The presidential seal ( ga, séala an uachtaráin) is a

seal Seal may refer to any of the following: Common uses * Pinniped, a diverse group of semi-aquatic marine mammals, many of which are commonly called seals, particularly: ** Earless seal, or "true seal" ** Fur seal * Seal (emblem), a device to impr ...

used by the

President of Ireland The president of Ireland ( ga, Uachtarán na hÉireann) is the head of state of Republic of Ireland, Ireland and the supreme commander of the Defence Forces (Ireland), Irish Defence Forces. The president holds office for seven years, and can ...

to authenticate his

signature A signature (; from la, signare, "to sign") is a handwritten (and often stylized) depiction of someone's name, nickname, or even a simple "X" or other mark that a person writes on documents as a proof of identity and intent. The writer of a ...

on official documents. The

Constitution of Ireland The Constitution of Ireland ( ga, Bunreacht na hÉireann, ) is the constitution, fundamental law of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It asserts the national sovereignty of the Irish people. The constitution, based on a system of representative democra ...

requires certain documents to be issued under the president's "hand and seal", and in other cases the seal is mandated by

act of the Oireachtas The law of Ireland consists of constitutional, statute, and common law. The highest law in the State is the Constitution of Ireland, from which all other law derives its authority. The Republic has a common-law legal system with a written const ...

.McDunphy 1945 p.87 It is a single-sided "dry seal" impressed directly onto the fabric of the document, leaving a

relief Relief is a sculptural method in which the sculpted pieces are bonded to a solid background of the same material. The term ''relief'' is from the Latin verb ''relevo'', to raise. To create a sculpture in relief is to give the impression that the ...

of its design without

sealing wax Sealing wax is a wax material of a seal which, after melting, hardens quickly (to paper, parchment, ribbons and wire, and other material) forming a bond that is difficult to separate without noticeable tampering. Wax is used to verify something su ...

or ink.McDunphy 1945 p.88

Design

The physical seal is a metal disc about in diameter. The image is an

Irish harp The Celtic harp is a triangular frame harp traditional to the Celtic nations of northwest Europe. It is known as in Irish, in Scottish Gaelic, in Breton and in Welsh. In Ireland and Scotland, it was a wire-strung instrument requiring great ...

, with 15 strings, surrounded by a ring of Celtic ornamentation based on that on the base of the

Ardagh Chalice The Ardagh Hoard, best known for the Ardagh Chalice, is a hoard of metalwork from the 8th and 9th centuries. Found in 1868 by two young local boys, Jim Quin and Paddy Flanagan, it is now on display in the National Museum of Ireland in Dublin. I ...

.McDunphy 1945 pp.88–89 Within the ring is the word ("Ireland", the name of the state in Irish) in

Gaelic type Gaelic type (sometimes called Irish character, Irish type, or Gaelic script) is a family of Insular script typefaces devised for printing Classical Gaelic. It was widely used from the 16th until the mid-18th century (Scotland) or the mid-20th ...

. The design was approved by the

Executive Council of the Irish Free State Executive ( exe., exec., execu.) may refer to: Role or title * Executive, a senior management role in an organization ** Chief executive officer (CEO), one of the highest-ranking corporate officers (executives) or administrators ** Executive dire ...

on 15 September 1937, in preparation for the adoption of the current constitution on 29 December 1937. The harp is modelled on the 1928 design by

Percy Metcalfe Percy Metcalfe, CVO, RDI (14 January 1895 Wakefield – 9 October 1970 Fulham Hospital, Hammersmith, London), (often spelled ''Metcalf'' without "e") was an English artist, sculptor and designer. He is recognised mostly for his coin designs a ...

for the

obverse Obverse and its opposite, reverse, refer to the two flat faces of coins and some other two-sided objects, including paper money, flags, seals, medals, drawings, old master prints and other works of art, and printed fabrics. In this usage, ''o ...

of the Free State coinage, itself based on the " Brian Ború harp", also used on the 1945

coat of arms of Ireland ) , supporters = , compartment = , motto = , orders = , other_elements = , earlier_versions = , use = The harp is used on all Acts of Oireachtas; the seal of the President; the cover of Iri ...

