—> Opening of the exhibition on the inventor of the Radio at the LexIcon Library in Dún Laoghaire on Tuesday 15 April 2025, 6 pm – Free admission
On the occasion of the 150th anniversary of the birth of the Italian scientist (with Irish roots) Guglielmo Marconi, the Embassy of Italy in Ireland, the Istituto Italiano di Cultura and Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council will celebrate the Italian genius by recalling some of his extraordinary inventions in an exhibition hosted at the LexIcon Library and Cultural Centre in Dún Laoghaire from the 14th of April until the 8th of June 2025.
The exhibition, curated by the Ministry of Enterprise and Made in Italy of Rome, will display 12 memorabilia objects that tell the story of Guglielmo Marconi’s scientific experience between research and experiments on electromagnetism: transmitting and receiving devices, telegraphs and radios, historical photographs and videos from the Istituto Luce and the Museo Storico della Comunicazione in Rome, reproductions of philatelic issues courtesy of Poste Italiane, images from the Italian Navy and from RAI TV broadcaster.
The Ambassador of Italy, H.E. Mr. Nicola Faganello emphasizes the importance of the ties that unite Italy and Ireland through the figure of Guglielmo Marconi: “He was a brilliant scientist of the 20th century and a great friend of the country that hosts us, both because he was Irish on his mother’s side (of the Jameson family), and because he carried out important and pioneering experiments in intercontinental radiobroadcasting on this island”. Marconi, who spoke perfect English, was also the founder, among others, of the BBC in England.
Dún Laoghaire itself is a very important place in the history of Marconi’s scientific discoveries. On the 20th of July 1898 he succeeded in transmitting reports of the Kingstown Sailing Regatta by wireless to a building on the mainland for newspaper publication. This building is still there, directly opposite the DLR LexIcon Library and it houses a plaque, commemorating that event, which was unveiled on the 20th of July 1998 to mark the centenary of that historic event.
The exhibition will be open from 14 April to 8 June 2025, Monday to Sunday during the hours of the LexIcon Library and Cultural Centre – Dún Laoghaire (Mon-Thu 9.30-20, Fri-Sat 9.30-17, Sun 12-16).
Free admission
