Engraving is divided into two parts by a roundel in the center that features a Christ-figure with a cross. The words "I come to break the bonds of the oppressors" are printed around the roundel's periphery. To the left, a black man kneels at Christ's feet. With shackled wrists, he holds his hands together in prayer. To the right, a slaveholder is positioned on the ground; most of his body is oriented away from Christ. Scene to the left of the roundel shows a slave auction, identified as such by a sign that reads "Slaves, Horses, & Other Cattle in Lots to Suit Purchase." (Versions of the sign appear in earlier Liberator mastheads.) An auctioneer stands on a raised platform over which an American flag flies; a small black child sits at his feet. Crying, the child covers his face with his hands. Several other slaves (adults and children) huddle around the rear of the platform, while a number of slaveowners stand in front of it. A courthouse (or another government building) appears in the distant background; a flag that reads "SLAVERY" waves above it. The scene to the right of the roundel depicts the emancipation of the slaves. A similar building appears in the background. In this case, however, the flag above it reads "FREEDOM." With a sea of flags, a parade (of troops?) marches through a triumphal arch marked "EMANCIPATION." In the foreground, freed slaves of varying ages cluster in front of a building that may represent a schoolhouse. Seated in a rocking chair, an eldery slave holds an infant in her out-stretched arms. A lamb, a dog, and other animals stand on the edge of the group., Masthead from the Liberator, ed. William Lloyd Garrison (Boston: Y.B. Yerrinton & Son, Printers, 1850), vol. XX, no. 22, whole no. 1012 (May 31, 1850), p. 85., Fels Afro-Americana Image Project, Anti-Slavery Movement Imagery.
Creator
Hartwell
Date
[May 1850]
Location
Library Company of Philadelphia | Books & Other Texts | Rare Per L 21 1646.F v XX n 22 May 31 1850 p 85, https://digital.librarycompany.org/islandora/object/Islandora%3A2882
