Oval Slave Emancipation Society medallion, the design based on the seal of the committee. The medallion is in beige jasperware with applied figure of a kneeling slave and suspension hole. Legend: 'AM I NOT A MAN AND A BROTHER'.
The master potter and industrialist, Josiah Wedgwood, first produced his famous medallion for the London Abolition Committee in 1787. The design was based on a seal created by an eight-man sub-committee. William Hackwood, an expert sculptor and moulder who worked for the Wedgwood company for 63 years, translated the image into the famous medallion relief. The design proved immediately popular and effective. It served as a rallying icon for the abolition campaign, being adapted into myriad forms. Wedgwood, with his commercial skills and many influential contacts, joined the London Abolition Committee in 1791, becoming a very useful member.