Writing Box with Wedgwood Antislavery Medallion

The leading manufacturer of ceramics in Staffordshire, Josiah Wedgwood was also a founding member of the Society for the Abolition of the Slave Trade in England. In 1787 he directed his chief modeler, William Hackwood, to create a medallion depicting a kneeling African slave in chains. Adopted as the seal of the Society, the medallions were distributed free of charge to supporters of the abolitionist movement in Europe and America.