The Thompson Dock and Gate

In 1740 an artist named Susanna Drury made two gouache drawings of The Giant's Causeway - one viewed from the east and one from the west. Virtually nothing is known about Drury, but she did exceptionally well at capturing the appearance of the basalt formations. Engravings were made from her drawings in 1743/44 and were widely circulated throughout Europe. In 1765, volume 12 of the great French Encyclopédie was published, containing an article on the "Pave des geans," or Giants’ Causeway.

A view of the beautiful Binevenagh, the western extent of the Antrim Plateau formed around 60 million years ago by molten lava. The plateau and steep cliffs extend for over 6 miles across the peninsula of Magilligan and dominating the skyline over the villages of Bellarena, Downhill, Castlerock and Benone beach.

A view of the impressive Mussenden Temple, which sits at the very edge of the clifftop overlooking the Atlantic.

This old picture shows the kitchen of Dunluce Castle collapsing into the sea during a storm. The part of the cliff-face that the kitchen was built on crumbled away, taking the kitchen and several of the staff into the waters below.

A painting of Dunluce Castle by the artist Augustus Earle (c. 1793 – c. 1838). I love how the goats are grazing freely on the hillside and the ships are passing more frequently than they do in the present day!

The full title of the piece may actually be "Dunluce Castle, county of Antrim, Ireland, near the Giant's Causeway".

The following article about Dunluce Castle was kindly shared by a Northern Ireland Guide reader. If you have any old stories, folklore or otherwise, feel free to share them here.

The gaunt ruins of Dunluce stand in splendid isolation upon a rock rising sheer out of the Atlantic and the Castle has been praised and described by Sir Walter Scott in one of his novels, but under another name. Details as to the actual building of the Castle are lost in the mists of antiquity, but it was in the hands of the English in the fifteenth century, and in 1580 it had passed to the McQuillans. After a chequered career the Castle finally became the property of the McDonnells. Lord Antrim resided here until the rebellion of 1641, but a short while later one of the rooms fell bodily into the sea, carrying nine persons with it and the Castle was abandoned. It has remained a ruin ever since.

All that remains of Dunseverick Castle is a small and unimpressive wall on top of a precipice that faces the ocean. You would never guess that a distinguished castle once stood on that spot and that the area was popular enough to attract a number of visits from Saint Patrick himself.

As a matter of fact, the wall that remains is the only part of the castle not destroyed by General Munro during the Irish rebellion of 1641. According to one source, the thick wall was the only part of the castle Munro's troops weren't able to demolish. I guess they weren't thinking of future tourism potential...

The ruins of Dunluce Castle have sat on the edge of the North Antrim cliffs for centuries, providing one of the iconic images of Northern Ireland. In fact, Dunluce Castle is one of the essential stops in any proper tour of the North Coast, alongside the Giant's Causeway and Carrick A Rede rope bridge.

It's widely believed that even before a castle existed on this site that it was some kind of pre-Christian fort.

Belfast Castle is one of the city's hidden gems. Situated off the Antrim Road, it may not be the most central of Belfast attractions, but it's well worth the visit.

Not only can you have a leisurely dander around the castle gardens, but there are plenty of walks in the nearby Cave Hill Country Park, including an adventure playground for the children.

The castle itself is an elegant sandstone construction, built in the Scottish Baronial style by the architects Lanyon, Lynn and Lanyon - the principal work was done by the junior partner in that firm, John Lanyon (son of Charles Lanyon). The many turrets and the elaborate stone staircase at the rear of the building make it worth the visit.