Survey Data
Reg No
20866122
Rating
Regional
Categories of Special Interest
Artistic, Historical, Social, Technical
Original Use
Gates/railings/walls
In Use As
Gates/railings/walls
Date
1900 - 1905
Coordinates
166073, 71549
Date Recorded
31/03/2011
Date Updated
--/--/--
Description
Entrance gateway to Fitzgerald Park, dated 1902 and 1903, comprising vehicular entrance flanked by pedestrian entrances. Square profile red brick piers with cut limestone plaques bearing inscriptions "FITZGERALD PARK" and "EXHIBITION 1902 & 1903" having limestone caps and decorative double-leaf wrought-iron gates. Wrought-iron railings to sides on low red brick plinth wall with cut limestone coping.
Appraisal
This entrance exhibits excellent detailing and fine craftsmanship and forms a fitting entrance to Fitzgerald Park. The wrought-iron is the work of Benjamin Watson of Robert Street, Cork. The red brick piers and plinth wall contrast with the limestone caps and wrought-iron gates, adding textural interest to the site. The inscribed plaques which commemorate the Cork City International Exhibition of 1902 and the Greater Cork International Exhibition of 1903 are reminders of the purpose for which this entrance was built. Together with the President's and Lord Mayor's Pavilion and the Father Mathew Memorial Fountain, it forms part of a significant group comprising the only surviving structures associated with the Exhibition.