souvenir / Belfast Jail, 1918

Brooch, gilded. Prison craft, Belfast Jail, 1918. 'A souvenir of the siege of Belfast Gaol. Xmas Week 1918'. Belfast Gaol, one of two "Tara" brooches, lead, one bronzed, the other gilt. They were designed and made by Liam Shaw of Stradbally, Co. Leix during the disturbances in Belfast Gaol, December 1918. The inscriptions on the back are as follows - (1) On the bronzed brooch: Belfast Jail 1918; and on the gilt brooch: "A souvenir of the siege of Belfast Gaol. Xmas Week 1918". During the "siege" the prisoners tore down the gas piping. From portions of this piping these brooches were made by Shaw.;