After many complaints about the treatment of the Molly Malone statue, Dublin City Council have decided to hire stewards to protect the statue.
Earlier this month it was reported that DCC has asked tourist companies to stop telling visitors that rubbing the statue's breasts brings luck.
The Suffolk street statue has become discoloured from tourists and locals alike groping the figure’s breasts.
The ‘Leave Molly mAlone’ campaign reached its first anniversary recently, with busker Tilly Cripwell releasing two verses of a Molly Malone inspired song for International Women's Day.
On The Hard Shoulder, Dublin City Council Arts Officer Ray Yeates said the treatment of the statue has caused “disquiet and upset”.
“I'm very aware that this has caused a certain amount of disquiet and upset to members of the public and I've been actually dealing various inquiries about that statue for about a year now,” he said.
“It was necessary for us to kind of study this, because, as always, we're afraid there might be unintended consequences of any actions that you take.”
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The Molly Malone statue in Dublin city centre was vandalised with green writing. Photo: via TwitterMr Yeates said one reason for hiring stewards for around the statue is that there is a possible safety issue around people getting up and down off the plinth the statue is on.
“So, if I break it down into its component parts: there may be a safety issue here,” he said.
“We were just at the statue today, along with engineers from the city about getting up and down off the plinth the whole time.
“Although it's a very low plinth, I don't see much of an issue there, but it's causing a little play in the statue, a little vibration in it, and we are going to start studying where it's fixed to make sure it's entirely safe.
“It is entirely safe – and the engineer signed off on that - but long term concept, getting up on the plinth and pushing at the statue could be a safety issue - that's the first thing.”
Main image shows Molly Malone after the second time she was vandalised, 19-09-2023. Image: Leah Farrell/RollingNewsThe second reason, Mr Yeates commented, is to do with touching art.
“The second part of this is, as an arts officer, I don't want anyone to touch a public work of art, appropriately or not appropriately,” he said.
“I don't want people to touch the O'Connell monument or to scratch the Spire - nobody wants that kind of touching to go on.
“Now, because of the plinth is quite low and it's in such a popular area of town, you know, people are taking advantage of the opportunity.
“People feel it's been touched inappropriately, then it’s a female figure, and that's causing some disquiet.”
The famous Molly Malone Statue on OCT 28, 2018 at Dublin, Ireland. Image: Alamy
