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1916 Rising Leaders: An Extremely Rare Collection

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1916 Rising Leaders: An Extremely Rare Collection of Memorial Posters.. A fine and important collection of fifteen photographic posters issued in memory of the 1916 leaders, each bearing a portrait, as follows: The O'Rahilly, Shot in Action, G.P.O. Area, 28th April, 1916. Photo by Lafayette. William J. Pearse, Executed May 4th, 1916. Photograph by Keogh Bros. Sean MacDiarmada, Executed at Kilmainham, May 12th, 1916. Photo by Keogh Bros. Michael Mallin, Executed May 8th, 1916. [Reproduction of a portrait drawing] J.J. Heuston, Executed, May 8th, 1916. Photo by Keogh Bros. James Connolly, Executed, May 12th, 1916. Photo by Lafayette. Mícheál Ó hAnnracháin. Executed, May 4th, 1916. Photo by Keogh Bros. Major John MacBride, Executed, May 5th, 1916. [No photo credit]. Thomas MacDonagh, Executed, May 3rd, 1916. [No photo credit]. Thomas J. Clarke, Executed, May 3rd, 1916. [No photo credit]. Countess Markievicz, Sentenced to Death; Commuted to Penal Servitude for Life. Photo by Keogh Bros. Edward Daly, Executed, May 4th, 1916. Photo by Keogh Bros. Con Colbert, Executed May 8th, 1916. [No photo credit]. Eamonn Ceannt. Executed, May 8th, 1916. Photo by Keogh Bros. P.H. Pearse, Executed at Kilmainham, May 3rd, 1916. Photo by Lafayette. The posters are uniformly 56 x 38 cm (22 x 15 ins), on coated paper, printed one side only. The portraits are approx. 35 x 25 cm (14 x 11 ins), within black borders, some rectangular, others in an oval. All are printed and published by O'Loughlin, Murphy & Boland, Ltd., Dublin (i.e. the firm of Colm Ó Lochlainn, an active Volunteer, a renowned typographer and printer, later Three Candles Press proprietor). There is no other text. The posters are undated, but probably were issued in summer or autumn of 1916, when the initial public hostility towards the insurgents was gradually changing to sympathy and support. The Ceannt poster is slightly soiled and scuffed towards foot, not affecting the image; the remainder are in fine condition, protected in plastic sleeves within a portfolio case. These posters are exceedingly rare, and the collection may be unique. No set, and to the best of our knowledge no individual example, has appeared at auction in recent years, and we are not aware of any set in a public collection. Evidently they were produced with a view to flyposting. They would have been vigorously suppressed, and as the paper is relatively light, they could not be expected to survive for long in any case.

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