The Irish Arts and Crafts Movement: The Dun Emer Press

Special Collections has recently acquired a set of the first eleven titles published by Dun Emer Press, a printing house established in Ireland in 1902 by Evelyn Gleeson, Elizabeth Yeats, and William Butler Yeats.

While living in London, Elizabeth Yeats had been part of the circle of William Morris, and had been inspired by his printing work. In 1902, Elizabeth Yeats joined Gleeson in establishing a studio in Dundrum, a town outside of Dublin. They named the studio Dun Emer after Emer, the daughter of Forgall Monach and Cú Chulainn), a woman noted for her artistic skill and beauty. The studio specialized in printing and other crafts. In keeping with the tenets of the Arts and Crafts Movement in England, these women also provided training and work for other young women in the fields of bookbinding, printing, weaving and embroidery.

The focus of the press was publishing work by Irish authors; it produced limited editions of books selected or written by W. B. Yeats, the press’s literary editor. Dun Emer used an Albion Press, with Caslon typeface in a fourteen-point size. Elizabeth focused on using white spaces and wide margins to ensure the focus of readers would be on the text itself. The text is predominately black, with red being used for titles, some notes, and colophons. The paper was handmade of linen rags at Saggart Mills in Dublin. The books were small, with page sizes of around 21 cm by 14.5 cm and bound in blue or brown paper boards with linen backs. These features give the books a soft, intimate feel and invite readings into the world of the text.

After publishing eleven books, the various aspects of the press separated in 1908. Elizabeth Yeats and her sister, Lily, who had worked at Dun Emer Press, established Cuala Press in Dublin, while Gleeson retained the other aspects of the studio under the name Dun Emer.

Dun Emer Press Founders

Evelyn Gleeson (1855-1944) was an English embroidery, carpet, and tapestry designer. She attended school in England, where she learned to be a teacher and studied portraiture. She studied under Alexander Millar, a member of the Arts and Crafts movement. Gleeson was interested in Irish affairs and women’s rights, becoming members of the Gaelic League, the Irish Literary Society, and the suffrage movement. Gleeson moved to Ireland for health, where she established the Dun Emer Press with Elizabeth Yeats. Gleeson took charge of the weaving and tapestry areas of the studio as well as managing the overall finances. Beginning in 1904, tensions between Gleeson and the Yeats sisters began to rise, eventually leading to the split of the company between the two parties. In 1910, Gleeson became a founding member of the Guild of Irish Art Workers. Her work continued to earn notoriety until her death in 1944.

Elizabeth “Lolly” Yeats (1868-1940) was an Anglo-Irish educator and publisher and sister to the poet W.B. Yeats. In 1874 Elizabeth joined her family in London, where she stayed until 1881. In 1883 she enrolled in the Dublin Metropolitan School of Art. The Yeats family moved back to London in 1886, where Elizabeth wrote fiction. While in London this second time, Elizabeth trained and worked as an art teacher, was a member of William Morris’ circle, and studied printing with the Women’s Printing Society in London. In 1900, the family returned to Dublin where she formed the Dun Emer Press with Evelyn Gleeson. Elizabeth ran the printing aspect of the press. Tensions grew between Elizabeth and Gleeson, eventually leading her and her sister to separate from Dun Emer and establish Cuala Press in 1908. Elizabeth worked at Cuala Press until 1940.

William Butler Yeats (1865-1939) was an Irish poet, dramatist, and prose writer. As a child he would vacation with his grandparents in the Irish countryside, which would color his later work. His family would move between London and various Irish towns, giving W. B. Yeats the change to connect with many burgeoning members of the literary world. In the 1880, he attended the Metropolitan School of Art in Dublin, with his first volume of verse being published in 1887, after his family had moved back to England. While in England, W.B. Yeats joined the Irish Nationalist cause. He founded the Irish Theatre with Lady Gregory and was its chief playwright until John Synge joined. His plays focused on Irish legends and had themes of mysticism and spiritualism. After his sister Elizabeth and Gleeson formed the Dun Emer Press, W. B. Yeats served as its literary editor, a position which caused friction between everyone involved. This friction between W. B. Yeats and his sisters continued into the founding of Cuala Press. Yeats continued to write poetry and in 1922 he was appointed to the Irish Senate where he served for six years. He received the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1923. He died in 1939.

