On The Town: It was a night for treasuring rarities and raising money for charity. "I like rarity," said antiques dealer Jimmy Weldon, one of the exhibitors at the 40th Irish Antique Dealers' Association (IADA) Fair in the RDS.
"There are a great deal of Irish silversmiths that we never see examples of," he added, holding up a silver-lidded tankard, made by Thomas Lilly, of Cork, in 1725 and once owned by Hollywood legend Cary Grant. "I've only seen a spoon by Lilly before. I like the connection with people from centuries ago who made beautiful things and whose work survives."
Another gem, said Andrew Bonar Law, of the Neptune Gallery, which deals in maps and prints, was a map of Ireland made in 1573 by the Dutch cartographer, Ortelius.
Patsy Carmody, chair- woman of the ladies' fundraising committee, said the fair's opening charity preview night would help raise up to €8,000 for the Children's Medical and Research Foundation at Our Lady's Hospital for Sick Children, Crumlin. There are 45 antiques exhibitors at the five-day show, which was opened by gardener Diarmuid Gavin, accompanied by his wife, Justine Keane, and their baby daughter, Eppie.
Others at the event included Ida Delamer, of the Dublin Goldsmiths' Company, who, in 2000, was its first female master warden in 375 years; and Laurie Lumsden, an Australian psychologist working at TCD.
There are up to 80 members in IADA, according to the association's president, George Stacpoole. After the speeches, the girls from Dublin's Notre Dame Junior School sang Chattanooga Choo Choo, under the baton of Liz Foster with Ben Murray on piano.
