Palace Stables Heritage Centre

Palace Stables Heritage Centre is a restored Georgian stable block and it’s located beside the Primates Palace, formerly the home of the Archbishop of the Church of Ireland. I visited the Palace and Heritage Centre recently for the Armagh Craft Fair. It was an amazing day out. Craft traders had stalls within the Palace, Heritage Centre and the Palace Demesne grounds. Everything you could want was for sale — ceramics, sculpture, artworks, jewellery, designer felt and clothes — perfect for unique gifts. An art exhibition by local artist JB Vallely was displayed over 3 floors in the Palace. Primates Palace itself is an impressive building of white, bright, elegant, spacious rooms. The grounds are a breathtaking delight. There is also a small Primates Chapel with beautiful stained glass windows. It was very busy and my only disappointment being that we didn’t arrive early enough to ensure a full and proper look at all crafts on display. Also, I would have loved to have sat for an hour or so in Palace Stables square outside the Moody Boar restaurant, soaking up the sun, listening to the live music and sipping an Armagh cider. Unfortunately we couldn’t get a seat. However it’s a fabulously beautiful place to visit and I’m already planning a return trip…