The Co Cork town of Cobh celebrated its seafaring history over the weekend with the fourth annual Maritime Song Festival.
The festival included headline performances by Sharon Shannon, Declan O'Rourke and male vocal quintet Banana Boat, from Poland.
Things got under way on Friday night with gigs by English singers Johnny Collins and Jimmy Mageean. Musical and literary workshops took place on Saturday and an exhibition on the works of Joseph Conrad was staged in the Sirius Arts Centre throughout the weekend.
Twixt Land and Sea was curated by the Adam Mickiewicz Museum of Literature in Warsaw to commemorate the 150th anniversary of the birth of Konrad Korzeniowski (Joseph Conrad).
The Cobh Maritime Song Festival was the brainchild of Sirius Arts Centre's former arts administrator, Ted Creedon. Launched in June 2000, it was born out of discussions between Ted Creedon and Cork singer/songwriter, Jimmy Crowley.
Organised as a low-key three-day event, the first edition featured the late Cyril Tawney, Liam Clancy, Mick Moloney, Jimmy Crowley, The Canniffe Family, Marie O'Reilly and Cobh band, Kalamazoo.
The day of the working tall ship may be history, but the Cobh festival continues to celebrate the traditional art of shanty and maritime music, while recognising international contributions that have facilitated the transformation of these original work songs into an exciting performance genre.
Meanwhile, cruise ship Navigator of the Seas visited Cobh on Sunday on a short-break cruise from Southampton. It sailed past the town at lunchtime before turning in the channel near Haulbowline and berthing at the Cobh Cruise Liner Terminal. It stayed in port overnight and was due to depart yesterday morning.
The Navigator is the largest liner to have berthed in Cork. At 1,020 feet it is only 57 feet longer than the QE2 but at 138,000 tonnes it is twice as big.
As well as the Maritime Song Festival, the South of Ireland Pipe Band Championships and two open air markets were also being held in Cobh.
Similar bank holiday festivals were held around Co Cork. Revellers flocked to a free music festival in Bandon which featured acts such as Mary Black, Duke Special and Director.
As well as outdoor concerts, a music trail took place throughout the weekend in pubs in Bandon.