Legal

Bewley’s famous stained glass windows may be split after ruling that Johnny Ronan owns four of them

Mr Justice Denis McDonald said he understood the concern that the Bewley’s owner could remove two of the artworks

Harry Clarke’s stained glass windows in Bewley’s have been the subject of an ownership dispute between the café owners and their landlord Johnny Ronan. Picture: Fergal Phillips.

A series of six stained glass windows inside the Bewley’s café on Grafton Street may not hang together in future after a judge ruled that Johnny Ronan’s real estate group owns four of them.

The six windows, made by the renowned artist Harry Clarke and which are worth more than €1 million, have been the centre of a High Court dispute between Ronan Group Real Estate (RGRE) and Bewley’s Cafe Grafton Street Ltd.

As landlord of the building, RGRE had argued that they also own the windows, which they said formed part of the premises, whereas Bewley’s had claimed that the windows were moveable artworks.