Heritage and culture free online

Points of heritage and cultural interest, along with biking and hiking trails in County Clare, feature in a new online resource, which provides free web access to details on the built, cultural and natural heritage around Ireland and offshore.

HeritageMaps.ie has been developed by the Heritage Council working over the past 18 months with National Biodiversity Data Centre, the Discovery Programme, Compass Informatics and local authorities, including Clare County Council.

Featuring over 150,000 mapped points of interest and 600 datasets displayed in map form, the viewer allows users to create customised maps and explore a vast range of Ireland’s heritage including pilgrim paths, burial grounds, museums, archaeological sites, maritime collections and walled towns, all from their phone, tablet or desktop.

Minister for Arts, Heritage, Regional, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs, Heather Humphreys, commented, “Heritagemaps.ie should appeal to a wide audience and will be of use to people of all ages, from heritage enthusiasts, to school children and professional planners. It’s great to see a variety of agencies working together with the Heritage Council to produce this very useful online tool which will make accessing heritage information easier than ever before.”

Congella McGuire, Heritage Officer, Clare County Council,remarked, “This valuable new resource showcases Clare’s natural, built and cultural heritage to the broader public. By doing so, it presents a tremendous opportunity to engage more people in its protection and its promotion.”