Shandon Bells Ring Out as Major Restoration of St Anne's Church Completed

Cork's iconic St Anne's Church at Shandon has emerged from a landmark triple restoration project, with the Lord Mayor ringing the famous bells on Friday to mark the occasion.

Cllr Fergal Dennehy climbed to the top of the church tower to ring the bells just days after the building's restored 300-year-old original front doors were rehung, completing three major works carried out simultaneously: the restoration of the clock faces and mechanism, repairs to the bell support beams, and the conservation of the original entrance doors.

"Thanks to Cork City Council, generous state funding, the Select Vestry of St Anne's and a team of highly skilled and dedicated craftspeople, the renewed St Anne's is ready to face the future with confidence," the Lord Mayor said.

The centrepiece of the works is the church's famous four-faced clock, installed in 1847 by Cork Corporation and the oldest of its kind in the British Isles predating Big Ben. Long known locally as 'the four-faced liar' for historically showing slightly different times on each face, the clock has been fully restored, with its numerals repainted and gilded and the minute markers, absent since the 1960s, reinstated. The quirk lives on: the four faces show the same time only on the hour.

Cork City Council received €250,000 from the Department of Heritage, Local Government and Housing under the Historic Structures Fund, supplementing it with an additional €340,000 to fund the clock and tower works. Scaffolding installed last summer was removed last month, revealing the restored clock faces and cleaned stonework.

The Select Vestry secured €130,000 from the Community Monuments Fund for repairs to the decayed timber bell support beams, contributing almost €85,000 itself. The original front doors, which had been covered by panelling, were restored using around €36,000 from the Built Heritage Investment Fund, with the total project costing approximately €46,000.

All specialist contractors and professionals involved in the works are Cork-based.

Rev. Meghan Farr, Priest in Charge at St Anne's Shandon, said the project addressed some of the most pressing concerns facing the historic building.

"The Select Vestry and parishioners are incredibly grateful for all the work that has been done so far, for the grants we received towards the work to the doors, to the bells and support beams, and especially to Cork City Council for facilitating the work to the clock, as well as providing us a grant for the cleaning of the outside of the tower," Rev. Farr said. "We want Shandon to keep going strong for another 300 years."

Chief Executive of Cork City Council, Valerie O'Sullivan, said the restoration was a powerful reminder of the council's commitment to protecting Cork's heritage, and pointed to further regeneration ahead.

"The City Council is working to advance the restoration and regeneration of the historic Butter Market and Weighmaster's House as Shandon Exchange, a landmark enterprise and community hub, thanks to €7m in funding awarded to the City Council under THRIVE-Town Centre First Heritage Revival Scheme," she said.

The Lord Mayor also paid tribute to Bishop of Cork, Cloyne and Ross, the Right Reverend Dr Paul Colton, who retires in coming weeks after 27 years in the diocese, noting his longstanding care for the church and the role it plays in the life of the city.

"Shandon is one of Cork's most beloved landmarks," the Lord Mayor said. "It is part of the cultural and social fabric of the city, it is woven into the story of us, it is a symbol of the city, it is part of us. This restoration reminds us of the significance of Shandon to us all."

St Anne's Church dates to 1722 and is widely regarded as a symbol of Cork City, particularly its tower, clock, and the salmon weathervane known as the 'goldie fish'.