Description
- Abstract:
- The Ark of Return serves as a memorial to honor the victims of slavery and the transatlantic slave trade. Constructed from white marble, the memorial is a triangular structure with clean geometric lines and faceted surfaces, giving it a modern yet solemn appearance. A triangular portal in the structure allows visitors to walk through the interior. At the entryway, a reflecting pool engraved with the words "Lest we forget" invites visitors to offer prayers and libations. Inside, a map highlighting the African continent is inscribed on the wall, with the words, "Acknowledge the Tragedy." Nearby, a robed statue of a human figure—sculpted from black Zimbabwean granite—lies horizontally within a triangular space carved into the wall. This figure symbolizes the millions of enslaved individuals, their suffering, and the triangular slave route. Beneath the figure, another inscription reads: "Consider the legacy." On the opposite wall, diagrams carved in low relief depict hundreds of enslaved people crammed inside a typical English slave ship, further emphasizing the brutal conditions endured during the Middle Passage.
- Notes:
- "The Ark of Return": The Permanent Memorial at the United Nations in Honour of the Victims of Slavery and the Transatlantic Slave Trade (New York, 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
- CC BY-NC-ND 4.0
- Restrictions on Use
- Collection is open for research.
Citation
Ater, Renée,
"'The Ark of Return': The Permanent Memorial at the United Nations in Honour of the Victims of Slavery and the Transatlantic Slave Trade (New York, New York)"
(2015).
Transatlantic Slave Trade.
Brown Digital Repository. Brown University Library.
https://repository.library.brown.edu/studio/item/bdr:t5fndyw2/
Relations
Collection:
-
Transatlantic Slave Trade
...This collection focuses on commemorative works dedicated to the transatlantic slave trade and the Middle Passage. Between the sixteenth and nineteenth centuries, between ten million and twelve million enslaved Africans were forcibly taken across the Atlantic Ocean to the Americas. …