16 minute read
Freedom Fighters: Why abolitionist artefacts, including Wedgwood’s famous medallion, are making waves at auction rooms around the world
FREEDOM fight
Artefacts from the abolitionist movement are being acquired by cultural institutions and collectors, shining a light on one of the darkest periods in history
When Salisbury auctioneers Woolley & Wallis recently offered eight pieces of 19th-century pottery produced to further the cause of the anti-slavery movement in Britain, the pre-sale expectation was £1,800.
However, the day of the September 8 sale quickly saw strong demand with in-room and internet bidding pushing the total to more than 10 times the estimate, before finally reaching close to £20,000.
The selection of pottery cups, jugs and plates under the hammer, featured emotive imagery of enslaved African figures appealing for freedom, was part of a collection of commemorative ware from Robin Simpson chronicling 150 years of British history.
The price achieved reflected a long overdue and burgeoning desire among cultural institutions to ensure the story of one of the most tragic chapters in human history is fully presented to modern-day audiences, including physical artefacts and art from the era.
Woolley and Wallis ceramics specialist, Clare Durham, said: “The sudden leap in prices has been entirely driven by museums trying to redress the balance of white art in their collections.
“Recent events have rightly caused many institutions to try and improve their collections in relation to Black history, meaning that they are all chasing the same pieces as they come to market.”
Opposite page Am I Not a Man and a Brother?, anti-slavery medallion, white terracotta and black basalt, made at Josiah Wedgwood’s factory, Staffordshire, 1787. V&A Wedgwood Collection © V&A, London.
Above Anti-slavery medallion, jasper, made at Josiah Wedgwood’s factory, Staffordshire, 1787. V&A Wedgwood Collection, image © Fiskars
Above right Storage jar, 1858, by the enslaved African American potter and poet David Drake. Image courtesy the Metropolitan Museum of Art
Left A small pearlware nursery mug, c.1825, printed in black with a chained and kneeling figure, the reverse with four lines of verse, 6.6cm. Sold for £2,100 at Woolley & Wallis in September 2021
DRAKE’S PROGRESS
David Drake was an African American potter born into slavery on a South Carolina plantation in c.1800. He lived in Edgefield (known locally as ‘Pottersville’) for most of his life, working in the town’s 12 pottery factories producing alkaline-glazed stoneware jugs between 1820 and 1870.
More than 30 pieces include rare examples of his poems, mostly in rhyming couplets, alongside his signature inscribed into the surface. During this time period it was punishable for enslaved people to be literate, especially in South Carolina.
In his lifetime, Drake was enslaved by various owners. In 1849, Lewis Miles, the owner of the Stony Bluff’ ceramics factory, bought and enslaved him. At this factory Drake produced a large number of wares, some of which contained his poetry. He was eventually freed after the Civil War and is thought to have died during the 1870s.
Drake’s work is highly sought after by collectors and institutions today and commands high prices when it occasionally comes up at auction. One example is held by the Metropolitan Museum of Art and is inscribed: this jar is to Mr Segler who keeps the bar in orangeburg / for Mr Edwards a Gentle man — who formly kept / Mr thos bacons horses / April 21 1858, When you fill this Jar with pork or beef / Scot will be there; to get a peace, - / Dave’
This August, a huge 25-gallon stoneware jar by Drake was sold by US auction house Crocker Farm, setting a new record for US ceramics with a hammer of $1,300,000 (£960,700).
STRONG DEMAND
With the global Black Lives Matter movement highlighting the challenges faced by black people both historically and in contemporary society, similar activity around antique abolitionist artefacts and mementoes has been witnessed in other recent sales.
Ignatius Sancho
One of the earliest first-hand accounts of slavery, by the first Briton of African descent known to vote in England, was sold at Gloucestershire auctioneer Chorley’s in January 2020, fetching £3,500.
While accounts vary about his place of birth (c.1729) between Africa and on a slave ship in the Atlantic, the British abolitionist, writer and composer was later sent to England, where after many years of slavery, he was able to start his own business as a shopkeeper while also writing essays, plays and books.
