Mussenden Temple

The Mussenden Temple is a small circular building on top of the cliff high above the Atlantic coast near Castlerock in County Londonderry ( Northern Ireland).

It was built in 1785 after the model of the Temple of Vesta and was the property of Frederick Augustus Hervey, 4th Earl of Bristol and Anglican Bishop of Derry. The building served as a library and is dedicated to the memory of Hervey's cousin Frideswide Mussenden.

Over the years, the erosion of the cliffs has led to the Mussenden Temple now stands directly next to the rim. Therefore, the National Trust has carried out work in 1997 to stabilize the cliffs, to prevent loss of the building.

The inscription on the building reads: " Suave mari magno turbantibus Aequora ventis / e terra alterius magnum spectare laborem. " ( Lucretius, German: "It is pleasant to the high seas and the sea to look at disturbing winds / from land the great effort of another. " )

Today, the Mussenden Temple belongs together with Downhill House and the surrounding grounds as Downhill Estate & Mussenden Temple to the National Trust. Since 2007 the building you can rent for weddings.