Introduction

The papers collected in this volume are a product of the second conference on Ireland's Great Hunger held at Quinnipiac University in 2005. That conference, focused on the themes of representation and preservation, brought together forty-five scholars from around the world to discuss various aspects of the Famine and its aftermath.

Following the conference, the complete An Gorta Mór collection of Quinnipiac's famine commemorative art was placed on display for the first time in the University’s Alumni Hall. The An Gorta Mór collection is on permanent display in the University’s Arnold Bernhard Library and in other buildings across the University’s Mount Carmel campus.

Scope of the Volume

This volume, focused on the theses of relief, representation, and remembrance, contains essays from a broad range of disciplines including works of history, literary criticism, anthropology, and art history.