The Dolmen Press was founded by Liam and Josephine Miller in 1951. The Press operated in Dublin from 1951 until Liam Miller's death in 1987. A printing division was opened in the late 1950s as an additional revenue source, and was eventually shut down in 1979. The division took printing jobs from publishers as well as theaters, art galleries, businesses and individuals.

Founded to provide a publishing outlet for Irish poetry

Irish poetry

The history of Irish poetry includes the poetries of two languages, one in Irish and the other in English. The complex interplay between these two traditions, and between both of them and other poetries in English, has produced a body of work that is both rich in variety and difficult to...

, the Press also heavily featured the work of Irish artists. The scope of the press grew to include prose literature by Irish authors as well as a broad range of critical works about Irish literature

Irish literature

For a comparatively small island, Ireland has made a disproportionately large contribution to world literature. Irish literature encompasses the Irish and English languages.-The beginning of writing in Irish:...

 and theater

Irish theatre

The history of Irish theatre begins with the Gaelic Irish tradition. Much of the literature in that Celtic language was destroyed by conquest, except for a few manuscripts and fragments, such as the Book of Fermoy...

. The life and works of W. B. Yeats

William Butler Yeats

William Butler Yeats was an Irish poet and playwright, and one of the foremost figures of 20th century literature. A pillar of both the Irish and British literary establishments, in his later years he served as an Irish Senator for two terms...

 is a recurring theme in a variety of works, including the Yeats Centenary Series. One highlight in the Press' history was the publication of The Tain

Táin Bó Cúailnge

is a legendary tale from early Irish literature, often considered an epic, although it is written primarily in prose rather than verse. It tells of a war against Ulster by the Connacht queen Medb and her husband Ailill, who intend to steal the stud bull Donn Cuailnge, opposed only by the teenage...

 in 1969. Thomas Kinsella

Thomas Kinsella

Thomas Kinsella is an Irish poet, translator, editor, and publisher.-Early life and work:Kinsella was born in Lucan, County Dublin. He spent much of his childhood with relatives in rural Ireland. He was educated in the Irish language at the Model School, Inchicore and the O'Connell Christian...

's translation of the Irish epic poem took 15 years from concept to publication and represented a milestone in Irish publishing. By the 1980s the Press had created the Brogeen Books division for juvenile works, and many of the later publications were under this imprint.

In 2001, a collection of essays, "The Dolmen Press: a Celebration" was published by Lilliput Press.

Further reading

• Maurice ed. (2001). The Dolmen Press: a Celebration. Dublin: Lilliput Press.

• Skelton, Robin, "Twentieth-Century Irish Literature and the Private Press Tradition: Dun Emer
  Dun Emer Press
  The Dun Emer Press was an Irish private press founded in 1902 by Elizabeth Yeats and her brother William Butler Yeats, part of the Celtic Revival. It was named after the legendary Emer and evolved into the Cuala Press.-History:...
  
  , Cuala
  Cuala Press
  The Cuala Press was an Irish private press set up in 1908 by Elizabeth Yeats with support from her brother William Butler Yeats that played an important role in the Celtic Revival of the early 20th century.-Origins:...
  
  , & Dolmen Presses 1902-1963" The Massachusetts Review, Volume 5, Number 2, Winter 1964, pp. 368-377.

External links

• Finding aid to the Dolmen Press Collection, 1890-1987, at the Z. Smith Reynolds Library, Wake Forest University
  Wake Forest University
  Wake Forest University is a private, coeducational university in the U.S. state of North Carolina, founded in 1834. The university received its name from its original location in Wake Forest, north of Raleigh, North Carolina, the state capital. The Reynolda Campus, the university's main campus, is...
  
  
• Dolmen Press Collection - Printing Block Series, digital collection at the Z. Smith Reynolds Library, Wake Forest University
  Wake Forest University
  Wake Forest University is a private, coeducational university in the U.S. state of North Carolina, founded in 1834. The university received its name from its original location in Wake Forest, north of Raleigh, North Carolina, the state capital. The Reynolda Campus, the university's main campus, is...
  
  
• Dolmen Press fonds at University of Victoria, Special Collections