Spire beats Boru for title - Bill Corcoran, Evening Herald 4/3/2003
'Dublin City Councillors have agreed that the official name of the capital's latest monument will be "The Spire", pipping Brian Boru in the title race.
The name was recommended to councillors by a special advisory group which was set up to present a short list of names for the monument.
The group was set up after councillors were inundated with calls from the public with different names for the structure.
The three-person team said their recommendation was based on the objectives and aspirations of the international competition which produced the deisgn, the historic context of the monument and the established international practise for the naming of works of art.
A total of six names were shortlised by the special advisory group. They were: The Brian Boru Spire, An Lar, The Spire, An Claideamh Solais or The Sword of Light, Dublin Sparkle and Dublin Gleams.
However, according to council officials only two names were ever in the running - The Brian Boru Spire and The Spire.
The group passed on Brian Boru because the monument was "not commissioned to commemorate any individual or event".
"It (The Spire) is forward looking and aspirational, not retrospective and historic in intent", the report stated.
The Spire has also been given the Irish name, An Tur Solais, which translates as The Spire of Light in English

The Spire of Dublin is the brainchild of London-based firm, Ian Ritchie Architects. A breathtaking construction, this needle-like sculpture won the O'Connell Street Monument competition, organised for Dublin City Council by The Royal Institute of Architects of Ireland.
One hundred and twenty metres high and three metres in diameter at its base, The Spire is seven times the height of the nearby G.P.O and twice as high as Liberty Hall, Dublin's original "skyscraper". The monument will rise above Dublin's skyline and O'Connell Street, the city's main thoroughfare.
From its base up to about 10m the stainless steel will be polished to provide a slightly higher reflective surface than the remainder of The Spire.
15cm in diameter at the apex, the monument's tip will sway up to a maximum of 1.5m under extreme winds. To prevent it swaying more than this, a special damper weighing 2 tonnes, is situated inside the construction and held in position by hydraulic pistons.
The base of The Spire will be gently lit and the top 12 metres are illuminated to the tip providing a beacon in the night sky over the capital.
At its base, The Spire will pass into a 7m diameter circular plate of bronze, incorporating a unique spiral design machined into its surface. The bronze will be in a dark colour in contrast with the monument. This, in time, will provide reflections of The Spire into the ground.
A 140m crane (one of the largest ever assembled in Europe) was erected to assemble The Spire.
The first section of the monument was lowered into place on December 18th 2002. With high winds hampering progress, it took until January 21st 2003 for the erection to be completed amid a cheering crowd of awestruck Dubliners.
The Spire can be seen from most parts of this great city and it is likely to become a great favourite with locals and tourists alike.
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