Dum Emer Titles at SCUA

In the Seven Woods: Being Poems Chiefly of the Irish Heroic Age By William Butler Yeats.

Published on “the sixteenth day of July in the year of the big wind 1903”, this is the first work published by the press and is the only work to have a brown linen cover. There were 325 copies printed. This copy has nine quires and several uncut pages. The work includes a mix of red and black text; this ratio changes in the other books published by Dun Emer Press.

The Nuts of Knowledge by A.E.

Published on the “tenth day of October, in the year nineteen hundred & three,” there were 200 copies of this book printed. The book in SCUA is bound in blue and has five quires. The work includes an emblem, the An Claidheamh Soluis, (the Sword of Light), which became known as AE’s emblem. AE was the pseudonym of George William Russell (1867-1935), an Irish writer, editor, critic, poet, painter, and Irish nationalist. In 1894, he published his first work of poems Homeward: Songs by the Way, which established him within the Irish Literary Revival. He became friends with James Joyce, William Butler Yeats, and other notable literary figures. Russell spent many years working for the Irish Agricultural Organisation Society. He acted as the IAOS journal editor until 1930. In 1932 he moved to England. After a final tour in the United States, he passed away from cancer in 1935.

The Love Songs of Connacht Being the Fourth Chapter of the Songs of Connacht, Collected and Translated by Douglas Hyde L.L.D.

There were 300 copies of this book published “on the sixteenth day of April in the year1904.” Bound in blue, it is the longest of the Dun Emer Press works, containing seventeen quires. This book’s pages are unevenly cut. The introductory note congratulates Dr. Hyde’s translations as being closer to the true meaning, as they are not in the formal eighteenth century style of past translators.

Douglas Ross Hyde (1860-1949) was an Irish academic, linguist, politician, diplomat, and first president of Ireland. He was a leading figure of the Gaelic revival and was the first president of the Gaelic League. As a child, Hyde became interested in Gaelic and languages. He graduated from Trinity College in 1884, where he became fluent in French, Latin, German, Greek, and Hebrew. His passion for Gaelic led him to found the Gaelic League in 1893 in an effort to preserve the language and Irish culture. He was a Professer of Irish at the Unviersity College in Dublin until 1938, when he retired; this retirement was short lived as later that year he was elected the first President of Ireland. He remained president until 1945, when he opted to not run for a second term.

Stories of Red Hanrahan By William Butler Yeats

Five hundred copies of this work were published “on Lady Day in August, in the year 1904.” It is bound in blue and contains eight quires. This work also included an illustration by Robert Gregory; it appears to be a landscape that includes several buildings and the symbols for each suit of playing cards. 

Twenty One Poems Written by Lionel Johnson: Selected by William Butler Yeats

“Finished on All Hallow’s Eve, in the year 1904,” 220 copies of this book were printed. This particular book is bound in blue and has five quires. Only the final colophon is in red, with the rest of the text appearing in black.

Lionel Pigot Johnson (1867-1902) was an English poet, essayist, and critic who claimed Irish descent. Johnson graduated from New College, Oxford in 1890. As a poet, Johnson wrote about Celtic and Catholic themes.

Some Essays and Passages by John Eglinton; Selected by William Butler Yeats

Published “on the sixteenth day of April, in the year 1905,” 200 copies of this work were printed. This book has a blue linen cover and includes eight quires, which are lettered throughout the work. There are two colophons in red, one after the table of contents and one at the end of the work. Similar to the other works, this one gives the exact date of publication: “finished on the sixteenth day of April, in the year 1905.” The titles found throughout the work are in red, while the body of the text is in black. There are no notes within the text or book plates, though the general wear of the exterior of the book and edges of the pages indicates that the book was read.

