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𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐢𝐟 𝐬𝐨𝐦𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐃𝐮𝐛𝐥𝐢𝐧'𝐬 𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐞𝐬𝐭 𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐬 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐛𝐞𝐞𝐧 𝐡𝐢𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐢𝐧 𝐩𝐥𝐚𝐢𝐧 𝐬𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐚𝐥𝐨𝐧𝐠?Look closely at the buildings, monuments and streets of Dublin and you'll find a city filled with symbols of death, sacrifice, power, religion, secrecy and the pursuit of hidden knowledge.
𝐁𝐎𝐎𝐊 𝐇𝐄𝐑𝐄 >
https://www.eventbrite.ie/e/hidden-in-plain-sight-secrets-symbols-hidden-histories-of-dublin-tickets-2002826375604
On this special pre-Halloween walking tour, we'll explore the lesser-known side of Dublin — from classical architecture and ancient symbols to medieval executions, witchcraft, memento mori, Freemasonry, Theosophy, the occult revival and W.B. Yeats.
But this isn't a ghost tour.
We'll distinguish between what we know, what was believed, what became folklore, and what later generations have interpreted as occult.
Along the way we'll examine some of Dublin's most intriguing — and easily overlooked — details, including skulls and sacrificial imagery, mysterious architectural symbols, medieval places of punishment, stories of witchcraft and heresy, and the people who deliberately sought out esoteric knowledge.
And we'll finish with a visit to the National Library of Ireland's exhibition on W.B. Yeats, whose interests in Irish mythology, mysticism and the occult provide a fitting conclusion to the journey.
𝐖𝐇𝐀𝐓 𝐖𝐈𝐋𝐋 𝐖𝐄 𝐒𝐄𝐄?
Our route will take us through some of the oldest and most historically significant parts of Dublin, including:
𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑪𝒖𝒔𝒕𝒐𝒎 𝑯𝒐𝒖𝒔𝒆
We'll begin by looking closely at James Gandon's extraordinary 18th-century building — its river-god sculptures, classical imagery, dome and memento mori details — and ask what these symbols were actually intended to communicate.
𝑶'𝑪𝒐𝒏𝒏𝒆𝒍𝒍 𝑺𝒕𝒓𝒆𝒆𝒕 & 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑮𝑷𝑶
Bull skulls, classical symbolism, the Parnell and O'Connell Monuments and the extraordinary mixture of religious and political imagery surrounding the events of 1916.
𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑭𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝑪𝒐𝒖𝒓𝒕𝒔
Gandon's monumental architecture, Roman fasces, the symbolism of Justice and Law, unusual sculptural details and the destruction of Dublin's Public Record Office during the Civil War.
𝑺𝒎𝒊𝒕𝒉𝒇𝒊𝒆𝒍𝒅 & 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒎𝒆𝒅𝒊𝒆𝒗𝒂𝒍 𝒄𝒊𝒕𝒚
We'll pass through the old city towards one of Dublin's most intriguing medieval areas, with the option of using public transport for part of the journey if necessary.
𝑺𝒕 𝑨𝒖𝒅𝒐𝒆𝒏'𝒔 𝑪𝒉𝒖𝒓𝒄𝒉
We'll step inside this remarkable medieval church and explore its surviving funerary monuments, tombs and memento mori imagery. St Audoen's is the only surviving medieval parish church in Dublin and is free to enter.
𝑪𝒉𝒓𝒊𝒔𝒕 𝑪𝒉𝒖𝒓𝒄𝒉 & 𝑭𝒊𝒔𝒉𝒂𝒎𝒃𝒍𝒆 𝑺𝒕𝒓𝒆𝒆𝒕
Medieval Dublin, death and burial, the story of St Laurence O'Toole's heart, and the strange history and folklore surrounding the area once known as "Hell".
𝑫𝒂𝒓𝒌𝒆𝒚 𝑲𝒆𝒍𝒍𝒚𝒔
The documented story of one of 18th-century Dublin's most notorious women — and the darker legends that grew around her execution.
𝑫𝒂𝒎𝒆 𝑺𝒕𝒓𝒆𝒆𝒕 & 𝑪𝒐𝒍𝒍𝒆𝒈𝒆 𝑮𝒓𝒆𝒆𝒏
Stories of medieval heresy, witchcraft and forbidden knowledge, including the cases of Adam Duff O'Toole and Alice Kyteler.
𝑻𝒓𝒊𝒏𝒊𝒕𝒚 𝑪𝒐𝒍𝒍𝒆𝒈𝒆
A brief look at Dublin's intellectual and antiquarian traditions and the growing fascination with Ireland's mythology and ancient past.
𝑵𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒂𝒍 𝑳𝒊𝒃𝒓𝒂𝒓𝒚 𝒐𝒇 𝑰𝒓𝒆𝒍𝒂𝒏𝒅 — 𝒀𝒆𝒂𝒕𝒔 𝑬𝒙𝒉𝒊𝒃𝒊𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏
We'll finish at the National Library's permanent exhibition, Yeats: The Life and Works of William Butler Yeats. The exhibition explores Yeats's interests in Ireland, folklore, mysticism and the occult and contains manuscripts, photographs and personal objects from the NLI's extensive Yeats collection.
