30 May 2017 - RARE BOOKS, LITERATURE & SPORTING COLLECTIBLES

#0297

Lot 507/0297

SOLD Hammer price €100

Killarney Estate: A hand-coloured Map, “Plan of The Earl of Kenmare’s Killarney Estate, Southern Ireland,” London c. 1880, approx. 28cms x 18cms (11″ x 7″), hogarth frame. (1)

Lot 508/0297

SOLD Hammer price €700

[Irish Map] Ortelius (Abraham) Hibernia Eryn Hiberniae Britannicae Insula Nova descriptio – Irlandt, hd. cold. engd. map, [issued in Ortelius Theatrum Ordis Terrarum] * dated 1572, approx. 44cms x 55cms (17″ x 21 1/2″) overall, contemp. hd. colouring, unframed. Clean Copy. (1) * Ireland first appeared in Ortelius Theatrum in 1573 as an additamentum.

Lot 509/0297

SOLD Hammer price €600

Maps: [Speed (John)] Ireland, “Maps of the Four Provinces, to include Leinster, Ulster, Munster & Connaught,” c. 1610, English text verso, hand coloured in outline, each approx. 40cms x 53cms (16″ x 21″) framed. (4) Provenance : The Aske, Shankill, Co. Dublin.

Lot 512/0297

SOLD Hammer price €600

Arrested and Detained In Easter Week: The Ordeal of The Marquis MacSwiney [Mac Swiney (V.E.P.)] An 8pp typed Letter signed “P. MacSwiney of Mashanaglass”, on headed notepaper “National Volunteers, Inspecting Officer for Co. Kerry, Brooklands, Killarney”, dated 18 May 1916 and addressed to Major J. Crean, Acting Inspecting Officer, National Volunteers. (1) The writer gives a vivid and detailed account of his arrest in Dublin and detention by security forces during the Rising of Easter Week 1916. While being removed from his house in Waterloo Road to the Castle the party came under heavy fire from the insurgents. After interrogation he was imprisoned, together with Count Plunkett (father of Proclamation signatory Joseph Plunkett), in a cell with some twenty other prisoners in cramped conditions. The following day they were removed for internment, except MacSwiney, who was released after further interrogation. MacSwiney describes with a mixture of horror and humour the courtesy of the officers who had arrested him and their courage under fire; the appalling conditions in which he was held overnight (they were fed “very much in the manner as food is thrown to the bears and other wild beasts at the zoo”); and the kindness of his fellow-prisoners. Valentine Emmanuel Patrick MacSwiney, Marquis of Mashanaglass (1871-1945) was born in Paris, his father being an Irish banker and his mother a Polish countess. A gifted linguist, he served on several diplomatic missions for the Holy See, being created a marquis by Pope Leo XIII in 1895. In 1914 he and his family settled in Dublin, where he joined the Irish Volunteers. When the movement split between the supporters and opponents of John Redmond, he remained with the pro-Redmond National Volunteers, and served for a time as Inspecting Officer for Co. Kerry – hence his brief detention in 1916. MacSwiney interested himself in the revival of Irish industry, especially forestry. In the 1920s he served on Irish Free State delegations to the League of Nations. A Knight of Malta, he became President of the Irish Association in 1939 and during the Second World War – though suffering from ill health – he vigorously promoted the work of the Ambulance Corps and the training of members in first aid. An accomplished scholar, he was Vice-President of the Royal Irish Academy in 1936-39 and is remembered today mainly as a pioneer of the study of the Irish brigades in the armies of France, Spain and elsewhere. Through his mother, MacSwiney was first cousin of Vernon Kell, a founder of the British Secret Service Bureau. Kell would have known that MacSwiney was opposed to the Rising – hence perhaps his prompt release? A fascinating first-hand account of the experience of a well-known Irishman during the Easter Rising.

Lot 513/0297

SOLD Hammer price €600

I.R.A. Army Council Minutes: An important file containing typescript agenda and minutes of meetings of the IRA Army Council, March 1929 – July 1931, with a few supporting documents, as follows: 5th March 1929, minutes; 14 March 1929, agenda; 18 March 1929, agenda and minutes; 2 May 1929, agenda; 26 July 1929, agenda & minutes; 3 Sept. 1929, agenda and statement of ‘policy and main objectives’; 11 Sept. 1929, agenda; 13 Sept. 1929 agenda; 25 Jan. 1930, agenda and minutes; 26 Jan. ‘ 6 Feb. / 20 Feb. 1930, letters relating to appointment of a ‘reserve’ member of the Army Council; 20.11.30, agenda and minutes (including action on ‘certain cases of treachery’); 1.1.31, agenda and minutes; 13 Jan. ’31, agenda and minutes; 10 Feb. 1931, agenda and minutes; 23 Feb. 1931, agenda and minutes; also a document headed ‘Manner in which it is suggested “Suggestions for a Constitution,” “Recommendations to form an Organisation or Party, and to Secure Elections to Local Government Bodies”; The Present Situation and Future Prospects, are to be presented to Conventions’; 10th March 1931, agenda and minutes; 8 April 1931, agenda and minutes; 22 May 1931, agenda and minutes; 5 June 1931, minutes; 9 June, 1931, agenda and minutes; 24 June 1931, agenda and minutes; 6 July 1931, minutes; 16 July 1931, agenda and minutes; in all 22 meetings of the IRA Army Council represented and by agenda or minutes or both, over a period of 30 months, with some supporting documents, while this may be some distance short of a complete record, it is a very useful file. * These documents are extremely rare: Circulation was confined to members of the Council (usually not more than half a dozen), and we cannot recall seeing a similar collection previously. The minutes are typescript, and are generally short and to the point; recording attendances and decisions taken. A few are signed with initials, most are unsigned. As an Archive, w.a.f (1)