In 1768, as a valet to George Brudenell, the Duke of Montagu, his portrait was painted by Thomas Gainsborough.
Sancho also became a devout supporter of the British abolitionist movement and was the first known Black Briton to vote in England and also to have an obituary published in the British press following his death in 1780.
In 1782, Frances Crewe, one of Sancho’s correspondents, arranged for 160 of his letters to be published in the form of two volumes entitled The Letters of the Late Ignatius Sancho, An African, recounting his experiences as a slave.
Olaudah Equiano
Enslaved in his native West Africa at the age of 11 and transported to the Caribbean, and from there to Virginia, Olaudah Equiano (c. 1745–1797) rose to prominence in the late 18th century.
After being resold to a British naval lieutenant, Equiano spent many years aboard naval ships, also learning to read and write. When he was resold to a Quaker, Robert King, he was able, by agreement, to save enough money to buy his freedom.
In the ensuing years, Equiano was able to live as a freeman in London, later marry in Cambridgeshire and, in 1780, publish his hugely successful account of his experiences, entitled The Interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano or Gustavus Vassa, the African. The book was reprinted in nine editions during his lifetime.
Right A pearlware porter mug, c.1885, printed in black with an African figure standing with arms outstretched in a tropical landscape surmounted by a heavenly shroud inscribed ‘Wilberforce’, 11.2cm. Sold for £2,800 at Woolley & Wallis in September 2021
Below Block mould for anti-slavery medallion, biscuit ware, made at Josiah Wedgwood’s factory, Staffordshire, ca. 1787. V&A Wedgwood Collection. © Fiskars
Bottom left Antislavery medallion, caneware, made at Josiah Wedgwood’s factory, Staffordshire, 1787. V&A Wedgwood Collection. © Fiskars
Bottom right Block mould for anti-slavery medallion, biscuit ware and wax, made at Josiah Wedgwood’s factory, Staffordshire, ca.1787. V&A Wedgwood Collection. Image © Fiskars
Earlier this year, Gloucestershire auction house Chorley’s sold a rare two-volume first edition of The Letters of the late Ignatius Sancho, an African published in 1782. The book by the accomplished black writer, composer and supporter of the abolitionist movement, shot above its upper estimate of £400 to finally hammer at an impressive £3,500.
WEDGWOOD MEDALLION
The 19th century saw Britain pass two laws that finally brought an end to slavery in the country
and across its far-reaching empire: the 1807 Slave Trade Act and The Slavery Abolition Law of 1833. It represented a victory after decades of pressure and campaigning by a number of sympathetic individuals and groups determined to end the shameful practice.
One of the most prominent figures in the abolitionist fight was the ‘father of English potters’, Josiah Wedgwood (1730-1795). In 1787, Wedgwood decided to throw his considerable status and influence behind the cause.
He set about employing his workshop and bottle ovens to produce ceramic medallions which displayed a simple and effective message taken from the seal of the Committee for the Abolition of the Slave Trade, of which he was a member. Each medallion depicted the image of a kneeling and chained black man uttering the plea: Am I Not a Man and a Brother?
MEDAL WINNER
The Wedgwood medallion was to become the most famous image of a black person in 18th-century art, with the proprietor meeting the costs of its production.
In the next decade, thousands of medallions were handed out for free at abolitionist meetings, as well as being distributed in coffee shops, public assembly rooms, taverns and at reading societies.
They soon became fashionable items to be worn in a variety of ways in order to show support for the cause. The design, most likely created by Wedgwood’s chief modeller, William Hackwood, was also adapted for use within such items as shoe buckles, brooches and snuff boxes among anti-slavery advocates.
In his History of the Abolition of the Slave Trade, Vol. II, 1807, the noted campaigner and friend of Wedgwood, Thomas Clarkson, observed how ladies “…had them inlaid in gold on the lids of their snuffboxes. Of the ladies, several wore them as bracelets, and others had them fitted up in an ornamental manner as pins for their hair.”
