the critics say.
“To get a crash course on all things Dublin, start your day with a visit to the the Little Museum of Dublin. This charming and chock-full museum is relatively new to the scene but it’ll teach all you ever wanted to know about the city’s recent history – from Queen Victoria’s visit in 1900 to the meteoric rise of local band U2. You’ll get a solid background on 20th-century Dublin, as well as an insight into the quirks and pop culture unseen beyond local borders.” – Condé Nast Traveler
“Irreverent and rather wonderful” – Sunday Times
“The Little Museum of Dublin is everything that’s good about Dublin in microcosm. It’s a scene of meticulously organised chaos. Like the city itself, it houses within its confines the relics of bygone eras. And just like Dublin, it oozes a sense of nascent creativity, of something exciting coming into being.” – Irish Times
“Ireland’s No.1 museum is a small non-profit housed in a Georgian building overlooking Dublin’s Stephen’s Green. That’s according to TripAdvisor, which has just named the Little Museum of Dublin as Ireland’s top museum in its Travellers’ Choice Awards.” – Irish Independent
“The Little Museum tells the tale of Dublin and Irish history in a wonderfully sardonic, fun-filled way… The hour felt like 15 minutes as it’s an hour filled with humour, quirkiness, song and a healthy dose of Irish cynicism. I can’t recommend it enough.” – Irish Examiner
Our guides are the life and soul of the museum, filling the place with laughter and song. Click on the images below to find out more about them.
Name: Emma Moohan
What I do in the museum: I am a tour guide
Favourite Artefact: Currently, my favourite artefact at the museum resides in the “Animals of Dublin” exhibition. Assassin Flies!!! I love the fact that the Department of Health distributed leaflets with images of Flies standing upright and sporting cloaks and daggers. They look incredible.
Favourite thing to do in Dublin: Theatre/Gin/Cake (not necessarily in that order.)
Name: Eamon Culloty
What I do in the museum: Tour Guide
Favourite Artefact: Bench from old Dublin Tram… simple, practical design, bi-directional, always popular.
Favourite thing to do in Dublin: People-watching over an excellent coffee.
Name: Jennie Flynn
What I do in the museum: I’m the General Manager, so generally everything. You will usually find me at the door welcoming guests to the museum. My favourite part of the job is definitely the people; discovering their stories and the memories the artefacts in the museum bring up for them.
Favourite Artefact: The amputation saw. Partly because it’s gruesome, and children in particular love it but also because it asks you to question the given interpretation of history.
Favourite Item in Shop: The jars of Dublin air, they’re such a wonderful piece of nonsense, and exemplify Dublin humour.
Favourite thing to do in Dublin: It’s very hard to beat a pint and a toastie outside Grogan’s Pub on Castlemarket. It’s equally good for people watching as it is for having a chat.
Name: Fionn O’Dwyer
What I do in the museum: I’m a tour guide
Favourite Artefact: Definitely the Grip Strength Tester
Favourite Item in Shop: The funky socks by Irish Sock Society
Favourite thing to do in Dublin: Catching up with a friend over a good pint in good weather!
Name: Claire Jenkins
What I do in the museum: Education Manager – developing the museum’s “I Love Dublin” Education Programme, and other ways for the museum to engage with the cultural landscape of the city. I also do tours!
Favourite Artefact: I do love a good Millennium Milk Bottle, and the miniature replica of Clearys, with the couple meeting and kissing underneath the clock, makes me smile every time I see it!
Favourite Item in Shop: All the wonderful books.
Favourite thing to do in Dublin: Wander… and then have a lovely pint of Guinness with friends (or a dip in the sea)
Name: Mark McKenna
What I do in the museum: Tour Guide
Favourite Artefact: The scale model of Clery’s Department Store. Clery’s was an important place in a lot of Dubliner’s lives. When we were kids we went to visit Santa there. If we behaved when our mammies brought us to shop there then we might be treated to a meal or snack in the restaurant upstairs. The coin canisters going through the pipes were an endless source of cheap amusement for us kids. As we got older it was a handy (and infamous) meeting point for first dates (and even second and third ones). Older generations of Dubliners went to dance in Clery’s Ballroom. (In fact, it was lucky that the Nelson’s Pillar bomb went off at the time it did, thus missing the crowds coming out of Clery’s Ballroom later that night).
Favourite thing to do in Dublin: A walk along the canal from Portobello to Baggot Street Bridge (and beyond).
