Handcuffs manufactured by Hiatt and Company
date: label: Date
content: 2000s
name: label: Manufactured by
content: Hiatt & Co. Ltd., British, founded 1780
notes: label: Caption
content: Produced by one of the oldest, most prolific producers of iron restraints, Hiatt and Company, these contemporary cuffs materialize a deep connection between racial slavery, the carceral state, and militarization. Established in Birmingham England, in 1780, Hiatt and Company supplied slave traders across the Atlantic with handcuffs, collars, and chains well into the 19th century—long after the abolition of slavery in Britain and the United States. Two centuries after its founding, Hiatt became the first British company to introduce the rigid cuff design seen here and now used worldwide by police and militaries.
label: Description
content: Rigid speed handcuffs, "Model 2103 Speedcuff," manufactured by Hiatt & Co. Ltd. The cuffs have a rigid, black plastic center bar and two nickel cuffs for the left and right hands with an 18-tooth swing-through design. "Hiatt" is engraved on the topside of each cuff. Opposite the brand name on one cuff is the model number "2103" and the other cuff has "228928."
label: Description
content: Associated with the cuffs are two small, nickel keys: NMAAHC 2024.23.1.2 and NMAAHC 2024.23.1.3.
place: label: Place made
content: Birmingham, England, Europe
topic: label: Topic
content: African American
label: Topic
content: Law
label: Topic
content: Prisons
label: Topic
content: Slavery
setName: label: See more items in
content: National Museum of African American History and Culture Collection
label: Classification
content: Weapons and Ammunition
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: 2024.23.1.1
objectType: label: Type
content: keys (hardware)
label: Type
content: handcuffs
objectRights: label: Restrictions & Rights
content: Unknown - Restrictions Possible
label: Restrictions & Rights
content: Rights assessment and proper usage is the responsibility of the user.
physicalDescription: label: Medium
content: nickel and plastic
label: Dimensions
content: H x W x D: 3 × 10 × 1 in. (7.6 × 25.4 × 2.5 cm)