Crawford Art Gallery
Strategically located across from Cork Opera House, the Crawford Art Gallery is home to more than 2000 works of art with a focus on the Irish arts of the 19th & 20th century. As the City Art Museum of Cork, the Crawford Gallery is a great place to see the how the arts play such a major role in life Cork. The more than 200,000 visitors per year may be surprised to learn that at the heart of the exhibit is a collection of Greek and Roman sculpture casts, brought to Cork in 1818 from the Vatican Museum in Rome. With free entrance and such a central location in the city, there is no excuse not to visit.
http://www.crawfordartgallery.com/
Cork Race Track
Cork Racecourse is located in the heart of Munster and steeped in the traditions of racing in Ireland. The first Steeplechase ever was run locally between Buttevant and Doneraile over 250 years ago. Chasing from steeple to steeple or point-to-point began in 1752 when Mr. Blake challenged his neighbour Mr. O'Callaghan, to race across country from Buttevant church to Doneraile church some four and a half miles distance and so jump stone walls, ditches and hedges as these presented themselves. By keeping the steeple of the church in sight (steeple chasing) both riders could see their finishing point. A racecourse was established in 1924 in Mallow, partly to compensate for the closure of Cork Park Racecourse. A massive upgrade saw the present facilities come into being after 1996. Both Jump and Flat racing is now on offer at Cork Racecourse Mallow. The most prestigious races currently are our two Murphys Hurdles sponsored by the local Heineken Brewery, The Cork Grand National, The Hillyway Chase and The Cork Stayers Novice Hurdle. At early summer fixtures The Kerry Group Ballyogan Stakes, The Blue Wind Stakes and The Platinum Stakes present the best of Flat racing. Famous winners at Cork include, Aintree Grand National Winner Monty’s Pass, Melbourne Cup Winner Media Puzzle as well as National Hunt favourites Timbera, Be My Royal and Kicking King.