A commemorative plaque dedicated to renowned telescope maker Thomas Grubb was unveiled in Dublin at the end of July, in recognition of his contribution to astronomy in Ireland and world-wide.

In the 1830s, he pioneered telescope manufacturing from his base near Charlemont Bridge on Dublin’s Grand Canal.

Unveiling the plaque, John Halligan — the skills, training, innovation, research and development minister — said: “Like myself, Thomas Grubb was a Waterford native, hailing from Portlaw.

"He first began producing telescopes in Dublin in 1837 and became one of the leading telescope manufacturers in the world. His contribution to astronomy was immense, with his firm contributing to telescopes in India, Australia, South Africa and the Crimea, as well as Greenwich and Dublin.”

The National Committee for Science and Engineering Commemorative Plaques, the Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies (DIAS) (www.dias.ie) and the Construction Industry Federation (CIF) came together to unveil the plaque at the site of Mr Grubb’s first engineering works in Dublin, which is now Construction House, the headquarters of the CIF.

Tom Ray of DIAS said: “A fine example of his work can be seen in Dunsink Observatory, which is part of the Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies. Despite being 150 years old, its Victorian clock mechanism and mechanics function perfectly.

"The instruments developed by the Grubb firm were critical in proving Einstein’s Theory of Gravity and revealing the presence of Dark Matter.”