Pair of National Stamps (Creating the Branches of Government)

On 11 April An Post issued a set of two stamps marking the centenary of the Ministers and Secretaries Act (1924), creating the native Civil Service, and the Courts of Justice Act (1924), establishing a new courts system and eleven government departments.

Completed in March 1922, the British-built Government Buildings on Upper Merrion Street were immediately available for the new government of Saorstát Éireann. The central functions of government moved from Dublin Castle, severing an important symbolic tie to the former administration. Today, the building contains the Departments of the Taoiseach and of Finance and the Office of the Attorney General, among others.

Our first stamp in this series features a cupola from the iconic building. The Four Courts were largely destroyed in June 1922, during the first week of the Civil War. Courts were temporarily relocated, first
to the King’s Inns, and then to Dublin Castle’s State Apartments during their reconstruction,
returning in 1932.

Our second stamp features a statue of the allegorical figure Justice by John van Nost the Younger – 18th century Dublin’s renowned sculptor – adorning Dublin Castle since 1753. Without the usual blindfold,
she brandishes a sword. Remarkably, she faces inward; similar statues elsewhere typically face their people. The Irish symbol of state, the harp, features on the First Day Cover design.

Product code 2406ST