This is the entrance to the former House of Commons, one of two chambers of the Irish Parliament House. Above the coat of arms in the pediment featuring a lion and unicorn are three statues created by Edward Smyth. They are Hibernia (Ireland’s Latin name), Fidelity and Commerce. In 1800, the Parliament was stripped of power by the Act of Union when Ireland was absorbed by the United Kingdom. In 1803, the elegant, neoclassical buildings by architects Edward Lovett Pearce and James Gandon were purchased by the Bank of Ireland. The commercial bank was established in 1783, making it Ireland’s oldest. After the bank moved its headquarters in the 1970s, this location in the College Green plaza became their flagship branch.
