Fancy kitting out your home with some hotel-quality pieces? The contents of five of Ireland’s top hotels are going up for auction

One benefit of staying in a hotel is getting a chance to enjoy the beautiful decor. If you’ve ever wanted to inject some of that hotel style into your home, now is your chance.

Five of Ireland’s iconic hotels are auctioning off pieces in an online auction today (January 17) and tomorrow. 

The sale is the result of the pandemic, with many hotels taking the opportunity of their doors being closed to carry out refurbishments, with lots of their pieces being put into storage. 

The result of that clearout is a mammoth treasure trove of furniture, artwork and collectibles from Dublin’s Four Seasons (now Intercontinental) and Westin Hotels, as well as memorabilia from Buck Whaley’s nightclub and Larry Murphy’s pub.

Also going under the hammer are contents of the prestigious Glenlo Abbey in Galway, Powerscourt Resort and Spa in Wicklow (formerly Ritz Carlton) and the four-star Trinity City Hotel in the capital. All five hotels are part of the MHL Collection.

A joint auction organised by Kieran Murray and Niall Mullen Auctioneers, the ‘Five Star Interiors Sale’, handled by Aiden Foley, will run online.

“All of these hotels and bars were refurbished during Covid, when their doors were shut and the contents moved to storage,” said Mullen. “It’s a no-reserve so everything must go. Already, it promises to be one of the most interesting auctions of the year.”

Much of what is on offer includes chests of drawers, wardrobes, gilded chairs and upholstered furniture, much of it American made.

A desk from Harrods department store, complete with 40 drawers and made by Theodore Alexander, guides at €2,000-€4,000 and comes with matching side and coffee tables. 

Side cabinets, lamps and lockers from the former Four Seasons Hotel in Ballsbridge also feature, as well as a collection of four decorative gold and brown chairs, and a wrought-iron and brass table (€200-€400).

Another hotel, the Trinity City on Pearse Street, provides a set of decorative, alabaster and bronze pillars (€400-€600), standing at 52 inches.

A collection of six bronze lanterns which came from the same hotel guide at €300-€500 each, while a decorative, gilt settee from Glenlo Abbey guides at €800.

The catalogue for the Five Star Interiors Sale, running online on January 17 and 18, is available at irishcountryhome.com.