<I>Slave Trade (Execrable Human Traffick, or The Affectionate Slaves)</I>
date: label: Date
content: ca. 1788
name: label: Created by
content: George Morland, English, 1763 - 1804
notes: label: Description
content: An oil painting with wood frame depicting a scene of a man being captured from his family by slave traders on the coast of Africa.
label: Description
content: The central man, wearing an off-white loincloth, is held by each arm by two other men. The man on the left wears a light-colored jacket and pants with a light-colored hat. The hat has a flat brim and a red cloth tied around the crown. The man has a matching red cloth around his neck. He has both hands around the upper arm of the man in the loincloth. On the man's other side is a figure is a pale blue frock coat. This figure holds a long club over his head in his right hand. His left hand grasps the upper arm of the man in the loincloth. On the other side of the man in the blue frockcoat is a woman and small child. The woman wears a long off-white skirt wrapped around her waist. She looks back over her right shoulder at the man in the loincloth while placing her left hand on the shoulder of the small child in front of her. The child, wearing a white shift with the sleeves rolled up, stands facing the woman with arms reaching upwards. Standing next to the two of them is man in a tan colored coat and pants. Under the coat he wears a grey waist coat and white ruffled cravat. He has a wide brimmed hat and a sword at his left hip. He has his right arm behind the woman and his left arm held out wide to his left side. In the foreground in front of them is a small wooden boat pulled up on the shore. A young boy stands on the shore pulling the boat in by a chain attached to the bow. The boy wears a light brown jacket over a blue and white striped shirt and khaki pants. Behind the boy is a large white dog with black spots who gazes upwards at the man in the white loincloth. Seated within the small rowboat are two men. One man, wearing a white loincloth, is shackled at the wrists and holds his head in his hands. Seated behind him is a man dressed in dark brown with a brown hat, his face turned slightly away. In the background on the left margin of the painting is a large multiple-masted ship. There is another small rowboat pulled up on the shore with several other individuals in it, one of whom is supporting a figure who is slumped forward with his head in his heads. To the right in the distance are several other individuals in white loincloths with their arms behind their backs walking up a low hill. The painting is in a gilded wood frame. The frame has a scalloped edge with cut-out sections. There are stylized acanthus leaves at the corners and foliage at the center margins.
place: label: Place made
content: England, Europe
label: Place depicted
content: Africa
topic: label: Topic
content: African American
label: Topic
content: Africa
label: Topic
content: Antislavery
label: Topic
content: Art
label: Topic
content: Slavery
label: Topic
content: Trans Atlantic slave trade
label: Topic
content: Violence
setName: label: See more items in
content: National Museum of African American History and Culture Collection
label: Classification
content: Visual Arts
label: Classification
content: Slavery and Freedom Objects
label: Movement
content: Abolitionist movement
creditLine: label: Credit Line
content: Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: National Museum of African American History and Culture
identifier: label: Object number
content: 2010.8.1ab
objectType: label: Type
content: oil paintings
objectRights: label: Restrictions & Rights
content: Public Domain
label: Restrictions & Rights
content: Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.
physicalDescription: label: Medium
content: oil on canvas with wood frame
label: Dimensions
content: H x W (unframed): 33 1/2 × 48 1/2 in. (85.1 × 123.2 cm)
label: Dimensions
content: H x W x D (framed): 43 1/4 × 56 7/8 × 2 3/4 in. (109.9 × 144.5 × 7 cm)