James Joyce Tower and Museum, Literary museum in Sandycove, Ireland
The James Joyce Tower and Museum is a cylindrical Martello tower of light grey stone blocks in Sandycove, with a projecting stone band near its flat top and a glass-walled entrance extension signed "JAMES JOYCE TOWER AND MUSEUM". Inside, the living space is arranged as it was in September 1904, when Joyce stayed six nights, and the museum holds his possessions and Ulysses ephemera such as a "Plumtree's Potted Meat" pot.
The tower was leased from the War Office by Joyce's university friend Oliver St. John Gogarty, who wanted to "Hellenise" Ireland. Joyce stayed six nights, from 9 to 14 September 1904, and left abruptly after a roommate brandished a loaded revolver, startled by a nightmare. Gogarty became "Stately, plump Buck Mulligan" in Ulysses. Architect Michael Scott bought the tower in 1954 and donated it in 1962; it opened as a museum on 16 June 1962 through the efforts of artist John Ryan.
The tower appears in the opening chapter of Ulysses, where the character Buck Mulligan performs his morning rituals on the roof. This literary reference has made the location important for readers of Irish literature.
The museum is small and can be explored in about an hour, making it a good addition to other activities in the area. The ground floor is easy to access, but upper levels require climbing a narrow spiral staircase.
In the living space, arranged to look as it did in 1904, stands a ceramic panther. It recalls a beast that the character Haines sees in a nightmare in the opening chapter of Ulysses. The small figure is easy to walk past, yet it ties the room's everyday furnishings to the novel's text.
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