New stamp commemorates poet Austin Clarke

14 March 2024

The national (N) rate stamp, which covers postage on the island of Ireland, is available online at anpost.com/shop and in selected post offices nationwide.

Austin Clarke died on March 1974 leaving behind an enduring legacy as a prolific poet, novelist, verse dramatist and reviewer. In 1917 Clarke published his first poetry book, The Vengeance of Fionn, to critical claim. He explored a variety of themes throughout his career from the romantic revival to social criticism, often challenging the role of Church and State.

Designed by SO Studio, the stamp design features a portrait photograph of Clarke within a 50 motif (courtesy of RTE Archives and pays tribute to Clarke’s masterful use of language. Using a bitmap filter, mosaic dots represent his use of complex patterns of assonance, consonance and half rhyme.

The First Day Cover envelope design includes a quote from Clarke describing his writing process during an interview with Robert Frost, ‘I load myself with chains and try to get out of them’.