. The design is similar to that of the seal which it replaced, the

Internal Great Seal The Great Seal of the Irish Free State ( ga, Séala Mór do Shaorstát Éireann) is either of two seals affixed to certain classes of official documents of the Irish Free State (''Saorstát Éireann''): * the ''"internal" Great Seal'', used fro ...

of the

Irish Free State The Irish Free State ( ga, Saorstát Éireann, , ; 6 December 192229 December 1937) was a state established in December 1922 under the Anglo-Irish Treaty of December 1921. The treaty ended the three-year Irish War of Independence between th ...

; the most obvious difference being in the name of the state (previously ). However, the Free State seal was used with sealing wax. In 1949

John Aloysius Belton John Aloysius Belton (1903–1968) was an Irish diplomat. Details *From 1926 to 1934 he practised laws on the Midland Circuit *In 1934 he joined the diplomatic service of Ireland and became the first secretary to the Irish Embassy in Par ...

of the

Department of External Affairs In many countries, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is the government department responsible for the state's diplomacy, bilateral, and multilateral relations affairs as well as for providing support for a country's citizens who are abroad. The entit ...

suggested changes to the seal's design to reflect its new diplomatic uses under the

Republic of Ireland Act The Republic of Ireland Act 1948 (No. 22 of 1948) is an Act of the Oireachtas which declared that the description of Ireland was to be the Republic of Ireland, and vested in the president of Ireland the power to exercise the executive authority ...

, but no change was made.

Use

The seal remains in the custody of the current President or, in his absence, the Presidential Commission.McDunphy 1945 pp.87–88 In the latter case, sealed documents must be signed by at least two members of the commission and the Secretary-General to the President. At the inauguration of a new president, the Chief Justice presents the seal to him. The 1937

created the office of President of Ireland and defines most of its powers. It specifies several situations in which the President must send a message "under his hand and seal": * notifying the

Oireachtas The Oireachtas (, ), sometimes referred to as Oireachtas Éireann, is the Bicameralism, bicameral parliament of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. The Oireachtas consists of: *The President of Ireland *The bicameralism, two houses of the Oireachtas ...

(parliament) of agreeing or refusing to an

ordinary referendum An ordinary referendum in Ireland is a referendum on a bill other than a bill to amend the Constitution. The Constitution prescribes the process in Articles 27 ("Reference of Bills to the People") and 47 ("The Referendum"). Whereas a ''constitut ...

* appointing or dismissing discretionary members of the

Council of State A Council of State is a governmental body in a country, or a subdivision of a country, with a function that varies by jurisdiction. It may be the formal name for the cabinet or it may refer to a non-executive advisory body associated with a head o ...

* dismissing (after

impeachment Impeachment is the process by which a legislative body or other legally constituted tribunal initiates charges against a public official for misconduct. It may be understood as a unique process involving both political and legal elements. In ...

) the

Comptroller and Auditor General An auditor general, also known in some countries as a comptroller general or comptroller and auditor general, is a senior civil servant charged with improving government accountability by auditing and reporting on the government's operations. Fr ...

or a

judge A judge is a person who presides over court proceedings, either alone or as a part of a panel of judges. A judge hears all the witnesses and any other evidence presented by the barristers or solicitors of the case, assesses the credibility an ...

It specifies other cases where his signature is required: * signing bills into law * signing an enrolled text of the Constitution While not always expliclity required by the Constitution, in practice each exercise of his official functions is accompanied by a signed and sealed document. For example, while Article 13.1.1° does not specify the manner in which the President appoints a nominated

Taoiseach The Taoiseach is the head of government, or prime minister, of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. The office is appointed by the president of Ireland upon the nomination of Dáil Éireann (the lower house of the Oireachtas, Ireland's national legisl ...

