#National Library of Ireland

[garadinervi]

The Stone Twins, Ulysses 100 Stamp Series, [photographs from the JJ Clarke collection (courtesy of the National Library of Ireland)], An Post, 2022 [100 Archive. The James Joyce Centre, Baile Átha Cliath. Ulysses100, Museum of Literature Ireland, Baile Átha Cliath]

[thestarsarelaughing]

Big news for the Dracula Daily website.

[hldky]

Resting after a job well done? by National Library of Ireland on The Commons Via Flickr: When you can fill a gap in one fell swoop, why not take the opportunity? Mr. Sampson of Downpatrick, while building a drystone wall, pulled this rock out of the ground and filled a great big gap, saving him a whole lot of digging and lifting!! Well, he probably built the wall up on either side of the rock and used it in situ, but now he can rest after his labours! Photographer: Robert French Collection: Lawrence Photograph Collection Date: Circa 1865 - 1914 NLI Ref: L_CAB_05093 You can also view this image, and many thousands of others, on the NLI’s catalogue at catalogue.nli.ie

[scotianostra]

Muriel Spark peeking through the window of the National Library today.

[downthetubes]

The first issue of Greann, one of the earliest known Irish comics, was released in 1934, published in Drogheda by Irish patriot, Joseph Stanley, and made available across Ireland. James Bacon investigates…

[needcaffeine]

Bowling on the green and Tennis in whites by National Library of Ireland on The Commons Via Flickr: Ward's Park, Bangor in Co. Down is a hive of activity with men and women at play while the kiddies stand watching the adults ignore them! It looks like a great place for recreation but the women in their tennis whites must have really struggled in those long dresses. Is é inniu tús Sheachtain na Gaeilge. Labhair Gaeilge linn? Photographer: Robert French Collection: Lawrence Photograph Collection Date: Circa 1865 - 1914 NLI Ref: L_ROY_11234 You can also view this image, and many thousands of others, on the NLI’s catalogue at catalogue.nli.ie

[david-sankey]

Men break (and lay?) stones, women carry them. Only the lucky ones have baskets

Rocking around Connemara by National Library of Ireland on The Commons Via Flickr: True hardship! Relief work for those who were starving where those who were being "relieved" were applied to grinding, mind-numbing tasks like stone breaking and carrying. It might seem inappropriate to be showing such an image at this time of year, but a wee reminder that not all are living high on the hog would not go astray! Photographer: None Date: 1898 NLI Ref.: BB5145 You can also view this image, and many thousands of others, on the NLI’s catalogue at catalogue.nli.ie

[davidsankey]

The Peeler and the Playwright by National Library of Ireland on The Commons Via Flickr: Probably one of the world's greatest playwrights, Sean O'Casey, standing on Drury Street Lane in London with a policeman. Given Casey's well known socialist leanings, was he getting marching instructions, or was he having a chat with an expatriate Irishman? Photographers: Keystone View Company photographer Date: Circa 1926 Friday 5th (Most Likely) or Saturday 6th March 1926 NLI Ref: NPA SOC You can also view this image, and many thousands of others, on the NLI’s catalogue at catalogue.nli.ie

[cartografiadaausencia]

Aquela portinha ali era a sala de leitura das senhoras, para, nas palavras do guia, não "distraírem" os cavalheiros.

National Library of Ireland Reading Room, Dublin

09.07.2016

[horsesofwar]

A fine set of fetlocks! by National Library of Ireland on The Commons Via Flickr: Captain W.J. Baird, Aide de Camp to the Lord Lieutenant sits astride a really fine looking horse in this carefully posed image from the Poole Collection. Now we know the name of the soldier so now we want to know is the name of the horse??? +++ UPDATE +++ Thanks everyone, for confirmation that Captain James Baird was aide-de-camp to Lord Wimborne, Lord Lieutentant in Ireland, and that he was in that post in 1917 (newspaper reports). O Mac suggests Busoni as the horse's name, but we'd need some hard evidence. We're a tough crowd. Oh, and we always love to see John Spooner waxing lyrical about movable boudoirs! Photographer: A. H. Poole Collection: Poole Photographic Collection, Waterford Date: 1915 - 1917, most likely 1917 NLI Ref: POOLEWP 2734 You can also view this image, and many thousands of others, on the NLI’s catalogue at catalogue.nli.ie

[garadinervi]

James Joyce, Gas from a Burner, (broadsheet), Flushing [Vlissingen railway station], September 1912 [The Morgan Library & Museum, New York, NY. Leabharlann Náisiúnta na hÉireann / National Library of Ireland, Baile Átha Cliath. «James Joyce Quarterly», The University of Tulsa, Tulsa, OK. © The Estate of James Joyce]

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[tenrose]

The hardest part about the end of the Olympics is that by tomorrow we will have to deal with french politics bullshit and we don't want that. They shut the hell up for two weeks and it was literally the chillest moment this country has lived in a long time.

