Weekly Photo Challenge – Fray in Dublin
Don’t stand on the sidelines: join in and show us a photo that says “fray” to you.
Being a non-native English speaker I have to admit that I found this week’s photo challenge quite, well, challenging!
I have heard the word “fray” before but actually had to consult the dictionary to find out its meaning. And then I was
even more confused by all the different interpretations! Here are the two ones I chose for my post:
1. to become worn away or tattered along the edges
2. an archaic word for fright
These photos show the famous famine memorial located in Custom House Quay in the Dublin Docklands. Sculpted by Rowan Gillespie they commemorate the Great Famine of the mid 19th century. During the famine approximately 1 million people died and a million more emigrated from Ireland, causing the island’s population to fall by between 20% and 25%. The cause of Famine is blamed on a potato disease commonly known as potato blight.
Standing in front of the statues gave me a real fright the first time as they are life-size and their gaunt, horrified
faces stick with you. The bronze has worn away in quite a few places as they are exposed to wind and
weather in often rainy and stormy Ireland.
A good choice for the challenge. They really are frightening statues. Imagine what it was like “back in the day” when they were real people dying of starvation. The memorial does a great job of putting you right back there, the way the statues are positioned on the walkway. Thanks for sharing!
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Thanks Tina, you’re right it must have been a horrific to die from starvation and no one, not even the UK, helped with some food. There’s another statue depicting the great famine, it’s in St. Stephens Green park but it’s not quite so frightening. I like your take on the photo as well!
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Wow, loving the pictures 😀
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Thanks sweetie! 🙂
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I worked in an office building on Townsend St just across the Liffey there. I saw those statues everyday but the impact never decreased. There’s a bog on the North side that is basically a giant burial ground for people who died on the ships just outside of Dublin
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