Irish Color Lithography
A Collection of Irish Political Cartoons, 1880-1881
The Weekly Freeman was a weekend publication of the Freeman's Journal, a Nationalist Daily paper published in Dublin from 1763 through 1924, when it merged with the Irish Independent.
The present collection of cartoons and illustrated supplements, mostly issued in 1881, is notable for bringing together many of the color lithograph political cartoons that appeared in the Weekly Freeman. Before 1881 the publication would include a black and white cartoon on its front page. Beginning in December 1880 the paper included a large color political cartoon, printed on thicker paper, as a supplement. This innovative practice was soon adopted by other Irish periodicals.
Many of the cartoons, which are political satires addressing topics of the day, are by John Fergus O'Hea. According to one authority, O'Hea's "bold line, robust, dynamic figures, and strong likenesses set the standard until he left in 1892 over the Parnell marraige scandal." Indeed, William E. Gladstone, British Prime Minister at the time, praised O'Hea's artistic skills, describing the unsigned cartoons as "directly guided by a spirit of patriotism."