A little while ago, I stumbled upon the National Library of Ireland’s flickr and felt like I had just opened a dusty chest hidden inside an old relative’s attic. Their photograph collection of street life from a bygone Ireland is one of the most beautiful things I’ve ever seen. I scrolled and zoomed for hours, admiring the old shop signs and the change of fashion across the centuries. I especially enjoyed trying to recognise those places so familiar to me now when they were filled with horse carts and tramways.

There was a time where I would be trawling flea markets and bric-a-brac stalls for old forgotten pictures. There’s something about staring into the eyes of those who are no more and trying to imagine what their life were back then. This definitely brought me back to that old hobby of mine. I mean who wouldn’t pay to know what that chap with a top hat was thinking his gaze locked on Grafton Street…
I thought I would share a few of my favourite pictures found on the NLI’s flickr below, there are lots of fashion-y ones from Edwardian to Teddy Girls and some shots of iconic Dublin spots. See if you can recognise them!