African-American diplomat, abolitionist and writer Frederick Douglass (1817-1895) escaped from slavery in Maryland aged 21. He became a national leader of the abolitionist movement. Famous for his oratory and incisive antislavery writings, he was described by abolitionists as a living counterexample to slaveholders' arguments that slaves lacked the intellectual capacity to function as independent American citizens. The wet plate ambrotype plates are housed in a folding leather case with tooled gilt oval mat and red velvet lining.

---

Size: 9796px × 6556px
Photo credit: © Heritage Images / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No

Keywords: /, 19th, abolition, abolitionist, african, african-american, afro-american, ambrotype, ambrotypes, america, american, art, augustus, author, bailey, black, bw, case, century, collodion, color, colour, commissary, concept, country, cultural, culture, diplomat, douglass, education, educational, enslaved, frame, framed, frederick, glass, heritage, history, institution, job, leather, location, museum, national, nineteenth, nmaahc, occupation, people, person, photograph, photographic, photography, plates, portable, portrait, portraits, profession, scientific, silver, slave, slavery, smithsonian, states, united, unknown, usa, velvet, washington, white, writer