Talks on national anthem manuscript sale continue

Talks continued yesterday over the sale of a manuscript of the national anthem, following its withdrawal from auction on Sunday.

The signed and dated manuscript of A Soldier's Song (Amhrán na bhFiann) was part of the Peadar Kearney archive which was withdrawn when bidding failed to exceed €460,000. The seller was seeking about €500,000 in the "Irish history sale" auction, held by Whyte's in the RDS.

Yesterday, Ian Whyte, managing director of Whyte's, said he was still talking to a couple of buyers about the Peadar Kearney archive.

Peadar Kearney composed A Soldier's Song in 1909-1910. His archive includes personal mementos, manuscripts, documents, photographs and personal ephemera relating to his service as an Irish Volunteer, as well as his poetry, plays and lyrics.

Some €700,000 was spent at Whyte's auction, with only eight items remaining out of 285 lots.

An archive of newsreel shot between 1916 and 1922 was sold for €96,000 to a private buyer in Dublin. A rare Cumann na mBan gold badge was expected to make about €3,000-€4,000 but was sold for €15,000.

The ceasefire order in the War of Independence, signed by Gen Richard Mulcahy, was sold for €49,000 while documents relating to the execution of Erskine Childers in 1922 went for €11,500.

A set of medals awarded to a 1916 Volunteer was sold for €15,000 while a uniform worn in the Rising went for €11,000.

An Abbey Theatre poster advertising plays to be performed during Easter week 1916 was sold for €7,500.

Disappointed bidders for the national anthem document will have a second chance tomorrow when a major sale of historical documents and artefacts is held in the James Adam salesrooms in Dublin.

The "Independence" sale will be jointly hosted by James Adam and Sons and Mealy's Auctioneers. Its most significant lot is one of the earliest drafts of the words and music to the national anthem, expected to fetch between €800,000 and €1.2 million.

Other lots include:

An archive of papers from 1880-1916, written by and about Thomas Clarke, the first signatory of the Proclamation.

A telegram from the Duke of Devonshire, informing the Irish secretary of state, WT Cosgrave, that the king has just agreed to give Ireland independence.

The Tricolour believed to have flown over the GPO during the 1916 Rising.