Virginia Teehan, CEO of The Heritage Council launches Kingdom of Skills: traditional building skills demonstrations, conservation talks and children’s craft workshops at Kery’s Muckross Traditional Farms, Friday 26^th September 2025.

Last Friday 26^th September Virginia Teehan launched the Kingdom of Skills exhibition at Muckross Traditional Farms to an engaged and appreciative gathering of skilled traditional building practitioners, conservation professionals, and owners and guardians of traditionally built buildings. Virginia Teehan was welcomed to the county by Kerry County Council's Leas-Chathaoirleach, Marie Moloney and to Muckross Traditional Farms by Manger, Toddy Doyle, and thanked by Victoria McCarthy, Kerry County Council’s Heritage and Conservation Officer, and Irish Georgian Society Executive Director, Donough Cahill.

The Kingdom of Skills exhibition, which was an action of the Irish Georgian Society's Conservation Education Programme, represented the second successful traditional building skills partnership between the Society, Kerry County Council and the Trustees of Muckross House. The exhibition formed part of the Architecture Kerry festival overseen by Kerry County Council’s dynamic Architectural Conservation & Heritage Officer, Victoria McCarthy. Critical to successful delivery of the Kingdom of Skills exhibition was the partnering with the Trustees of Muckross House, who provided the most fitting of venues, Muckross Traditional Farms, where the Society was generously hosted by its manager, Toddy Doyle and his team Willie and Jeanette.

For the two-days of the Kingdom of Skills exhibition, Muckross Traditional Farms become a one-stop destination for old buildings owners in need of accurate, impartial and free advice on their care and repair.

The Society wishes to extend a huge thank you to all the craftspeople who actively demonstrated key traditional building skills needed for the conservation and maintenance of old building:

• Traditional Ironwork, blacksmith Tom Allison
• Stained glass & fanlight conservation: Glynn Palmer, Palmer Conservation
• Stone Caving, Philip Quinn and Ruairi Dennison
• Decorative Plasterwork, George O’Malley Plastering
• Lime, Paddy Byrne of the Traditional Lime Company
• Hemp & Lime, Henry Thompson, the Old Builders Company
• Brick Pointing, Brick & Faience Making, Dave and Aaron of the Nolan Group
• Pole Lathe Turning, Kevin Downing
• Traditional timber spoon carving, Lulu Keogh
• Traditional slate roofing & lead work, Lee Mangen & Larry Madden of Madden & Madden Construction & Jack O’Donnell.
• Thatching, Lukasz Smalec
• Sign Writing, Martin Chute
• Slating, Valentia Slates
• Historic Window Restoration, Gary Beirne

The exhibition was further greatly enhanced by information stands presented by the below organisations:

• Irish Georgian Society
• Kerry County Council (Conservation & Heritage Office)
• Trustees of Muckross House
• Building Limes Forum Ireland
• The Heritage Council
• National Parks & Wildlife Services
• Cottageology
• Dry Stone Wall Association Ireland

Building on the aims of the 2023 Kingdom of Skill collaboration, the 2025 traditional building skills exhibition continued to place an emphasis on generating an awareness of opportunities for training and avenues for careers in the traditional building skills sector. Most notably this was achieved by Kerry College of Further Education mounting two demonstrations showcasing the courses they offer in stone masonry and carving (tutor: Tom Little) and traditional stone wall construction (tutor: Donal Corcoran).

Additionally, the Office of Public Works’ National Monuments’ Muckross depot mounted a demonstration of stonecutting and stonemasonry at the exhibition with OPW District Inspector Maurice FitzGerald emphasising traditional skills apprenticeships opportunities.

This was further complemented by information being provided on The King’s Foundation, The Heritage Council and the Department for Communities’ Historic Environment Division (HED)’s All-Ireland Heritage Skills Programme, which now has a new co-ordinator, Tom Pollard.

Now embarking on its fifth year, the programme provides a yearlong fulltime course aimed at those with experience in craft areas (such as stonemasonry, carpentry and joinery, bricklaying, blacksmithing, plastering, thatching, roofing) wishing to develop their craft with a focus towards heritage and traditional methods. Successful applicants are provided with a generous bursary, and benefit from both practical work placements and study modules in both Ireland and the UK.

Complementary to the training and apprenticeships showcased at the Kingdom of Skills exhibition was the presence of the CIF’s Register of Heritage Contractors where their manager Gillian Ross was on hand throughout the weekend to inform those with requisite traditional building skills of the benefits of joining this accredited register.

In tandem with the demonstrations there were two full days of free hourly talks delivered by conservation experts which celebrated Kerry’s built heritage and provide advice on best practice repair, restoration or retrofitting. We wish to thank all the speakers who gave presentations on the following topics:

• The Importance of Using Lime in Historic Buildings by Tom McGimpsey, committee member of the Building Limes Forum Ireland & Grade I RIAI Conservation Architect.

