On Saturday 14 and Sunday 15 September 2024, Armagh Robinson Library, No 5 Vicars’ Hill and St Patrick’s Church of Ireland Cathedral will take part in the 2024 European Heritage Open Days (EHOD).
This annual event celebrates architecture, history and culture. Each year over 250 places in Northern Ireland open their doors and organise events. In County Armagh, twenty-six places will be open, including eight in Armagh City. The theme for this year’s EHOD is Routes, Connections and Networks – Links in our Heritage‘.
Armagh Robinson Library will be open on Saturday 14 from 11.00am to 5.00pm and on Sunday 15 from 2.00pm to 5.00pm.
The Library will display Ukrainian embroidery to highlight connections and networks. Ukrainian families currently living in County Armagh have taken part in several projects with the Library. The connections built over these months have led to the Ukrainian families asking if they could do something with the Library for EHOD.
The display will include the Ukrainian vyshyvanka, a traditional embroidered shirt. It is a symbol of Ukrainian cultural identity, a garment that embodies centuries of history, symbolism and artistic expression. In recognition of its cultural significance, Ukrainian embroidery, including vyshyvanka, was inscribed on the UNESCO Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in 2018.
No 5 Vicars’ Hill will also be open on Saturday 14 from 11.00am to 5.00pm and on Sunday 15 from 2.00pm to 5.00pm.
Visitors will be able to see inside what appears to be a modest 1772 dwelling house from the outside, and view No 5’s garden. The garden is the legacy of a climate change project, in which Library volunteers have been involved, caring for the plants. Connections are made between the pollinator plants which were planted recently and their importance in the 18th century.
St Patrick’s Church of Ireland Cathedral will open its doors to EHOD visitors on Saturday 14 September from 10.00am to 5.00pm.
Staff and volunteers will welcome visitors to look at the architecture, to experience the sense of history over the centuries, and to learn about the generations of people of faith who have felt a special connection to this ancient sacred site and St Patrick.
Once again this year, we look forward to welcoming visitors to our three unique and special buildings which hold many links to our past, revealing stories and examples of faith and learning, and connections to people and places in Armagh and far beyond.
Revd Shane Forster, Keeper of Armagh Robinson Library and No 5, and the Dean of Armagh
For more information, please go to EHOD digital brochure 2024.
In Northern Ireland, EHOD is run by the Department for Communities with the support of the Council of Europe and the European Commission.
