Meet Molly Malone, the mysterious Irish woman immortalized in the song of the same name and the bronze statue. Modern researchers still can not understand whether she was a real woman or a fictional collective image. They also wonder about the appearance of the song, which became the unofficial anthem of Dublin and made Molly Malone famous all over the world. But no one has any doubt that the monument to the woman, installed in the heart of the Irish capital at the intersection of Grafton and Suffolk streets, is one of the key attractions of Dublin and citizens' favorite meeting place.

If you look at the traditional lyrics of the song "Molly Malone", also known as "Cockles and Mussels", it turns out that the heroine of popular urban legends was a young and beautiful fishwife selling from a cart on the streets of Dublin. It is believed that she died from a fever in the prime of her life. Many locals think that Molly Malone sold not only seafood but also her body, and the students of the nearby Trinity College were her main clients.

Although the beloved Irish song is set in the capital, it was first published in the United States in 1883 by Scottish folk musician and composer James Yorkston. However, some scholars argue that this song is based on an old Irish ballad.

In 2010, another version of the song about Molly Malone was discovered in an 18th-century songbook printed in England in 1790. According to its text, the author longed to spend the night with this woman, who lived in a fishing village in northern Dublin.

Despite everyone's love, the fate of Molly Malone remains unknown. A record of a woman with a similar name who lived in the 17th century was found in the archives at the end of the last century. The day of her death, July 13, 1699, was declared Molly Malone Day. On July 13, 1988, a bronze monument in her honor by the Irish sculptor Jeanne Rynhart was installed in Dublin.