Team Heritage visit the House of Read, Dublin's oldest shop

It was an exciting day for the Heritage Centre on Friday 12 December, as the team took a little field trip to Dublin’s oldest shop. You may be wondering what Ireland’s medical history has to do with this old building, found at No 4 Parliament St. Well, its medical link goes all the way back to 1821, when Thomas Read & Co (at the time the finest knife and sword cutlers in the city), was granted a royal warrant to supply not only cutlery, but surgical instruments to doctors.

The Read history itself dates back to 1712, when James Read arrived in Dublin from his tenant farming family in Kildare, as an apprentice cutler. Taking over the business in the 1720s, the shop was originally based in Crane Lane but moved to Parliament Street shortly after the street’s creation in the 1760s. It suffered a bit of damage during Ireland’s revolutionary period in the 1920s, but was miraculously and exquisitely conserved and restored in 2017, thanks to a man by the name of Mr Clem Kenny.

Facade of the five-storey House of Read, 4 Parliament Street, Dublin

Clem got in contact with the Heritage Centre back in 2019, having discovered interesting items in the basement of the shop during the refurbishment. These items were given to us on loan for three years, but as of 2024 have now been permanently accessioned into our collection – aptly titled “Read’s Collection”. The assortment of objects, mainly unsold stock is currently being catalogued. As of today, 258 items of the collection have been catalogued. You can see a few select images of some of the items below, which I think best showcases the refined and striking craftsmanship.

Liston Knife, RCPI, READ/157

Tenaculum, RCPI, READ/168

Churchill's Craniotomy Forceps, RCPI, READ/169

You can imagine the excitement when Clem invited the team to visit the building where all the magic happened (and indulge in some tea and cake). It is one thing to handle and organise such amazing objects but it is another thing entirely to walk through the doors of where they, and thousands others were made over the centuries. The façade itself is something to behold, but it is nothing without the subtle touches. Patrons are welcomed with a metal elephant and castle on the door. The motif can be seen scattered throughout the building. Clem explained that the original symbol of the cutler was the elephant and the castle represents one of the three burning castles that appear in the Dublin City Coat of Arms. Small touches like this really shine through the building and it is clear to see that Clem really thought of everything during the restoration process.

Metal fixture of the symbol of the cutler (elephant) and Dublin City (castle)

A café sits on the ground floor entrance but that does not take away from the history one bit. Authentic antique display cabinets line the walls, with examples of some of Reads products showcased within – from the medical to the household. We were told that when restoration was taking place, each floorboard was individually numbered. Despite the floorboards being wonky (Clem’s words), he insisted they be put down exactly how they were found once structural work had been done to the rest of the building.

One of the display cabinets showcases some of the original historic instruments made by Reads

Other authentic cabinet displaying some of the cafe products

We explored all five floors (20 rooms) of the building, including the original workshop which Clem still uses. He pointed to the corner, now covered with tools and explained it was in this corner that all the unsold Read’s equipment had been found before coming to RCPI. The original worktop, clearly worn and well-used was front and centre, very much still loved. The door to the room was handmade by Clem, is fireproof and made to look like a vault. Even the handles were authentic for the time. It is things like this that won Clem the international Diaphoros Prize, by the Georgian Group in 2017.

The corner of the workshop where all the material now in RCPI was originally found

Authentic square door handle on the workshop door, handmade by Clem

Tea and cake was had in the Red Room, where Clem took us on a journey through more of the history, contextualising the objects from their original home. We took the opportunity to take a staff photo to commemorate the occasion.

We wish to thank Clem so much for his invitation, time and knowledge. We truly learned a lot from the experience, with a whole new sense of appreciation for the objects now housed at the Royal College of Physicians of Ireland. The cataloguing of the objects is an ongoing process, but you can already see some of the objects and their photographs on our online catalogue here.
The visit marked a special moment in the collaboration between Dublin’s oldest shop and Ireland’s oldest postgraduate medical training college.

Written by Chiará Morgan
Assistant Keeper of Collections