Not currently on display at the V&A

Granville Sharp the Abolitionist Rescuing a Slave from the Hands of His Master

Oil Painting
1864 (made)
Artist/Maker

James Hayllar (1829-1920) was a successful painter best known for his portraits and his genre paintings of children. This painting depicts the prominent abolitionist and author Granville Sharp (1735-1813). The painting refers to an event in 1765 which triggered Sharp's interest in Abolition. In 1765 Sharp met Jonathan Strong, a slave seeking treatment for injuries sustained at the hands of his owner. Sharp took up Strong's case and secured his release from prison when he was arrested as an escaped slave. Following this success Sharp began to research the legal status of slaves in Britain (as opposed to in British colonies) and argued on behalf of a number of slaves in court, hence the legal setting of this painting.


Object details

Categories
Object type
TitleGranville Sharp the Abolitionist Rescuing a Slave from the Hands of His Master (assigned by artist)
Materials and techniques
Oil on canvas
Brief description
Oil painting, 'Granville Sharp the abolitionist rescuing a slave from the hands of his master' by James Hayllar, 1864.
Dimensions
  • Estimate height: 33.625in
  • Estimate width: 43.5in
  • Frame height: 1200mm
  • Frame width: 1450mm
  • Frame depth: 90mm
Dimensions taken from Summary catalogue of British Paintings, Victoria and Albert Museum, 1973
Styles
Marks and inscriptions
(Signed and dated 1864)
Credit line
Given by W. Hargreaves
Object history
Given by W. Hargreaves, 1874
Summary
James Hayllar (1829-1920) was a successful painter best known for his portraits and his genre paintings of children. This painting depicts the prominent abolitionist and author Granville Sharp (1735-1813). The painting refers to an event in 1765 which triggered Sharp's interest in Abolition. In 1765 Sharp met Jonathan Strong, a slave seeking treatment for injuries sustained at the hands of his owner. Sharp took up Strong's case and secured his release from prison when he was arrested as an escaped slave. Following this success Sharp began to research the legal status of slaves in Britain (as opposed to in British colonies) and argued on behalf of a number of slaves in court, hence the legal setting of this painting.
Associated object
Bibliographic reference
Arthur Torrington, ed. Equiano: Enslavement, resistance and abolition Birmingham: Birmingham Museum & Art Gallery, 2007. ISBN: 0709302575
Collection
Accession number
1-1874

About this object record

Explore the Collections contains over a million catalogue records, and over half a million images. It is a working database that includes information compiled over the life of the museum. Some of our records may contain offensive and discriminatory language, or reflect outdated ideas, practice and analysis. We are committed to addressing these issues, and to review and update our records accordingly.

You can write to us to suggest improvements to the record.

Suggest feedback

Record createdOctober 26, 2006
Record URL
Download as: JSONIIIF Manifest