Yeats: The Life and Works of William Butler Yeats

Free to visit
Rainy days

The National Library of Ireland has the largest collection of W.B. Yeats manuscripts in the world, donated by the Yeats family. Located in Dublin, the library is home to the Yeats Collection, which comprises more than 2,000 items. In the main library building you can experience the award-winning multimedia-rich exhibition of all aspects of his life, family and work.

The highly-acclaimed exhibition of Yeats' Life and Works is an interactive and multi-media experience.

At the exhibition, visitors can trace Yeats' family tree as it descends from the conventional Pollexfen and Yeats families, through his unconventional father (a lawyer turned artist) and his increasingly silent and depressed mother, to W.B. Yeats himself. It also chronicles his brother and sisters, as the Yeats became the single most significant artistic family in 20th century Ireland. Literature, folklore, personal life, politics, theatre, the occult – all of W.B. Yeats is here in this award-winning exhibition. You will gain a sense of Yeats' imagination.

The Yeats Collection of more than 2,000 items, is stored in 100 archival boxes and occupies 24 meters of shelf space.

If visiting in person is not possible, the National Library website provides a virtual tour of the exhibition.

Visit websiteOpens in a new window