The National Museum of Ireland – Decorative Arts and History () is a branch of the National Museum of Ireland (NMI) located at the former Collins Barracks in the Arbour Hill area of Dublin, Ireland. This museum holds historical and contemporary collections relating to military history and decorative arts, with core collections relating to historical Irish events such as the Easter Rising. History 1877–1922 The Decorative Arts & History Department of the NMI, formerly called the Art and Industrial Division of the Dublin Museum of Science and Art, was founded in 1877, alongside the Natural History Division, and the Antiquities Division. Early objects for this division were purchased in 1878 and 1879, when 121 Indian and Persian objects, including enamels, ceramics, and textiles were added to the collections which came from the Royal Dublin Society and the Museum of Irish Industry. Material was also loaned from what was then the South Kensington Museum (now the V&A) in London. When the new museum building on Kildare Street was opened, art and industry were featured in the displays, in a similar manner to the South Kensington Museum. The art and industry collections were deemed essential teaching material for the instruction of art students, as well as those working in industry, to learn from the best international example. By 1889, the Art and Industrial Division had accessioned 10,372 objects that were stored at the museum's main building on Kildare Street. In this early phase of the museum, the industrial collections were given prominence both for display in Kildare Street, and in collections acquisition. Large sections of the ground floor at Kildare Street were given over to displays of antiquities deemed useful for Irish industry. In the early 20th century, the art and industry collection was primarily used for teaching and instruction on a range of arts and crafts disciplines. Material was often loaned to the Dublin Metropolitan School of Art, and some of the collection was sent around the country to schools and other institutions in loan boxes, being known as the Circulation Collection. This collection was highly successful, but was put on hiatus during World War I; it was never reinstated after the war. The museum mounted an exhibition called Applications of Art and Industry, which displayed locally commissioned enamel work, lace, and tapestries. Exhibition materials of silver and furniture were loaned out, and lectures given to people employed in these industries.