Resting place of iconic Limerick musician restored to original condition
Experts carry out restoration after unauthorised works on Catherine Hayes grave
THE final resting place in London of Limerick opera star Catherine Hayes has been restored to its former condition.
It comes after members of the Limerick Association of London last year painted the memorial at Kensal Green Cemetery green-and-white to reflect the opera superstar’s local heritage.
They also applied black emulsion to the tombstone itself.
The move sparked a huge backlash, with the General Cemetery Company, which manages the facility confirming to Limerick Live that permission had not been given to repaint the monument.
"If the appropriate paperwork had been submitted detailing their intentions, the General Cemetery Company would not have approved this work to be carried out. It is not in keeping with the cemetery, and the paint applied may have damaged the memorial stone,” they added.
Kilmallock man and Limerick Association member Shaun Connery, based in the British capital, said he bid to contact the graveyard authorities.
At the time he indicated he would like to work alongside Limerick Civic Trust and the management firm to get a new monument in place at the grave – and would raise money for this.
It appears now though, that the cemetery company moved to restore the grave themselves. A post on Instagram from LostBuildingsLimerick, which exists to document built heritage, highlighted the work, adding it was commissioned by the General Cemetery Company and carried out by a qualified expert.
"There is now little trace of last year’s intervention," they added.
The move was welcomed by David O’Brien, chief executive of Limerick Civic Trust which back in 2007, was given money to carry out its own restoration work on the memorial.
"It’s fantastic that it is back in the state the Civic Trust put it in several years ago, and the act of vandalism has been undone,” he said. Ms Hayes is honoured in Limerick, with the Opera Square development named after her.
The General Cemetery Company did not return a request for comment.