Fergus Gambon
Director
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Lot 148
A Wedgwood anti-slavery medallion, circa 1790
15 November 2017, 10:30 GMT
London, KnightsbridgeSold for £3,125 inc. premium
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Anna Burnside
Head of Sale
A Wedgwood anti-slavery medallion, circa 1790
The gift of John Bacon to William Cowper, of upright oval form and in white jasper, ornamented in black with a figure kneeling in supplication, his ankles and wrists manacled, inscribed in upper case around the edge 'Am I not a man and a brother?', in turned wooden frame, together a hand-written note of provenance, 3cm high
Footnotes
Hand-written notes accompanying this lot record that it was given by a sculptor named Bacon to the poet William Cowper. The sculptor referred to was John Bacon who created fine marble portraits and monuments and is known to have worked for Josiah Wedgwood. Wedgwood was greatly concerned by the plight of the slave and it may have been at Wedgwood's request that Bacon gave this piece to William Cowper. As a poet Cowper wrote the words for many hymns, while his best-known composition is a moving poem titled The Negro's Complaint. Written in 1788, this song talks about slavery from the perspective of the slave. Cowper gave the medallion to his cousin, in whose family this little token has passed by decent to the present owner. The modelling of this medallion has traditionally been attributed to William Hackwood but John Bacon may have been involved in the design in some way.