Love Locks Lost
I had written a little post a short while ago about Dublin's iconic Ha'penny Bridge, and the phenomenon of the love locks seemed to resonate with people. Basically, what was happening was that people were attaching little padlocks which had the names of themselves and a loved one inscribed on it, to the bridge, as a symbol of their love, and as a good luck charm. It's a tradition that started in other countries and spread to Dublin. The only problem was, that Dublin city council weren't happy about it. The bridge, after all is a protected structure and a historical monument, and the Council claimed that the locks were damaging the bridge. Last week they finally made good on their threats and removed the locks. All that remains now is a patchwork of names written amid the rust and paint of the iron structure. Some people are not happy about the Council's decision, but I have to say, that while it was a lovely symbolic practice, it is clearly damaging the bridge. Some people have argued that the tiny padlocks couldn't possibly be damaging the cast iron bridge, but remember that it is quite old, and the constant movement of the locks was wearing into the metal causing it to rust. You can clearly see the areas of the ironwork which have been rusted badly where the locks were attached. Some of it is really bad and quite deep, and I'm guessing that there will be an expensive restoration process required to address the problem. I do understand the emotional side of the argument though, so perhaps they could install some kind of special structure for people to hang the locks on without damaging the bridge, and let's face it, they're bound to re-appear. Here are some more photos of the aftermath...
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