BENJAMIN FRANKLIN
Elsewhere, the image was incorporated into numerous items made from materials ranging from ceramic and glass, to fabric and metal. It even became an international symbol of protest when, in 1778, Wedgwood sent medallions to the revered American polymath, activist and founding father of the US, Benjamin Franklin, who was president of the Pennsylvania Society for the Abolition of Slavery.
In an accompanying letter, Wedgwood wrote: “It gives me great pleasure to be embarked on this occasion in the same great and good cause with you, and I ardently hope for the final completion of
Top A small pearlware lustre jug, c.1830, printed in black with a seated figure in chains beside the titled Am I Not a Man and Brother? 11.5cm. Sold for £900 at Woolley & Wallis in September 2021
Above Anti-slavery medallion, jasperware made at Wedgwood’s factory, Staffordshire, 1787. V&A Wedgwood Collection. Image © Fiskars
our wishes.” To which Franklin replied: “I am persuaded [the medallion] may have an Effect equal to that of the best written Pamphlet in procuring favour to those oppressed people.”
Sadly, Wedgwood did not live to see his efforts to abolish slavery come to fruition. However, both his daughter, Sarah, and son, Josiah Wedgwood II, took up his campaigning zeal. In 1825, Sarah was a founding member of Birmingham Ladies Society for the Relief of Negro Slaves, while Josiah became the city’s first MP elected on his call to abolish slavery.
Today, these medallions are sought after by collectors worldwide. Sotheby’s recently sold a jasperware medallion for £6,000 against an upper estimate of £1,200.
One of the earliest known examples of the medallion can be seen this autumn at the V&A Wedgwood Collection at the World of Wedgwood, Barlaston, Stoke-on-Trent. It is being shown alongside the collection’s archival material, including Wedgwood’s correspondence with prominent Black abolitionist and writer, Olaudah Equiano. Wedgwood collection curator, Catrin Jones, said: “Wedgwood’s protest symbol inspired a generation and still has an enduring relevance in our contemporary world.”
CALLED TO BOOK
John Ryan, a specialist at rare book dealership Peter Harrington, reveals the key role played by the printed word in the abolitionist movement
It was through the medium of print that the abolitionist message could spread so widely and impact so deeply. Whether the autobiography of a freed slave, a detailed exposition of the conditions aboard the slave ships, a fiery pamphlet, or a printing of a parliamentary speech, print presented the British public with the reality that had long been ignored. Much of this material, the relics of the movement, has been lost over the ensuing two centuries, with much of it cheaply printed to sway the public opinion of the day, not to endure in archives and great libraries. Nonetheless, books and documents from the movement continually enter the market, often appearing out of the blue, whether from a great library hitting the auction block, or a rare find in an attic clear out.
Supply and demand
This material is eagerly competed for by a growing market of institutions and private collectors, particularly in recent years. Demand is especially strong from university and museum collections in Britain and the United States, which are consciously expanding their holdings in fields relating to black history, some developing collections from scratch. So, too, a growing number of private individuals. However, the new collector can easily be bewildered by the range of material and the varying prices.
A novice approaching the field can be guided by a few basic principles, in particular, two words can stand them in good stead: edition and condition. Both have many caveats, but the most desirable copy of any book is always the first edition, in either a contemporary binding or the original boards/wrappers, neither needing, nor having undergone, any restoration. In short, the book should look, as far as possible, as it did on the first day of publication, when it first began to make its mark on the raging slavery debate.
Above The Interesting Narrative of The Life of Olaudah Equiano, 1789, sold by Peter Harrington, priced £12,500. The frontispiece depicts Equiano in the clothes of an English gentleman, book in hand, an image of an African utterly alien to its British readership. Image courtesy Peter Harrington
Right William Wilberforce, A Letter on the Abolition of the Slave Trade, 1807. A presentation copy, inscribed “From the author” – but by a secretary on behalf of Wilberforce. Sold by Peter Harrington for £5,500. Image courtesy Peter Harrington
Shared humanity
While first editions have always been sought after by book collectors as they represent the first appearance of important texts, for abolitionist material, this often has additional significance. As mentioned in the image inset, one of the defining books of the abolitionist struggle is The Interesting Narrative of Olaudah Equiano, the extraordinary autobiography of a former slave, who gained his freedom and joined the abolitionist cause. The first edition marks a historic milestone: it was almost certainly the first book by an African author which its audience read, demonstrating to the Briton of 1789 not just their shared humanity with the enslaved persons, but so too their intellectual equality, disproving dominant narratives about the inherent savagery of Africans.
