The entire structure stands at tall and is mainly granite in composition with its carvings being of portland stone. Lanyon had originally intended the campanile to be linked to the buildings on either side by an “arcaded screen”, however this was never realised.
Base
The base has paired rusticatedDoric pilasters with portlandentablature blocks. Between each pillar of the base are four round-headed arches, and each archway has a keystone. These keystones each have detailed carved heads, which depict Homer, Socrates, Plato and Demosthenes - representing the liberal arts. Before the belfry, is a stepped circular base made of granite. At the corners of the campanile, seated and supported by this circular base are the Higher Faculties represented in four deceptive figures of Divinity, Science, Medicine and Law sculpted from portland stone by Irish sculptor Thomas Kirk.
Belfry
The belfry is a cylindrical chamber encircled by Corinthian columns, between which are tall, round-head traceried windows with cast iron grills. The base of the belfry also has four carved coats of arms at each side, almost directly above the carved keystone faces below. Each coat of arms faces out onto a prominent location in the college, and symbolize strong connections it had with external forces. These four coats of arms are those of:
Trinity College Dublin, though a 19th-century variant, with the Lion Passant Guardian rather than simply Passant and the Castle towers are Flamant rather than domed. This is slightly different from the original of the college, and can also be seen on the Museum Building. It faces onto Library Square.
Over the belfry are two domes which are covered in decorative scale-patterns. The first is the larger of the two and has carved scrollworkribs that continue vertically from the columns of the belfry. The smaller dome sits directly above the larger, commonly referred to as a lantern rather than a dome. The entire campanile is then topped by a gildedcross.
Superstition
The college tradition and superstition holds that any student who passes beneath the campanile will fail their exams, causing some to never pass under it until they finish their time at Trinity College.. There is another student legend that the bell will ring automatically when a virgin stands underneath it. This was the subject of a cartoon in Trinity News c. 1966, by Nick Robinson, which showed a forlorn student couple standing under the Campanile while the bell remained silent. The boy says to the girl "Maybe if you jump up and down a little".