Name: Saul Sherrard
What I do in the museum: I work as a tour guide in the museum, covering 200,000 years of Irish history in just 29 minutes.
Favourite Artefact: My favourite artefact in the museum is Nell McCafferty behind the red curtain.
Favourite Item in Shop: My favourite item in the shop are the Bosco socks.
Favourite thing to do in Dublin: My favourite thing to do in Dublin is have pancakes and an iced latte in Metro Cafe.
Name: Emmanuel Tubbiolo
What I do in the museum: Floor manager.
Favourite Artefact: James Malton’s prints. Beautiful testimony of Dublin 1800’s. When fine art and history meet.
Favourite thing to do in Dublin: A visit to the National Gallery of Ireland.
Name: Trevor White
What I do in the museum: I founded the museum in 2011. These days, I try to give guided tours in French, to very bemused French people.
Favourite Artefact: I love our collection of tennis balls discarded by the dogs of Dun Laoghaire. It was put together by the artist Gary Coyle over a ten-year period.
Favourite thing to do in Dublin: Lunch in the Fumbally Café on a lazy Saturday afternoon.
Name: Dr Daryl Hendley Rooney
What I do in the museum: As historian in residence my roles are many. From tending to our collection of publicly donated artefacts to researching the multifaceted story of the Hibernian Metropolis, there’s never a dull moment in the Little Museum of Dublin.
Favourite Artefact: Every artefact is fascinating in its own way, which makes it difficult to choose a favourite. However, lately, I’ve been intrigued by the Butchers Social Union leather bingo card from the 1930s. At the time, the cards kept going missing because players would use them to patch the holes in their shoes!
Favourite Item in Shop: The Pocket Book of Irish Wit and Wisdom. Don’t be a twit – be a wise wit! Always good to have a few apt quotes in the back pocket for the right occasion.
Favourite thing to do in Dublin: A dip in the Vico Baths between Killiney Beach and Dalkey. Alternatively, a mosey around the city’s book and antiques shops searching for treasures. Afterwards, a quiet pint in Neary’s or Grogan’s (toastie optional but highly recommended).
Name: Seán McDermott
What I do in the museum: I am a tour guide here at the museum.
Favourite Artefact: My favourite artefact at the moment is the letter written by Samuel Beckett that can be found in The Treasury. That one piece of paper not only comes from such an iconic Dubliner, but has a story that is able to convey the magic of what the museum represents.
Favourite Item in Shop: I have a soft spot for anything duck related.
Favourite thing to do in Dublin: You can never beat a swim in Howth.
Name: Dara Flynn
What I do in the museum: Head of Design. Tightener of screws. Solver of problems. To name a few things.
Favourite Artefact: The selection of Callcards. It reminds me of calling home to my family from a packed phonebox in the Gaeltacht in my teenage years.
Favourite thing to do in Dublin: I love to take pictures of wildlife. From my local cygnets to the seals at the end of Bull Island or on a trip over to Ireland’s Eye from Howth.
Name: Gintaras Varnagys
What I do in the museum: Photographer and videographer
Favourite Artefact: Black and White Photographs by Brendan Walsh
Favourite thing to do in Dublin: A walk by the seashore
Name: Sarah Clancy
What I do in the museum: Running a small registered charity, I get to do a little bit of everything. I find that our days are usually busy, our team is world class and tasks are seldom repetitive!
Favourite Artefact: A letter Samuel Beckett wrote to a boy who subsequently lived in his childhood home.
Favourite thing to do in Dublin: A hike in the scenic Dublin mountains with our dog followed by a warm coffee or cheeky pint beside an open fire.
Name: Thomas Glancy
What I do in the museum: I welcome guests to the museum.
Favourite thing to do in Dublin: My favourite thing to do is enjoy a pint outside the Thomas Moore Inn.
Name: Noeleen Murphy
What I do in the museum: I’m responsible for our accounts, governance and HR and my current obsession is the developing of the Little Shop.
Favourite Artefact: The photo of the Forty Foot as it reminds me of my dad and my childhood.
Favourite thing to do in Dublin: To just be a tourist for the day.
A museum without great people is like history without its greatest actors. Our people make our museum, and help bring history to life.
Trevor White, Curator & Founder
Sarah Clancy, CEO
Dara Flynn, Head of Design
Noeleen Murphy, Head of Accounts & HR
Emmanuel Tubbiolo, Head of Guest Experience
Jennie Flynn, General Manager
Barbara Sangster, Designer
Lisa Murphy, Acting Fellow