The first edition is a prize for any collector, but so too is it extraordinarily rare. Peter Harrington last handled a copy in 2007, retailed at £12,500, a price now looking modest. With first edition copies so difficult to acquire – requiring perhaps years of searching and certainly a five-figure budget – later editions can fill the gap, offering more affordable alternatives. The second edition of Equiano’s autobiography achieved $9,000 at Swann auctions in 2012, and even the eighth edition achieved £1,150 at Keys auctioneers in 2016.
With the edition cemented in a collector’s mind, next comes condition. Unless through absolute necessity, any incomplete copy – that is, lacking leaves or plates – must be avoided. Damaged books, crude restoration, and hardwearing but often clunky library bindings, should all be
resisted and it is always well worth paying the premium for the nicest copies.
Books of the period were generally first issued in paper boards or wrappers and it is this original state which is the ideal for most collectors. Such books were intended to be rebound in something more durable, however some escaped the binder, presenting the collector with a copy as it first appeared.
Where important works by leading figures, such as by the great parliamentarian William Wilberforce, or by the great street campaigner and researcher Thomas Clarkson, are found in original bindings, the price can often be multiple times that of a copy in a later binding.
With the rarest books, perfect condition is unnecessary. Moreover, copies which have been annotated, read, and passed from hand to hand should not be spurned – they are more interesting than those in flawless condition and never read, even if often less valuable. Edition and condition should be the collector’s mantra, but there is a class of books which transcend this – the inscribed copy.
Sometimes copies were inscribed by the author, or their publisher or secretary. Either is equally a true presentation copy, but the author’s own hand is always preferred. The copy of Thomas Clarkson’s History of the Rise, Progress, and Accomplishment of the Abolition of the African SlaveTrade, 1808, which he presented to William Wilberforce with an inscription calling him: an unwearied Fellow-Labour[er] and the parliamentary Leader in the great Cause of the Abolition of the Slave-Trade, made £3,500 at Forum Auctions in 2017, a price that now looks like a bargain.
Challenging and uncomfortable
Certain books bring the cruelty of the slave trade into stark focus. One of the defining images of the period is the diagram of the slave ship, with hundreds of persons packed like sardines. The diagram was presented as evidence to a Parliamentary inquiry into slavery, and afterwards published for the public. While challenging to see, it is an essential addition to any collection of scope.
Right A handwritten letter from William Pitt the Younger to William Eden, on sale at Peter Harrington for £8,500
Left Thomas Clarkson, An Essay on the Impolicy of the African Slave Trade, 1788. Sold by Peter Harrington, priced £2,250. An example of a significant work, retaining its original paper board binding. Image courtesy Peter Harrington
Below right An Abstract of the Evidence delivered before a Select Committee ... on the part of the Petitioners for the Abolition of the SlaveTrade, 1791. Sold by Peter Harrington, priced £6,500. Image courtesy Peter Harrington
William Pitt
In this handwritten letter from 1787, prime minister William Pitt the Younger – a staunch supporter of abolition – writes to William Eden, Britain’s envoy to France, requesting that he sound out the possibility of the British and French governments collaborating to end the slave trade. Had Eden’s task been successful, the slave trade would have ended two decades earlier. However, Pitt failed to end the trade during his time as prime minister and died in 1806 one year before its abolition.
Passage to the past
Finally, it is worth noting that though high demand and diminishing supply has increased prices, there is still a multitude of more minor works that can often be found for lower prices.
Abolitionist chapters, passages and influences can be found in many works from the period, which may go unnoticed by booksellers and auction houses. Collectors who play the detective can establish a valuable collection, and may discover new works, formerly overlooked, to add to the abolitionist canon.
Peter Harrington was established in 1969, and is one of the world’s leading dealers in rare books. Find out more at www.peterharrington.co.uk
