One of the last great private Georgian houses in Dublin, the home of the late Supreme Court judge James Murnaghan, at number 25 Fitzwilliam Street Upper, is to be offered for sale in the autumn. The terraced house is expected to fetch over £1.5 million at auction in early October. The entire contents, including a collection of Old Master paintings stolen by Dublin criminal Martin Cahill (The General) in 1988 and recovered later, will be sold separately through joint auctioneers Mealys and Christies of London.
McNally Handy & Partners will handle the sale of the four-storey over basement house, which James Murnaghan bought in 1919 and lived in until his death in 1973. His wife, Alice Murnaghan, lived on in the house until her death earlier this year at the age of 103.
The 4,000 sq ft house, which has a large mews to the rear, is likely to continue as a private residence, given the number of wealthy business people looking for Georgian houses in the city centre. Two weeks ago, Lisney sold a similar property, 19 Merrion Square, the home of the late Dr John Shanley, who founded the Irish Red Cross, for a record £1.77 million. It was bought by recruitment millionaire Anne Heraty and her husband Paul Carroll.
The sale of the Murnaghans' vast collection of paintings and furniture is being viewed as the most important house contents sale in Dublin for the past decade, according to George Mealy of Mealys. It is expected to generate enormous interest from the UK and international collectors.
Mr Murnaghan was a fervent collector, who combed the Dublin auction rooms for treasures on an almost daily basis. His entire collection remained intact after his death and was curated by Alice Murnaghan. In 1994, she donated a painting by the Spanish Old Master, Murillo - The meeting of Jacob and Rachel - to the National Gallery. Mrs Murnaghan was a member of the Davy stockbroking family.
Walking through the door of the house at Fitzwilliam Street is like stepping back in time. The original limestone floor runs through the outer hall and overhead, the ceiling is ornately plastered. A wide archway leads to the inner hall where the staircase rises to the upper floors.
There is a large double drawingroom on the first floor, and two floors of bedrooms above. At hall level there are elegant interconnecting rooms while the basement has a series of storage rooms and cellars, as well as the original kitchen.
While the entire house needs refurbishment, it has retained most of its period features intact and this is bound to make it more attractive to those seeking a genuine Georgian townhouse.
Houses in and around the Georgian squares have risen steeply in value in the last five years. In 1994, for instance, two of the finest houses on Fitzwilliam Square, numbers 63 and 64, sold at auction for £360,000 and £460,000, respectively.
