Description
- Abstract:
- An elder Frederick Douglass is depicted seated on a scissors chair— the armrests are adorned with the faces of open-mouthed lions, while the chair’s legs have been carved in the shape of lion’s legs. In bas-relief, the chair’s back is embellished with a widely circulated 18th-century anti-slavery medallion manufactured by the English potter Josiah Wedgwood. The design, which was likely created by the sculptor Henry Webber, features an enslaved black man, kneeling and bound by chains. The text below the figure reads “Am I not a friend and a brother?” The medallion became an important emblem of the abolitionist movement in both Britain and the United States. In Douglass's right hand, he holds the text to an 1883 speech that he delivered to mark the 20th anniversary of the Emancipation Proclamation. The speech is continued on the pavement.
- Notes:
- Frederick Douglass Circle (Hempstead, New York), Brown University Library
- Digital object made available by: Brown University Library, Center for Digital Scholarship, Box A, Brown University, Providence, RI, 02912, U.S.A., (http://library.brown.edu/)
Access Conditions
- Rights
- In Copyright
- Restrictions on Use
- Collection is open for research.
Citation
Hofstra University (Flickr),
"Frederick Douglass Circle (Hempstead, New York)"
(2008).
Black Abolitionists: Tubman, Douglass, Truth.
Brown Digital Repository. Brown University Library.
https://repository.library.brown.edu/studio/item/bdr:5mxsx9qf/
Relations
Collection:
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Black Abolitionists: Tubman, Douglass, Truth
...The monuments and memorials in this collection commemorate the extraordinary achievements of three U.S. Black abolitionist and freedom seekers: Harriet Tubman, née Araminta Ross, (c. 1822-1913); Frederick Douglass (c. 1818-1895); and Sojourner Truth (1797-1883).
Born into slavery on Maryland’s Eastern …