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Molly Malone Statue

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The Molly Malone Statue portrays the fictional character of an Irish folk song set in Dublin, which also became Dublin’s unofficial anthem.

The song tells the story of a 17th-century fishmonger who sold cockles and mussels on the streets of Dublin by day and worked as a prostitute by night. The song details how she suddenly died of a fever and returned as a ghost to haunt the city streets.

In Dublin’s fair city, where the girls are so pretty

I first set my eyes on sweet Molly Malone

As she wheeled her wheelbarrow through streets broad and narrow

Crying cockles and mussels alive a-live O!

A-live a-live O! A-live a-live O!

Crying cockles and mussels alive a-live O!

She was a fishmonger and sure it was no wonder

For so were her father and mother before

And they both wheeled their barrows through streets broad and narrow

Crying cockles and mussels alive a-live O!

A-live a-live O! A-live a-live O!

Crying cockles and mussels alive a-live O!

She died of a fever and no one could save her

And that was the end of sweet Molly Malone

Now her ghost wheels her barrow through streets broad and narrow

Crying cockles and mussels alive a-live O!

A-live a-live O! A-live a-live O!

Crying cockles and mussels alive a-live O!

A-live a-live O! A-live a-live O!

Crying cockles and mussels alive a-live O!

The earliest record of the song is from an English and German song collection, published in the US in 1876, but another song, from a 1790 book titled Apollo’s Medley, referred to a character named Molly Malone. There is no clear evidence if Molly Malone ever existed, though various theories suggest that the song is based on a real woman who died on June 13th, 1699.

The bronze statue of Molly Malone, called by the Dubliners The Tart with the Cart and The Trollop with The Scallop(s), was commissioned by the Jurys Hotel Group and was created by Jeanne Rynhart. It was dedicated in its original location at Grafton Street by the mayor of Dublin in 1988 as part of the city’s millennium celebrations. That same year, June 13th was declared Molly Malone Day.

On July 18th, 2014, the statue was unveiled in its current location on Suffolk Street.

The statue portrays Molly Malone with her wheelbarrow, selling her merch. She wears a traditional but revealing 17th-century dress that hints at her nighttime occupation. Some believe that rubbing her bosoms brings good luck.

Within walking distance of the statue, there are many sites to visit, including the Countess Markievicz Bust in St Stephen’s Green park, the Constance Markievicz Statue in Townsend Street, Trinity College, the Irish Whiskey Museum, and the Thomas Davis statue and memorial fountain.

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Suffolk St, Dublin 2, D02 KX03, Ireland

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Memorial & Statue

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