[hldky]

Sun going down on Dublin Bay??? by National Library of Ireland on The Commons Via Flickr: I know, I know! If you look down the Liffey from the Loop Bridge then you should be looking due East but the shadow on the ship to the right looks, to me, like those from a setting sun? We haven't visited the lovely Elinor Wiltshire for some time and this shot of the river and shipping from beneath the Loop Bridge is a great reminder of how she saved such memories for us! Photographer: Elinor Wiltshire Collection: Wiltshire Photographic Collection Date: 1966 NLI Ref: WIL 31[7] You can also view this image, and many thousands of others, on the NLI’s catalogue at catalogue.nli.ie

[stairnaheireann]

#OTD in 1929 – Brian Friel, playwright and author of Dancing at Lughnasa, is born near Omagh, Co Tyrone.

“It is not the literal past, the ‘facts’ of history, that shape us, but images of the past embodied in language.” –Brian Friel When asked why he had two birth certificates, one dated 9 January 1929 and the other 10 January, the Irish playwright Brian Friel, replied: ‘Perhaps I’m twins.’ Originally from Tyrone, Friel moved to Derry at the age of 10. He went to the same Catholic boys’ grammar…

[inky-duchess]

Fantasy Guide to Political Structures

A Horse! A Horse! My X for a Horse!

Let's be honest, fantasy authors love their kingdoms and empires. You can throw a rock in a bookshop or a library in the fantasy section and you will 99.99999% hit a fantasy book that will be set in or mention either of those structures. But what are they really? What's the difference between them all? Are there any more examples of structures that would suit your WIP better? Are you using the right terms? Let's have a closer look.

Duchy

A Duchy is a small territory ruled by a Duke/Duchess. While Duchies can be found in kingdoms, some duchies were sovereign states in their own right. Duchies are usually small by land mass but some duchies such as Burgundy were extremely powerful and influential. Independent Duchies were usually apart of a kingdom but grew so powerful that they eventually broke away to become a sovereign state in their own right. An example would be modern day Luxembourg, historic Milan and Burgundy.

Principality

A principality is territory ruled by a Prince/Princess. A principality is typically smaller than a kingdom and in some instances, can be apart of a larger kingdom or be a sovereign state. Principalities have a history of having broken away from a larger kingdom or eventually becoming apart of a kingdom. A principality within a kingdom is ruled by a Prince/Princess, usually an heir of the monarch and can be used to train them up to assume the throne in the future. Examples include Monaco, Liechtenstein and Andorra.

Kingdom

A sovereign state/country that is ruled by ruling King or a Queen. A kingdom is much larger and more powerful than a principality. Kingdoms can be feudal, meaning they are ruled in a strict hierarchy or an autocracy where the monarch rules alone with minimal input from the government or constitutional where the monarch is more of a figurehead and the government has a good chunk of control. Examples include England, Thailand and modern day Spain.

Commonwealth

A Commonwealth isn't a popular choice in fantasy but it is an interesting structure. A Commonwealth in its most basic form is a collection of states that are linked by either a shared culture or history. A Commonwealth can be a politically power or an economic power, with every state allowed to participate as much as they like. Not one state leads the others, it is all one group of equals. A Commonwealth can be a good idea for a group of nations that are more powerful together with them keeping their own independence.

Federation

A Federation is a political structure that is made up of united states or countries that are under a single government but each state is still independent and rules itself. Each state can have different laws, different cultures and economies but they all answer to the single government. Examples include the United States of America.

Republic

A Republic is a territory that is ruled by leaders and heads of state that have been elected on merit and by choice of the people. Republics are not just countries but can also be much smaller areas such as cities. Republics are democratic in nature, with the people having a say in who leads them in accordance to a constitution. There are many kinds of Republic: presidential, parliamentary, federal, theocratic, unitary. Examples of Republics include the Republic of Ireland and the city of Florence.

Protectorate

A Protectorate is a country/region/territory that is independent but relies on a larger, more powerful state for protection either in a military or diplomatic sense. A Protectorate was often used by Empires in order to maintain control over an area without annexing it. There are many reasons a larger state and the protectorate would agree to this, mainly the protectorate is much smaller meaning it is far more vulnerable to attack or it has very little power when compared to other states. A Protectorate allows the territory some power to rule itself but the larger state may feel the need or desire to interfere in the dealings of the territory. Examples of protectorates include the client kingdoms of the Roman Empire like Egypt before its annexation and Puerto Rico.

Empire

An Empire is a collection of nations that are united under one sovereign head of state or government. An Empire is formed by one nation steadily taking control of other nations, either through straight invasion and colonization or acquiring them through marriage and other less violent ways. An Empire is powerful mainly because it can drum up more resources, more influence and more military power. An Empire might impose the traditions, beliefs and culture of its principal nation - the nation that started it all - onto its colonies for better control and feeling of uniformity. Empires never last, that is something to always remember. Empires will eventually fragment due to the vast size and sometimes revolt among the conquered states. Examples of empires include the Roman Empire, the Byzantine Empire, the Ottoman Empire.

[needcaffeine]

Taking the putt by National Library of Ireland on The Commons Via Flickr: The famous Links Golf Course at Portmarnock in North County Dublin apparently taken before it was famous? The rough looks very rough and the green doesn't look much better though the attendance seem very interested in the proceedings. Will anybody score a hole in one by identifying the hole in the image! One of Ms. Maddock's renowned sticky buns with extra stickyness for the one who does! Photographer: Robert French Collection: Lawrence Photograph Collection Date: Circa 1865 - 1914 NLI Ref: L_CAB_07482 You can also view this image, and many thousands of others, on the NLI’s catalogue at catalogue.nli.ie