President Michael D. Higgins will today (Saturday 1st August) lead the official State commemoration of the centenary of the funeral of Jeremiah O’Donovan Rossa in Glasnevin Cemetery, Dublin.
The event, which is being hosted by the Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht, Heather Humphreys TD, is the first formal State commemoration being held as part of the Ireland 2016 Centenary Programme.
An Taoiseach, Enda Kenny T.D. who will also attend, said, “Jeremiah O’Donovan Rossa was an iconic figure in Irish history. Even one hundred years after his death his name is synonymous with the Fenians and with Irish Nationalism. The liberation of his country became his life’s ambition. His funeral remains one of the pivotal moments in Irish history and was an occasion that would be hugely instrumental in shaping the future of our nation.
O’Donovan Rossa’s descendants were at the commemoration and I was honoured that they presented some of my work to the President Michael D Higgins, the Taoiseach Enda Kenny and the Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht, Heather Humphrey TD.
The pieces being presented are the Large Sail Dish, Large Round Shard Bowl and Large Round Landscape Bowl.