‘The Murmur of Bees’, an exhibition exploring the influence of bees on our culture and environment, will open at the National Museum of Ireland – Country Life, Turlough Park, Castlebar, Co. Mayo, on February 8.
It will feature objects dating from the 18th century to the present day.
A drawing by renowned artist, Harry Clarke, of St. Gobnait, the Irish patron saint of bees, is on special loan from Corning Museum of Glass in New York.
This artwork was the template used for his stained-glass window depicting St Gobnait, in the Honan Chapel, Cork.
A collection of objects and material from the natural history collection – much of which dates to the 18th century – will be displayed.
This will include specimens of Ireland’s 100+ bee species, bee specimens from around the world, nests, honeycomb, and related material and dioramas, providing a rare and close-up view of the unseen world of bees.
A section of a 200-year-old honeycomb will be showcased. ‘Instructions for Managing Bees (1733)’, a rare edition on beekeeping in Ireland, is on loan from the Royal Irish Academy.
Straw skeps from the national folklife collection; a typical wooden beehive made in the 1950s by apiarist, John Gallagher from Co. Fermanagh. and footage of beekeepers at work in the 1960s, courtesy of RTÉ, will also feature.
The Garden Bumblebee ‘Bombus hortorum‘ painting by Shevaun Doherty on which An Post based a stamp collection on native Irish bees, will be displayed. It was also used to illustrate the All-Ireland pollinator plan.
A specially commissioned wooden bee nest, measuring 1m x 1m, will provide visitors with a unique insight into the highly organised and structured world inhabited by bees.
Attending a reception to launch the exhibition on the fascinating and wide-ranging influence of bees were: Director of National Museum of Ireland (NMI) Lynn Scarff; director of collections and access, NMI, Dr. Éimear O’Connor; curtator, entomology, NMI; Dr. Aidan O’Hanlon, curator, Irish folklore collection, NMI – Country Life, Tiernan Gaffney and special guest, Dr. Eanna Ni Lamhna.
With more and more beekeeping groups being set up around the country, this exhibition looks set to have plenty of appeal.