News
President Macron Visits Sweny’s
26th August 2021
Today we welcomed President Macron of France to Sweny’s, along with our Taoiseach Micheál Martin and the Lord Mayor of Dublin Alison Gilliland. What a day! Unfortunately PJ was away, ironically in France, but Jack Walsh and fellow volunteer Martin Walsh did their best. Jack lived in France for 5 years in days of yore so it was incumbent on Jack to speak in that beautiful tongue to President Macron. And it all went very well. Sweny’s, as always, happy to do our bit.
“He waited by the counter, inhaling the keen reek of drugs, the dusty dry smell of sponges
and loofahs.Lot of time taken up telling your aches and pains.”
Ulysses, J. Joyce (1922)
History of Sweny’s
In 1904 the young James Joyce called to this very store. He consulted with the then pharmacist Frederick William Sweny in such detail that it is possible to recreate the prescription he describes in Chapter 5 of his famous novel Ulysses.
Sweny’s also lies within 50 yards of the location where James Joyce was stood up by Nora Barnacle on 14th June 1904. Two days later she would give in to his pressing advances and that day, 16th June 1904, would go down in literary history as the day that forms the backdrop for Joyce’s Ulysses, arguably the greatest novel ever written.
Sweny’s has the great honour of being described in sumptuous detail within the novel. The hero, Leopold Bloom, comes into the shop, admires its bottles of potions and compounds and ponders the alchemy that the place possesses.
Built in 1847 as a GP’s consulting room and later adapted to include an apothecary and then a pharmacy, Sweny’s has altered very little since that day. It has been “preserved through neglect” in memory of James Joyce. It has had several owners since the Sweny family, but the ‘Sweny’ trading name still remains.
F.W. Sweny and Co (Limited) opened its doors as a dispensing chemist in 1853. A fortuitous location in the heart of Dublin’s south inner city, it lies within 100 yards of the birthplace of Oscar Wilde.
Our special thanks to Swenys Pharmacy Sponsers
Bernard Walsh, Managing Director of Walsh Whiskey and creator of Writers’ Tears premium Irish whiskey, said: “The role played by the volunteers who have kept Sweny’s open for the last 10 years has been immense in preserving Irish literary heritage for Dubliners and people the world over to experience. They both need and deserve our support if they are to carry on. All of us at Writers’ Tears are proud to play our part.
“I created Writers’ Tears as a homage to Ireland’s literary and creative greats and thankfully, a bit like Ulysses, it has come to be enjoyed by people in countries the world over. Writers’ Tears is a rare blend of two premium whiskeys (Single Pot Still & Single Malt). This style of whiskey was extremely popular in Joyce’s time and we designed the bottle to reflect that same Victorian era. So Sweny’s and Writers’ Tears are a good fit for each other on several levels.”
Carlow & Dublin, Ireland – 12 June, 2019: As the annual Bloomsday (16th June) celebrations in Dublin, Ireland approach, Irish whiskey entrepreneur Bernard Walsh has come to the aid of Sweny’s Pharmacy – one of the most celebrated venues featured in James Joyce’s epic novel, Ulysses. Writers’ Tears premium Irish whiskey will provide financial and other support to Sweny’s which is under threat of closure from rising rent.
In addition to contributing to the rent, Writers’ Tears will promote Sweny’s need for support in the 50 countries it is sold in worldwide and to its customers through dedicated content on online channels. Writers’ Tears has also committed to buying hundreds of bars of the famous lemony soap to help promote interest in the unique venue.
