Anti-slavery jug, early 1800s
Anti-slavery pottery was made in Britain in the early 1800s to support the growing movement to abolish slavery. Pieces were aimed at women and designed to appeal to their âmaternalâ instincts. That is why this jug is printed with a picture of an enslaved woman holding her baby.
The most common design for anti-slavery pottery was the print on the other side of this jug â the kneeling slave. This emblem was used by abolitionists to promote their cause.
The public supported the abolition of the slave trade by buying objects with the kneeling slave symbol. Medallions showing the symbol were especially popular. Over 200 000 were made. Clay pipes and tobacco boxes decorated with the kneeling slave symbol were sold. Their purpose was to remind people that the tobacco they smoked was grown by plantation slaves.
The kneeling slave image showed Africans as passive, begging Europeans for their release from slavery. This was intended to provoke sympathy from Europeans. The reality was very different. Many Africans actively fought against their own enslavement.