• Maintaining Traditional Skills & Traditional Buildings by Tríona Byrne, Architecture Officer, The Heritage Council.

• Energy Efficiency in Traditional Buildings: Planning Implications and Grant Aid by Carl Raftery, Architectural Conservation Advisor, National Built Heritage Service, Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage.

• Killarney National Park: culture, heritage & biodiversity skillsets by Eammon Meskell, Divisional Manger, National Parks and Wildlife Service.

• Stemming the Tide: understanding the architectural conservation work of the Irish Georgian Society by Donough Cahill, Executive Director, Irish Georgian Society.

• Nature Within Walls: Reconnecting the Built Environment with the Living World by Eleanor Turner, Biodiversity Officer, Kerry County Council.

• Muckross and the Heritage Council’s Museums Standards Programme Ireland by Dr Patricia O’Hare, Research and Education Officer, Trustees of Muckross House (Killarney) CLG.

• Valentia Slate: understanding the history, characteristics and use of Valentia slate in historic buildings by Dr Aidan Forde, Director, Valentia Slate.

• Recognising Apotropaic (protective) Symbols on our Irish Architecture & Artefacts: work in progress by Dr Claudia Kinmonth, MRIA, FSA, MA(RCA) furniture & art historian.

• An Exploration of Kerry’s Designed Landscapes by Victoria McCarthy, Heritage Officer and Architectural Conservation Officer, Kerry County Council.

• Historic Windows of Kerry: their significance, history & conservation by Dr Nessa Roche, Senior Architectural Advisor, National Built Heritage Service, Department of Housing, Local Government & Heritage.

• Understanding and Minding Kerry’s Vernacular Buildings by Dr Barry O’Reilly, Architectural Conservation Advisor, NIAH, National Built Heritage Service, Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage.

• Irish Thatched Houses: Kerry’s regional styles & materials with case studies of their conservation by Karol O’Mahony, Grade II RIAI Conservation Architect.

Attendance at the talks was kindly recognised as Continuing Professional Development by the CIF, the Register of Heritage Contractors, Engineers Ireland and the Royal Institute of the Architects of Ireland.

Augmenting the two days of traditional building skills demonstrations and built heritage and conservation talks were children’s traditional craft workshop which were generously supported by Creative Ireland. Over the two days six fully attended craft workshops were delivered on stained glass (Glynn Palmer of Palmer Conservation), stone carving (Philip Quinn), brick making (Nolan Conservation Group) and willow basket weaving Diane Southerly of Saille Baskets, and Martin O’Flynn.

Augmenting the Kingdom of Skills was a series of free conservation clinics where advice for conservation-led upgrading of structures in any of the county’s urban and rural designated Architectural Conservation Areas. These conservation clinics which were delivered in the Old School House on Muckross Traditional Farms, and were organised by Kerry County Council proved very popular and were greatly appreciated by the traditionally built building owners.

In addition to wishing to thank all those who lent their expertise by demonstrating, manning information stands, delivering traditional building skills and conservation talks, clinics and craft workshops, the Society wishes to thank our partners and funders, Kerry County Council and the Trustees of Muckross House CLG, as well as acknowledged the vital support of grant aid received from The Heritage Council, the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage’s National Built Heritage Service, and Creative Ireland.

Top image: Virginia Teehan, CEO of The Heritage Council pole lathe turning with (right to left: Donough Cahill, Executive Director, the Irish Georgian Society, Victoria McCarthy, Heritage and Architectural Conservation Officer, Kerry County Council, Lulu Keogh, green wood turner, Emmeline Henderson, Assistant Director & Conservation Manager, Irish Georgian Society, and Marie Moloney, Leas-Chathaoirleach, Kerry County Council at the launch of the Kingdom of Skills 2025, Muckross Traditional Farms. Photos by Valerie O'Sullivan.

Image above and below: young Kingdom of Skills traditional craft workshop participants. Photos by Valerie O'Sullivan.

Image above: Traditional timber spoon carver Lulu Keogh with Heather Humphries. Photo by Valerie O'Sullivan.

Image above: young Kingdom of Skills traditional craft workshop participant with stone carver Philip Quinn. Photo by Valerie O'Sullivan.

Image above: National Parks & Wildlife Services stand at the Kingdom of Skills. Photo by Valerie O'Sullivan.

Image above: Stuccodore George O'Malley at his decorative plasterwork stand at the Kingdom of Skills. Photo by Valerie O'Sullivan.

Image above: Visitor to the Kingdom of Skill's OPW carpentry stand trying out their hand carved chair. Photo by Valerie O'Sullivan.

Image above: Donough Cahill, Executive Director of the Irish Georgian Society saying words of welcome at the Kingdom of Skills 2025 launch.

Image below: Dr Patricia O’Hare, Research and Education Officer, Trustees of Muckross House (Killarney) CLG delivering her talk, Muckross and the Heritage Council’s Museums Standards Programme Ireland.

Image above: Henry Thompson of the Old Builders Company, accompanied by Mindy.