Leinster House
Lambstongue was honoured to be selected by the OPW to carry out the repair and conservation of all the historic windows in Leinster House, formerly Kildare House, 1745, and now Dáil Éireann, Ireland's parliament building.
Leinster House was built in the mid 18th century by the Earl of Kildare, James Fitzgerald. Fitzgerald hired Richard Cassels, the leading architect in Ireland, to create a Palladian country house in town with a double-height hall and a picture gallery. Castle’s design, in particular the projecting bow on the north side, is said to have inspired the design of the White House, the residence of the President of the United States. Construction started in 1745 and continued for several years.
Acting as project director for Lambstongue and working with Duggan Brothers as main contractors, Ken oversaw the conservation of 93 sash windows and 72 sets of shutter assemblies. The window conservation was complicated by the wide range of interventions over the years, with joinery dating form several different renovations. Decisions were required for appropriate repairs, including replicating missing sections of ornate hand carved staff beads. In addition to timber joinery repairs, Lambstongue developed a slim profile steel secondary glazing system for 19 windows to Kildare Street and the Seanad.
