On Monday 11 November 2013 at noon, the Lord Mayor of Dublin Oisín Quinn will formally dedicate a 300 year old olive tree situated in Cow’s Lane to the City of Barcelona.   Deputy Mayor of Barcelona Jaume Ciurana and Bill Shipsey, who donated the tree to the City of Dublin, will also be in attendance.

Lord Mayor Oisín Quinn said:- “It is a great honour for me to dedicate this olive tree to the City of Barcelona.  The Cities of Barcelona and Dublin are twin Cities since 1998, and we in Dublin are happy to mark the 300^th anniversary of the Siege of Barcelona, a very important time in the history of our sister city.  It is also dedicated to the cause of human rights which is a cause strongly promoted by Bill Shipsey through his global artist engagement programme, Art for Amnesty.”

Deputy Mayor of Barcelona Jaume Ciurana said:- “I am extremely grateful for the dedication of this three hundred year old olive tree to my city, Barcelona, and to human rights.  With this simple event we are two cities committed from today to extending the cause of freedom and Human Rights.”

The 300 year old olive tree was donated by Bill Shipsey to the City of Dublin in 2006 and it has been situated in Cow’s Lane since then.  He donated an olive tree as a symbol of human rights and as a living testament to man’s desire for freedom.

 [googleMap name=”Cow’s Lane Dublin” description=”Cow’s Lane” width=”300″ height=”300″]Cow’s Lane Dublin[/googleMap]