the spire

The Spire in Dublin points skyward over the historic Irish capital like an enormous needle. It was built at a cost of four million euro and is the focal point of a project aimed at rejuvenating the O'Connell Street district, Dublin's traditional shopping and cultural hub.
Officially titled The Spire, though another consideration was The Brian Boru Spire, the monument has gained plenty of more colourful names by locals. Some of the cleaner examples include ‘The Spike’, ‘The Spire in the Mire’, ‘The Stiletto in the Ghetto’, ‘The Eyeful Tower’, ‘The Nail in the Pale’, and ‘The Pin in the Bin’. The name in Irish is 'An Tur Solais' which translates as The Spire of Light in English
The monument was designed by Ian Ritchie Architects of London, which won a competition to replace Nelson's Pillar, which was a 19th century memorial to the British Admiral, but was destroyed in 1966 by the IRA.
There were 130 tonnes of hot roll stainless steel to create the Spire. The Spire tapers from a 3-metre diameter at the base just 15 centimetres in diameter at the tip that houses a powerful light.