Admission is free, and no booking is required.
𝑭𝒓𝒆𝒆𝒎𝒂𝒔𝒐𝒏𝒔' 𝑯𝒂𝒍𝒍 (𝑬𝒙𝒕𝒆𝒓𝒊𝒐𝒓)
We'll pass Dublin's extraordinary Masonic headquarters and examine its exterior before continuing towards Merrion Square. The Hall itself is not normally open for public tours on Saturdays, so this tour will not include interior access.
𝑴𝒆𝒓𝒓𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝑺𝒒𝒖𝒂𝒓𝒆
We'll explore the literary and mystical Dublin of W.B. Yeats and George Russell (Æ), including their connections with Irish mythology, Theosophy and the occult revival.
→ 𝑑𝑒𝑎𝑡ℎ → 𝑠𝑎𝑐𝑟𝑖𝑓𝑖𝑐𝑒 → 𝑟𝑒𝑙𝑖𝑔𝑖𝑜𝑛 → 𝑝𝑜𝑤𝑒𝑟 → 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑟𝑒𝑐𝑦 → 𝐹𝑟𝑒𝑒𝑚𝑎𝑠𝑜𝑛𝑟𝑦 → 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑟𝑒𝑡𝑠 𝑖𝑛 𝑠𝑡𝑜𝑛𝑒 → 𝑜𝑐𝑐𝑢𝑙𝑡𝑖𝑠𝑚 → 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑜𝑠𝑜𝑝ℎ𝑦 → 𝑌𝑒𝑎𝑡𝑠 → Æ → ℎ𝑖𝑑𝑑𝑒𝑛 𝑠𝑦𝑚𝑏𝑜𝑙𝑖𝑠𝑚 → 𝑎𝑙𝑐ℎ𝑒𝑚𝑦 → 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑚𝑜𝑟𝑒...
𝐖𝐇𝐀𝐓 𝐌𝐀𝐊𝐄𝐒 𝐓𝐇𝐈𝐒 𝐓𝐎𝐔𝐑 𝐃𝐈𝐅𝐅𝐄𝐑𝐄𝐍𝐓?
This is not a tour about finding something supernatural behind every doorway.
Instead, we'll look at 𝘩𝘰𝘸 symbols acquire meaning.
- A skull might be a Christian reminder of mortality rather than an occult symbol.
- A Roman fasces might represent authority rather than Fascism.
- A medieval accusation of witchcraft tells us something about the society making the accusation — whether or not the alleged magic was real.
- And sometimes the occult really was the point.
By the time we reach Yeats, Theosophy and the Golden Dawn, we'll be meeting people who genuinely believed that ancient mythology, symbolism, ritual and esoteric traditions contained forms of knowledge unavailable through ordinary means.
The question throughout the day is:
What is actually hidden — and what has simply been hiding in plain sight?
𝐏𝐋𝐄𝐀𝐒𝐄 𝐍𝐎𝐓𝐄:
👉🏼 This is a proper walking tour covering several kilometres.
👉🏼 You will be on your feet for significant periods.
👉🏼 Much of the tour is outdoors.
👉🏼 Wear comfortable walking shoes and dress for Irish autumn weather (waterproofs strongly recommended).
👉🏼 Public transport may be used for part of the route depending on pace, weather and timing.
👉🏼 The itinerary may be adjusted slightly on the day for weather, access or circumstances.
👉🏼 Some stories involve death, executions, violence, witchcraft, occult practices and other disturbing historical material.
👉🏼 As such, this tour is NOT suitable for young children.
𝐏𝐑𝐀𝐂𝐓𝐈𝐂𝐀𝐋 𝐈𝐍𝐅𝐎𝐑𝐌𝐀𝐓𝐈𝐎𝐍
⭐️ Date: Saturday, 24 October 2026
⭐️ When: Midday (12:00)
⭐️ Where: Custom House (Liffey side), Dublin
⭐️ End point: Merrion Square
⭐️ Fee: €45 for early bird (f̵i̵r̵s̵t̵ ̵7̵ ̵t̵i̵c̵k̵e̵t̵s̵ 𝗢𝗡𝗟𝗬 𝟰 𝗹𝗲𝗳𝘁!) increasing to €55
⭐️ Participants: Max 20 guests
⭐️ Duration: Approximately 5–6 hours
𝐁𝐎𝐎𝐊 𝐇𝐄𝐑𝐄 >
https://www.eventbrite.ie/e/hidden-in-plain-sight-secrets-symbols-hidden-histories-of-dublin-tickets-2002826375604
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Event venue
The Custom House, Custom House Visitor Centre, Custom House Quay, Dublin, County Dublin, 1, Ireland
Tickets
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