A Captive
Entry ID
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44 (13/01/2022)
Formal title of the work
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A Captive
Description of the sculpture
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Bronze figure made in France in the 1660s. It is probably one of a pair made to decorate a clock or piece of furniture and possibly meant to represent one of the four continents. The figure poses on one knee with wrists manacled together and wears 'native' dress with feathers, headdress, shield, quiver and arrow.
URLs where this is recorded/available
Type of object
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Statuette
Base
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Base present - may be a later replacement
Dimensions
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Height: 22.2 cm
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Width: ? cm
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Depth: ? cm
Materials
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Bronze
Specific techniques used
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Casting
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Patination
Overall colour
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Monochrome – gold
Does the Black person have a specific identity?
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Anonymous: generic/idealised type
Attributes
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Shield
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Quiver
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Arrow
Role within sculpture
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Main protagonist
Gender
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Uncertain
Age
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Adult
Status
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Enslaved
Clothing
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Wearing clothes – indigenous clothing
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Wearing clothes – ‘exotic’ clothing
Evidence of enslavement
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Manacles with/without chains
Evidence of 'exotic' status
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Feathers
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Earrings (often a single pearl)
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‘Exotic’ costume/dress
Action or activity
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Being subjugated
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Cowering
Emotional state
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Anxious/fearful
Focus of gaze of Black person
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Looking upwards
Sculptural context
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No location included/implied
Place of production
Period of production
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Seventeenth century (1600-1699)
Date of Production
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c. 1660 - 1700
Date inferred from
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Inferred from stylistic features
Original purpose
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Unknown
Original display setting
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Unknown
Current owner
Current / most recently known location
Accession number
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A.20-1950
Current rights holder
License terms for reuse
‘A Captive’ (no date), Black People in European Sculpture, accessed May 5, 2025, http://13.41.147.145/s/database/item/423