John Eglinton (1868-1961) was the pen-name of author William Kirkpatrick Magee. He was active in the Irish Literary Revival, though he was in favor of more universal subjects rather than Irish materials and traditions. He was the head of the National Library of Ireland from 1904-1921; after retiring he moved to Wales and then England. He continued to write about Irish Literature until his death in 1961.

Sixteen Poems by William Allingham Selected by William Butler Yeats

Published “on the fifteenth day of September, in the year 1905,” this book was bound in blue and contains six quires and had a run of 200 copies. In this copy there are several uncut pages.

William Allingham (1824-1889) was an Irish poet, diarist, and editor. He went to the Royal Belfast Academical Institution until the age of 14, after which he held a job at a custom-house; he held similar jobs until 1870, though he was also publishing his poetry during this time. In 1870 he moved to London and became the sub-editor of Fraser’s Magazine; he became its main editor in 1874 and held that position until 1879. He continued to write poems until his death in 1889. 

A Book of Saints and Wonders Put Down Here By Lady Gregory According to the Old Writings and the Memory of the People in Ireland.

Published “on the Eve of Lady Day in Harvest, in the year 1906,” 200 copies of this book were made. It is bound in blue and has fourteen quires, some of which have uncut pages. The work includes a printed note, presumably from Lady Gregory, which indicates that Lady Gregory made her own translations. The book also includes an pressmark made by Robert Gregory of a bell next to a waterfall, below which sits a fish.

Lady Gregory (1852-1932) was an Irish dramatist, foklorist, and theatre manager. Gregory was educated at home, where she was introduced to the history and legends of Ireland. In 1880, she married Sir William Henry Gregory, a man who had many literary and artistic interests. Two years later, her first work was published in her own name. She founded the Irish Literary Theatrein 1899  and the Abby Theatre in 1904, both with William Butler Yeats and Edward Martyne. She wrote short works for both theaters and is also known for her retellings of Irish mythology. 

By Still Waters: Lyrical Poems Old and New by A.E.

“Finished on All Soul’s Eve, in the year 1906,” this book, which had a run of 200 copies, has a blue linen cover and includes five quires, which are lettered throughout the work. This work includes AE’s emblem. This graphic, the acknowledgements, the first poem, and the final colophon are in red, while the rest of the text is black. 

Twenty-One Poems by Katharine Tynan: Selected by W. B. Yeats 

This book, published “on the twentieth day of March 1907,” and bound in blue, is one of two hundred printed copies. It is made of five quires and includes the pressmark designed by Elinor Monsell; it depicts Emer leaning against a tree. The colophon also includes the names of Esther Ryan and Beatrice Cassidy, the first two women trained by Elizabeth Yeats.

Elinor Monsell (1879-1954) was an Irish illustrator, engraver, and portrait painter. In 1896, Monsell moved to London to study at the Slade School of Art in London. She was active from 1899-1929 and is best known for her woodcuts and illustrations of her husband’s children’s books. In 1907, W. B. Yeats commissioned her to create the pressmark found in this book.

Katharin Tynan (1859-1931) was an Irish writer and poet. She was educated at the Dominican St. Catherine’s, a convent school in Drogheda. In 1875, her poetry was first published. In the 1880s she was a major figure in Dublin literary circles and was a friend of W. B. Yeats. Her work explored her Catholic faith, feminism, Irish nationalism, and World War I. 

Discoveries; A Volume of Essays by William Butler Yeats

Published in 1907, this work was the last of Dun Emer Press. There were two hundred copies printed, “on the twelfth day of September.” The colophon in this work also includes the names of Esther Ryan and Beatrice Cassidy. The book also contains the emblem of a charging unicorn designed by Robert Gregory. This work is also bound in blue and contains seven quires.

These eleven books were delightful to read and examine as books and objects. The size made them feel personal, as did the colophons. The print has held up on the paper, with none of the pages having any smudging; the printing was done with great care as there were no words, letters, or lines out of place. While the books have signs of wear and age, they are still readable and in wonderful condition.

— Patricia McCall, Special Projects Archivist/Doctoral Candidate, UO History of Art and Architecture