Wilson, Branded Slave from New Orleans

1863
Not on view
On January 30, 1864, to fan the anti-slavery cause and promote the sale of abolitionist photographs, Harper’s Weekly published this carte de visite and three others as wood engravings. The newspaper also included stirring bibliographies of the emancipated slaves. The editors noted that Wilson Chinn was about sixty years old. His former master, Volsey B. Marmillion, a sugar planter near New Orleans, “was accustomed to brand his negroes, and Wilson has on his forehead the letters ‘V.B.M.’”

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Wilson, Branded Slave from New Orleans
  • Artist: Charles Paxson (American, active New York, 1860s)
  • Date: 1863
  • Medium: Albumen silver print from glass negative
  • Dimensions: Image: 3 5/16 × 2 1/16 in. (8.4 × 5.3 cm)
    Sheet: 3 5/16 × 2 1/16 in. (8.4 × 5.3 cm)
    Mount: 3 15/16 in. × 2 3/8 in. (10 × 6.1 cm)
    Frame (approx): 14 x 11 in.
  • Classification: Photographs
  • Credit Line: Purchase, Vital Projects Fund Inc. Gift, through Joyce and Robert Menschel, 2019
  • Object Number: 2019.521
  • Curatorial Department: Photographs

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