The ancient doctor Galen of Pergamum (modern-day Bergama in Turkey) has left us much to ponder, not only because of his own huge literary output (about 140 of his treatises survive) but also because of his many references to other titles and his eclectic style of writing. At times he is very precise and detailed; … Read more
‘Every new generation must rewrite history in its own way’, said the philosopher of history R.G. Collingwood, thereby encapsulating the belief that all history-writing is contingent upon generational concerns and values. Collingwood’s comment might be slightly revamped to address current commemorative anxieties: every new generation must commemorate history in its own way. But is it so … Read more
The minutes of the annual meeting of the trustees of Marsh’s Library in October 1916 noted the ‘damage caused to the Library and its contents by the Sinn Féin Rebellion’. The library was directly in the line of fire between the insurgents’ position at Jacob’s biscuit factory and the barracks of the Dublin Metropolitan Police … Read more
As souvenirs, the greatest quantities of crest ware or Goss ware (after the main manufacturer, Adolphus Goss) bear the names and heraldic crests of major cities or well-known seaside resorts. The market developed with the advance of railways, and especially leisure time for workers, and the notion of holidays. Thus Irish crest ware is rarer … Read more
When Edward Carson accepted the role of Irish Unionist Parliamentary Party leader in 1910 he could not have predicted what the next decade had in store for him and his beloved Ireland. Bitter divisions and the emergence of rival paramilitary forces, open rebellion, the Great War and events that led to the creation of two … Read more