Dublin Bay

Dublin Bay opens onto the Irish Sea between the headlands of Howth and Dalkey. The River Liffey reaches the bay at Dublin, but shallow water and shifting sandbanks long made the approach difficult for large ships. Cargo often had to be transferred to smaller boats at Ringsend. In the eighteenth century work began on a wall to protect the harbour channel from sand, extending toward Poolbeg. A lighthouse at its end was first lit in 1767, guiding vessels toward the entrance to Ireland's principal city.