In honor of the 100th anniversary of the 1916 Rising, a new series of commemorative stamps were issued, this time using actual photographs of those involved and affected by the Rising. In this set, we see, not the leaders, but perhaps those who were involved in the Rising, yet overshadowed by the deaths of the leaders.
Regarding the top stamp, we see James O’Brien and Sean Connolly. These two men were the first casualties of the Rising[1]. Constable O’Brien was a 21-year veteran of the Dublin Metropolitan Police Unit was unarmed when Connolly shot him. Connolly himself was shot an hour later by a British sniper.
The next stamp shows the Malone brothers, Lieutenant Michael Malone and Sergeant William Malone. This stamp was created to show the complexity regarding Irish identity. Lieutenant Michael Malone fought with the Irish Volunteers and was killed during the Battle of Mount Street Bridge. On the other hand, Sergeant William Malone was a member of the 2nd Royal Dublin Fusiliers and was killed in the Battle of Ypres in May of 1915. This shows how families were dealing not only with the ideological struggle of fighting on the side of the British during World War I, but also with the ideological divisions the Rising created in Irish society.
The third stamp shows the only women depicted in the stamp series: Dr. Kathleen Lynn and Elizabeth O’Farrell. These two women represent the role played by women in the Rising. Dr. Lynn was a medical campaigner, suffragist, and an officer in the Irish Citizen Army (ICA). O’Farrell was a member of Cumann na mBann.
The final stamp in this set shows the photograph of Jack Doyle and Tom McGrath, members of the Irish Volunteers. There is not much to be said about this image other than the fact that it is the only surviving photograph taken from inside the GPO during the Rising.
[1] Colm Keena, “First Victim of the Rising,” The Irish Times, 2013, http://www.irishtimes.com/culture/heritage/first-victim-of-the-rising-1.1402766