Ireland's 12,000 banned books to be relocated to National Archives

12,000 books that were once banned by the State will be transferred to the National Archives, where they will be displayed for public viewing.

The books are currently housed in the Department of Justice's Home Affairs and Migration Headquarters on Stephen's Street, Dublin. They will be moved as part of a repeal on censorship laws.

Iconic Irish writers like Edna O'Brien, Brendan Behan, and Oscar Wilde feature in the collection. O'Brien's The Country Girls was banned in 1960, swiftly after its publication. The book was banned by the Irish Censorship of Publications Board allegedly due to its depiction of female sexuality and desire. Brendan Behan's autobiographical Borstal Boy was banned in 1958, allegedly due to its exploration of Irish nationalism and colonial institutions. Oscar Wilde's The Picture of Dorian Gray, published in 1890, was banned due to its exploration of homosexuality and themes of moral corruption.

The exhibition will also feature ledgers that outline individual reasons for why each book was banned, this will be the first time they are available for public viewing.

The Committee for Evil Literature was originally established in 1926, and examined whether the state should have the power to restrict or ban certain media in the interest of public morality. This led to the Censorship of Publication Act 1929, which prohibited the sale and distribution of "unwholesome literature." People were encouraged to report material they deemed inappropriate to the Board.

Dr Brian Hughes, a senior lecturer of History at Mary Immaculate College, gave an insight into the collection.

"The general public would recommend publications for review, which required sending copies to the Board. They would also receive copies of books that had been seized at customs for review."

"Very early in the Board's history, in the 1930s, it took out a subscription to the Times Book Club as a means of getting access to material that it could then review and make a decision on, or make a recommendation to the minister on."

Orlaith McBride, Director of the National Archive, reflected on how society has changed since the 1920s.

"I think attitudes in society have changed very significantly. So there's no reason anymore for any of these books to be considered banned.

"I think people would be very surprised, seeing or reading some of these books, that they were banned at all in the first place because attitudes are quite different now.

"I think it shows that Ireland is a much more secular society because we can very clearly see, in the early years of the Censorship of Publications Act, the influence of the Church on decisions being taken by the State, particularly in terms of legislation that was being introduced.

"Now, 100 years later, what you can see is an absolute separation in that regard."

A date is yet to be confirmed for when the books will be available for public viewing.