Crime gang threat forces Garden closure at Limerick museum
Exhibition of precious metals sees security upped at Hunt Museum
A RISE in organised crime gangs targetting precious metals has sparked the closure of the popular Hunt Museum garden, after hours, this summer.
Until September, the popular city centre museum has on display 4,000-years worth of precious silver and gold as part of its flagship exhibition for the summer.
Included in the collection are treasures from the Bronze Age to Georgian silver.
Although in the collection are discoveries made in Limerick, many of these are housed at the National Museum of Ireland in Dublin, which has loaned them back to their home city.
As a condition of putting these items on display, security has had to be increased at the Hunt Museum.
Unfortunately, Teresa Crowley, the museum’s chief executive and director says it means the Hunt garden will need to be closed after hours.
“This loan carried a number of conditions – a full redesign of the top floor of the Hunt, augmented security and the closure of the Hunt garden when the museum closes,” she acknowledged.
"The inconvenience to the public is deeply regretted but we couldn’t pass up this opportunity to show Limerick heritage here in the city rather than at the National Museum of Ireland in Kildare Street [Dublin]," Ms Crowley added.
She said museums across the State are “on high alert” because they have been targetted by organised crime for their precious metals since the market value of these sky-rocketed in the last year.
The Hunt Museum garden has been open in its current guise since 2021, although was accessible prior to this.
As part of the ‘Museum in a Garden’ project, the riverside ground welcomed sculptures, community spaces, sensory planting, giant chess, and outdoor art.
It was open around-the-clock.
But for now, a notice advises people that access to the Hunt garden is restricted to between 8am and 6pm each day. Outside these hours, the gates are locked.
The exhibition wraps up in September.
Former Limerick TD Brian Leddin has said he thinks it’s a shame the garden is not accessible after 6pm on summer nights.
"I think solutions should be found. Closing a public amenity in the city should probably be a last resort, especially in the evening-time when most people use it,” he said.
Mr Leddin thinks businesses which lie along he Three Bridges walk, which passes the Hunt Museum garden are disadvantaged as a result.
"I would say it’s probably impacting the number of people doing the Three Bridges walk. For people working in the day, and going for their walk at night, the Three Bridges walk has become incredibly popular and positive for a whole host of reasons. This is undermining that now. I feel the Hunt needs to try harder to keep the garden open,” he told Limerick Live.