Lot 514/0297

SOLD Hammer price €600

Sean Mac Bride [1904-88] A very interesting typescript report to the IRA Chief of Staff, 16.4.25, signed initials SmacB, ‘Comdt., Officer i/c finance & Accounts,’ concerning a mission to investigate options for arms purchase in Germany and Belgium, on headed paper paper of Oglaigh na hEireann GHA, 5pp, with 2pp specifications from an arms supplier, Sean Mac Bride, a son of Major John Mac Bride and Maud Gonne Mac Bride, was a Na Fianna and the IRA from an early age. He opposed the Treaty, and after escaping from Mountjoy Jail late in 1923 he joined IRA GHQ, and took charge of the IRA’s finances, producing regular monthly balance sheets (see other documents in this archive.) He spoke French fluently, and evidently he made journeys to continental Europe to source arms purchases. The present report describes a journey to London, Paris, Hamburg, Stuttgart, Berlin, Antwerp, Liege and back through Liverpool, meeting two arms suppliers from Germany, Grotstuck and Becker, and in Belgium. He says Grotstuck had proved unreliable previously in relation to supplies left in their care. In relation to Becker, ‘In some respects I would rather deal with this man as his dealings in arms would be illegal from the Reparations Commission’s point of view, and therefore, he would take greater care than if it were an ordinary business transaction. On the other hand, I am convinced that if he got the lightest opportunity for swindling us, he would probably avail of it.’ However, Mac Bride suggests dealing mainly with the Belgian supplier as his prices are lower and he is prepared to ship supplies close to the Irish coast. Mac Bride also mentions supplies purchased by a previous IRA Director of Purchases, most of which he says are now lost or stolen. ‘The only goods which we definitely possess on the Continent are 50,000 rounds of 9 mm ammunition which is in Hamburg. I arranged to have this removed to another warehouse as I did not look on the warehouse where it was as being trustworthy.’ He also mentions the activities of ‘Briscoe’ [Robert Briscoe, an import/export trader, later a Fianna Fail TD and Lord Mayor of Dublin.] In later life Mac Bride became an Irish Government Minister and was founder of Amnesty International. He was the first person to be awarded both the Nobel Peace Prize and the Lenin Peace prize. His biography by Anthony Jordan does not mention his arms purchase activities, and they are touched on only briefly in his entry in the recent Dictionary of Irish Biography. (1)

Lot 515/0297

SOLD Hammer price €600

Raids on City Doctors I.R.A. Medical Service: A file containing about 65 documents dealing with the I.R.A.’s medical service and the medical problems of particular Volunteers, January 1923 – June 1925, also two documents dealing with the Irish Republican Prisoner’s Dependent Fund. The file includes much detailed information about particular volunteers and their medical problems (including somewhere the examining doctor could find no evidence of illness!), also more general material including a typescript report of poor conditions in the (Free State Run) Curragh Hospital), 17.2.1923; with details of the treatment of named prisoners; report on the organisation of the Republican Medical Service, 4 Sept. 1924; a similar report, 3.4.1925; letter from Director of the Service stating White Cross has decided to stop funding treatment of persons injured in action, 2.3.1925; accounts for the service, 5.2.1925; and other interesting documents. A few early documents (Feb. 1923) are signed A. de S(taic); there are also some interesting letters in January 1923 concerning ‘raids on city doctors’ (by both sides, apparently), etc. etc. As an Archive, w.a.f. (1)

Lot 516/0297

SOLD Hammer price €200

Co. Wexford: 1912 Feise Charman (Under Control of Coiste Ceanntair Chairman) Whit Sunday, Monday & Tuesday May 26, 27, 28 in Enniscorthy, Official Clar, 8vo, Wexford (Free Press) 1912, 208pps, illus. & adverts throughout, ptd. corps. Scarce. (1) * A valuable reference document for political, social & business information during the early 1900’s in Ireland and Wexford in particular.

