Key for rigid speed handcuffs manufactured by Hiatt and Company
date: label: Date
content: 2000s
name: label: Created 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: One (1) small nickel key for the locking mechanism of the rigid speed handcuffs, "Model 2103 Speedcuff," manufactured by Hiatt & Co. Ltd. (NMAAHC 2024.23.1.1). This is one of a two-key set and features an open ring base with a small straight end and straight front length with notched key.
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: 2024.23.1.3
objectType: label: Type
content: keys (hardware)
label: Type
content: handcuffs
objectRights: label: Restrictions & Rights
content: Unknown – Restrictions Possible
label: Restrictions & Rights
content: Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.
physicalDescription: label: Medium
content: nickel
label: Dimensions
content: H x W x D: 1 7/8 × 1 × 1/16 in. (4.7 × 2.5 × 0.2 cm)
label: Dimensions
content: Diameter: 1 in. (2.5 cm)