I’ve been wandering the steets of Dublin quite a bit in the last few days, and on Thursday found myself in the Castle itself. Looking up at the gates of the inner courtyard, I was reminded about a short but interesting titbit of local history. Atop the gates sits a statue of Iustitia, or Lady Justice to you and me.
Now the interesting thing about this statue, erected by British Authorities in 1751, is that it betrays many of the characteristics statues of this type are supposed to adhere to. Iustitia, in representing Justice, is supposed to be blindfolded- Blind to discrimination. Here, her eyes are unbound. Her scales, are always to be in working order and perfectly level; Innocent until proven guilty- Here, they always tilt in one way; Funnily enough, they lean to the side of the gate that Revenue, and Dublin’s Tax Office is situated. Her sword, meant to be pointing downwards is held provocatively upright and she looks at it with a smile on her face.
What really got to people when she was erected however, is the direction she is faced; You will find statues of lady justice in Government buildings all over the world, and you will find her looking out over the city. Only in Dublin, does she face into the courtyard, turning her back on the people of Dublin. Just a thought; How could the tribunals held regularly in the Castle ever come out with a fair and honest representation of Justice when Lady Justice herself presides over them with her back to the people and a smile on her face?
Reblogged this on The Wanton Witch and commented:
Some thoughts on Lady Justice as she stands in Dublin city.
““The Statue of Justice, mark well her station, her face to the castle and her arse to the nation!””
She has a similar pose on the Old Bailey in London- Sword skyward and no blindfold.
[…] The photograph is of the statue of Justice at Dublin Castle. […]
[…] Another thing I’d like to mention that I found interesting about my Dublin Castle visit. was that in front there is a statue of ‘Lady Justice’. Very impressive with her sword and scales. But the strange things which were pointed out to us on the tour include the facts that she is looking the wrong direction – away from the city, has an odd smile on her face, and is not blind-folded indicating that she is not blind to discrimination! Given Ireland’s stormy history of oppression by the English monarchy and other complicated political messes I suppose this shouldn’t be surprising. https://comeheretome.com/2010/01/10/and-justice-for-all/ […]