Lot 517/0297

SOLD Hammer price €180

De Markievicz (Constance) A Call to the Women of Ireland, 8vo D. (Fergus O’Connor) 1918, 16pps, ptd. wrappers; What Irish Republicans Stand For, 8vo Glasgow (Civic Press) c. 1918, 8pps, ptd. wrappers. Both Scarce. (2)

Lot 518/0297

SOLD Hammer price €200

[Mac Bride (Sean)] A group of five Munster & Leinster Bank Cheques from 1923 to 1927 (issued to Frank Kerlin, Michal Kilroy T.D., John Jos. Sheey, & himself), each signed and signature on reverse; together with a m/ss letter and envelope addressed to Sean Mac Bride dated 29/9/1932, indistinctly signed for Reobuch Keane; [Markievicz (Constance)] a real photographic postcard of Liberty Hall, depicting the ruins, inscribed on reverse in pencil “Constance de Markievicz; also two W.W.1 Army Discharge Documents for “Arthur Richmond, Army Service Corps,” as a lot, w.a.f. (1)

Lot 519/0297

SOLD Hammer price €600

[Pearse (Padraig)] A collection of manuscript and ptd. material relating to Pearse and The Mac Carthy Brothers, to include: * A M/ss Page signed and dated 11 August 1909 report “Scoil Eanna” for Diarmuid and Domhnaill Mac Carthy – Report of progress by P.H. Pearse describing them as “very bright, affectionate and loveable boys”. * A Travel Pass for Dermott Mac Carthy signed by Austin Stack. * Photographs * A copy of “Scribhinn” by Pearse; * and a Padraig Pearse Medal, as a collection, w.a.f. (1)

Lot 520/0297

SOLD Hammer price €120

“Be Sure That They Will Leave You to Your Fate” Oglaigh na hEireann: Special Memorandum – 31.Oct. 1921, by Order Chief of Staff – That During the period of Truce no Attempt shall be made to import munitions into Ireland, This agreement… shall be very strictly and honourably addressed to, single cyclostyled page; together with an Anti-Treaty Propoganda Flyer, double sided titled “To the Irish Republican Army,” unsigned. As a lot, w.a.f. (2)

Lot 521/0297

SOLD Hammer price €80

The Kings Visit to Ieland 1903 Royalty: An Official Programme of the Royal Procession of their most gracious Majesties King Edward VII and Queen Alexandra, City of Dublin 21, July, 1903, 8vo D. (W.A. Quirk) 1903, 2pps; together with an Admission Ticket for Row B No. 12 Leeson St. Bridge Grand Covered Stand, as ephemera, w.a.f. (2)

Lot 522/0297

SOLD Hammer price €150

“The People’s Princess” Royalty – [Princess Diana] Spencer (Earl) Tribute to Diana, Princess of Wales – Westminster Abbey, September 6, 1997, 8vo, 25pps, dedicated “To Lillian, Charles Spencer, 14th July 2000,” each pp. royal coat of arms, gilt decor. cloth, custom box. Scarce. (1)

Lot 523/0297

SOLD Hammer price €250

[Co. Cork] Cumann na mBan, a good quality silver gilt Cumann na mBan Lapel Badge, by Long, Cork, approx. 5cms long. Scarce. (1)

Lot 524/0297

SOLD Hammer price €300

[Co. Louth] Cumann na mBan, a sterling silver good quality Cumann na mBan Lapel Badge, mark silver, Dundalk; together with another similar metal Lapel Badge, unmarked. Scarce. (2)

Lot 525/0297

SOLD Hammer price €600

Cumann na mBan: A very fine quality 9ct gold, Cumann na mBann Lapel Badge, approx. 5cms, approx. 6 gms, Scarce. (1)

Lot 526/0297

SOLD Hammer price €80

Sinn Fein: A Sterling silver circular Commemorative Coin, for “Sinn Fein 100 (Cead), in original case; together with enamel badge “Combhail be Cumann na Firnne Catoligaite – Tuaim 1936” with pin, as a lot. (2)

Lot 527/0297

SOLD Hammer price €600

Emmett Humphreys Fianna Eireann Costume [Fianna Eireann & St. Endas] A rare and unsual Celtic type Uniform, comprising of a kilt, shawl and waistcoat, worn by Emmet Humphreys who was a member of the Fianna Force 1916. By tradition the above uniform was worn by Emmett Humphreys during the 1916 Rising when his group went on a march in the Dublin mountains, as they were to young too take part. As a costume, w.a.f. (1) Provenance: The Humphreys Family, by direct descent.

Lot 528/0297

SOLD Hammer price €600

A Boy of Just Eighteen Summers Republican: Barry (Kevin) A clay moulded Death Mask for Kevin Barry (Irish Patriot), inscribed on reverse “Death Mask of Kevin Barry – Hanged in 1920 by the English,” and Signed S. (Sean) Mc Keown. (1) * A poignant memento of a Young Irish Patriot. Provenance: The Kathleen Napoli McKenna / Sean McKeown Collection.