Storage jar
This monumental storage jar—a masterwork by the enslaved African American potter and poet David Drake—reveals his unmatched technical facility and command of language. Born into slavery at the turn of the nineteenth century, Drake worked throughout Edgefield District, South Carolina, the epicenter of alkaline-glazed stoneware in the American South in the decades before the Civil War. This vessel is inscribed with his signature, the date, and a poem of Drake’s own creation, a practice anomalous in the production of nineteenth-century stoneware in this country, and one he reserved for a very small percentage of his output. In the absence of written accounts from the hands of enslaved individuals, this jar offers a view into Drake’s regional milieu. The object boldly states its own function in the inscription: "when you fill this Jar with pork or beef / Scot will be there; to get a peace." Not only is Drake referencing the jar’s intended contents, but his creative word choice and declaration of authorship is manifest. Drake’s poetry speaks to the trauma of slavery, but also signals the agency and power of a gifted artisan in the plantation economy.
Artwork Details
- Title: Storage jar
- Maker: Dave (later recorded as David Drake) (American, ca. 1801–1870s) ; made at Stony Bluff Manufactory, Old Edgefield District, Sout
- Manufacturer: Stony Bluff Manufactory
- Date: 1858
- Culture: American
- Medium: Alkaline-glazed stoneware
- Dimensions: Height: 22 5/8 in. (57.5 cm); diameter: 27 in. (68.6 cm); circumference (widest): 72 in. (182.9 cm); 82 lbs (37.2 kg); approximately 25 gallon capacity
- Credit Line: Purchase, Ronald S. Kane Bequest, in memory of Berry B. Tracy, 2020
- Object Number: 2020.7
- Curatorial Department: The American Wing
More Artwork
Press the down key to skip to the last item.
Related Content
Perspectives
Articles, audio, and video from The Met's online magazine.
Publications
Books, guides, and catalogues published by The Met.
Research Resources
The Met provides unparalleled resources for research and welcomes an international community of students and scholars. The Met's Open Access API is where creators and researchers can connect to the The Met collection. Open Access data and public domain images are available for unrestricted commercial and noncommercial use without permission or fee.
To request images under copyright and other restrictions, please use this Image Request form.
Feedback
We continue to research and examine historical and cultural context for objects in The Met collection. If you have comments or questions about this object record, please complete and submit this form. The Museum looks forward to receiving your comments.