Mar 28, 2019 - Sale 2503

Sale 2503 - Lot 94

Price Realized: $ 1,000
?Final Price Realized includes Buyer’s Premium added to Hammer Price
Estimate: $ 800 - $ 1,200
(SLAVERY AND ABOLITION.) Rogers, John; sculptor. The Fugitive's Story. Plaster, 22 inches high, with a 12 x 16-inch base, captioned in the mold on base; moderate wear, light restoration, with what appear to be 3 generations of black paint, Rogers signature in the mold not visible (perhaps due to overpainting), a few small chips and moderate soiling. New York: John Rogers, patented 7 September 1869

Additional Details

An unnamed fugitive from slavery holds her baby as she tells her story to three concerned abolitionists at a desk, identified as John Greenleaf Whittier, Henry Ward Beecher, and William Lloyd Garrison. Wrapped around her and the baby is a tattered shawl; at her feet, a bag with all of her earthly belongings. The sculptor John Rogers (1829-1904) produced a series of these "Rogers Group" pieces which were immensely popular with middle-class families.