Millennium Clock, Dublin
53°20′50″N 6°15′35″W / 53.347171°N 6.259616°W The Millennium Clock was a six-ton installation designed by Grainne Hassett and Vincent Ducatez[1] to celebrate the passing of the millennium, sponsored by the National Lottery and featuring a digital display counting down the number of seconds to the year 2000. It was installed under the surface of the water on the west side of O'Connell Bridge in Dublin city. A postcard dispenser machine was installed on the bridge as part of the installation which printed the number of seconds to the millennium on a postcard at a cost of 20p, it sold between 600-700 postcards per day in the five months of operation generating £17,000[2].
A ceremony featuring a fireworks display and lead by the then Minister for Finance Ruairi Quinn marking the switching on of the clock was broadcast on RTE's The Late Late Show on Friday 15th March 1996[3]. It was temporarily removed three days later to facilitate boat races[4].
The clock cost £250,000 to construct, with an additional £58,000 spent on repairs, installation and removal[5]. The clock was finally removed in August for the annual Liffey swim and was not returned[6].
References
- ^ Harrison, Bernice. "Watching the clock". The Irish Times. Retrieved 2020-03-30.
- ^ Cleary, Catherine. "Clock watchers not fans of digital display". The Irish Times. Retrieved 2020-03-30.
- ^ "Millennium clock to start countdown". The Irish Times. Retrieved 2020-03-30.
- ^ Kilfeather, Frank. "Time out for the Millennium Clock". The Irish Times. Retrieved 2020-03-30.
- ^ "A lot of Lotto can make little difference". The Irish Times. Retrieved 2020-03-30.
- ^ "Lottery examines clock options". The Irish Times. Retrieved 2020-03-30.