, the practice includes signing and sealing a warrant. The Presidential Seal Act 1937 states that the presence of the seal authenticates the president's signature on any "

order Order, ORDER or Orders may refer to: * Categorization, the process in which ideas and objects are recognized, differentiated, and understood * Heterarchy, a system of organization wherein the elements have the potential to be ranked a number of d ...

, commission, warrant, or other instrument". It also states that "the presidential seal shall be affixed to instruments made by the President, and to no other instruments, and shall be so affixed by direction of the President and not otherwise". The Defence Act 1954 specifies that officers' commissions into the

Defence Forces The phrase Defence Force(s) (or Defense Force(s) in US English - see spelling differences) is in the title of the armed forces of certain countries and territories. Defence forces * Ambazonia Defence Forces *Artsakh Defence Army * Australian Defen ...

must carry the seal. The office of the president maintains registers of bills, diplomatic documents, and other "Executed Documents" to which the seal has been applied, older volumes of which are in file PRES 3 of the

National Archives of Ireland The National Archives of Ireland ( ga, Cartlann Náisiúnta na hÉireann) is the official repository for the state records of Ireland. Established by the National Archives Act 1986, taking over the functions of the State Paper Office (founded 17 ...

. Since the

coming into force In law, coming into force or entry into force (also called commencement) is the process by which legislation, regulations, treaties and other legal instruments come to have legal force and effect. The term is closely related to the date of this t ...

in 1949 of

The Republic of Ireland Act 1948 The Republic of Ireland Act 1948 (No. 22 of 1948) is an Act of the Oireachtas which declared that the description of Ireland was to be the Republic of Ireland, and vested in the president of Ireland the power to exercise the executive authority ...

, the president has authority to sign and seal important treaties and diplomatic credentials. Before 1949, the

Executive Authority (External Relations) Act 1936 The Executive Authority (External Relations) Act 1936 (No. 58 of 1936) was an Act of the Oireachtas (Irish parliament). The Act, which was signed into law on 12 December 1936, was one of two passed hurriedly in the aftermath of the Edward VIII ab ...

provided that the diplomatic functions of Irish head of state were performed by the

British monarch The monarchy of the United Kingdom, commonly referred to as the British monarchy, is the constitutional form of government by which a hereditary sovereign reigns as the head of state of the United Kingdom, the Crown Dependencies (the Bailiwi ...

, who signed such documents and sealed them with the External Great Seal. Before and after 1949, practically all diplomatic documents have in fact been signed by the

Minister for Foreign Affairs A foreign affairs minister or minister of foreign affairs (less commonly minister for foreign affairs) is generally a cabinet minister in charge of a state's foreign policy and relations. The formal title of the top official varies between coun ...

and sealed with his ministerial seal. The presidential seal has only been used for

Full Powers A ''plenipotentiary'' (from the Latin ''plenus'' "full" and ''potens'' "powerful") is a diplomat who has full powers—authorization to sign a treaty or convention on behalf of his or her sovereign. When used as a noun more generally, the word ' ...

instruments relating to the

Treaties of the European Union The Treaties of the European Union are a set of international treaties between the European Union (EU) member states which sets out the EU's constitutional basis. They establish the various EU institutions together with their remit, procedures a ...

References

Sources

* * *

Citations

{{reflist

External links

Photograph of the model of the seal of the President of Ireland

ARP/3006: "Full Size Sketch showing Decoration of Harp"
made in 1943 from the Presidential Seal for the seal of the Air Raid Precautions branch
Oireachtas debates on the Presidential Seal Bill 1937
National symbols of the Republic of Ireland

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

Seal Seal may refer to any of the following: Common uses * Pinniped, a diverse group of semi-aquatic marine mammals, many of which are commonly called seals, particularly: ** Earless seal, or "true seal" ** Fur seal * Seal (emblem), a device to impr ...

Musical instruments in art

Design

Use

See also

References

Sources

Citations

External links