A founder of the Irish Picture Postcard Society Seamus Kearns (1929-2014) began collecting stamps in the 1930’s and fell in love with old postcards in the 1950’s when he started amassing this collection. He provided many exhibitions around the country including a show at the Guinness Hopstore in 1994. The main value is in Irish topographical and historical Irish cards. There are views of villages and towns from the early 1900’s to the 1950’s. Historic events like the 1916 Rising are covered. Every county is represented with views which show a transition from muddy roads and horse drawn vehicles to tarmac, trams, buses and motor cars. Auction estimates range from 50 to 3,000. The collection has been broken up into 500 lots with a total estimated value of 50,000-70,000. The number of cards per lot varies from ten to over 3,000. A collection of 110 cards of Belfast is estimated at 50, a collection of Irish advertising cards is estimated at 3,000. The catalogue is online and the sale can be viewed at Whyte’s from January 23.
Lot 411 is an album of 480 mixed advertising and Art Deco cards UPDATE: THIS MADE 1,400
Patrick’s Hill, Cork from an album of 130 cards of Cork and Queenstown (200-300). UPDATE: THIS SOLD FOR 50
A collection of 45 postcards of Lucan (80-120). UPDATE: THIS SOLD FOR 300
Lot 311 is an album of 120 Irish advertising cards (200-300) UPDATE: THIS MADE 400
This painting of HMS Resolute in Search of Sir John Franklin recalls the search for the north west passage and British explorer Sir John Franklin. He had served in the Battle of Trafalgar and afterwards became one of the most famous names in Polar exploration. He set sail for the North Pole and thence into the Northwest passage from the Bering Strait, searching for a route which would connect trade between the Atlantic and Pacific via the Arctic. Franklin’s ships were last seen by a whaler off Baffin Bay in August 1845, and they had enough supplies to last until summer 1848 When painted by Francois Etienne Musin the explorer and his crew aboard HMS Erebus and Terror were understood to be in difficulty in the Canadian Arctic. Their whereabouts remained unknown. Led by the Admiralty and championed energetically by Lady Franklin numerous searches were conducted from Canada. In 1850 a squadron of four vessels commanded by HMS Resolute was dispatched, using dog sleds and even primitive hydrogen balloons with messages attached. Unbeknownst to those at home, Franklin had already died some three years earlier. Franklin’s expedition, the countless searches led to find him, and later the tragic fate that befell the men caught the imagination of the Romantic movement. The wrecks of Franklin’s ships were discovered in 2014 and 2016 off King William Island. As climate change disrupts ice in the Arctic, the North-West passage has today become navigable for small ships. The painting was sold for £100,000 at Sotheby’s in December.
The Vertigo Project by Irish photo artist Jean Curran is now on show at the 
