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EXEMPLARY & COMPLETE SLAVE HIRE BADGE COLLECTION

Currency:USD Category:Collectibles Start Price:300,000.00 USD Estimated At:600,000.00 - 700,000.00 USD
EXEMPLARY & COMPLETE SLAVE HIRE BADGE COLLECTION
OF HARRY S. HUTCHINS JR. Copper alloy slave hire badges were made only in Charleston, South Carolina & only between the years 1800 & 1865. This collection has several examples, in many cases, for every year. Badges were contracted with the city of Charleston each year & were made by eight different makers over their 65 years of use. The first 28 years badges were marked with the cartouche of the maker. Over the years badges changed in shape & size. By law the badges had to be worn by slaves working on hire within the city of Charleston & Charleston Neck. Only a small percentage of the slave population was hired out, approx. 25% at a peak, meaning that these slaves had more autonomy & freedom of movement. Indeed, the badges represented a symbolic ticket to another way of life. Those wearing badges could act as if they were free. If a slave put on a badge, he or she could act as his or her master. Generally the portion of the Charleston population who had slave badges were good workers, often with special skills such as butchers, blacksmiths, bricklayers, carpenters, tailors & other mechanical skills. Often hired out slaves that had free time & they could sell their skills on the market; often to the disdain of white tradesmen with the same occupations who felt the slaves were taking money out of their pockets. Slaves earning money on their own could buy their freedom, at least until 1820. After 1820 it was illegal to free a slave in South Carolina without an act of the legislature. Between 1820 & the end of the Civil War only 5 or 6 slaves were freed in South Carolina. Black slave owners circumvented the law by having their chosen slave pay the yearly capitalization tax allowing them to live as a free person of color. In 1830 there were over 2,000 slaves owned by free black slave owners in Charleston alone. At the beginning of the Civil War the police were harassing free blacks who could not easily prove they were free. To feel safe, no doubt, some bought badges so they could walk freely in the city. After 1820 when a slave owner could not free their slaves, an owner could buy a yearly badge; in effect giving the slave their freedom. This collection of 146 slave hire badges includes examples from each year they were used in Charleston. These unique artifacts are symbols representing the most industrious & trusted slaves from 1800 to 1865. Of over 600 run away slave advertisements in Charleston only 15 of these runaways were slave hire badge holders. To date there has been no finer collection of slave hire badges. It would be difficult, if not impossible, to duplicate the quality of the badges & the number of them in this collection. There are so many rare & unique badges in this collection that a complete list & detail of each badge is available on request with detailed photographs. UNATTACHED ACCESSORIES: hardcover book entitled "Slave Badges and the Slave-Hire System in Charleston, South Carolina, 1783-1865" by authors Harlan Greene, Harry S. Hutchins Jr. and Brian E. Hutchins. CONDITION: badges overall are above average for similar badges found elsewhere. Each individual badge has been assigned a grade from good to excellent. Most badges grade very good or better & many excellent. Most all slave badges are excavated & have some ground action w/ a mix of patinas found on copper. There are 11 badges in this collection that have restoration. Many badges excavated have been folded or at least creased. Badges were meant to be discarded or destroyed each year and copper was valuable. Scarcity of metal in the early & last years caused reuse of old badges which is explained in detail on the list of each individual badge. Unfolding greatly disturbs the copper alloy surface & once folded requires chemical patination by a conservator or restorer. Only 2 badges in this collection were unfolded & repatinated. 9 Additional badges have been repatinated after creases on holes repaired. This represents less than 8% of the total in this collection. 1803 Servant no. 624 has a repaired hole, 1806 servant no. 4 had to be unbent & flattened & has a matching artificial patina applied. 9 Other badges have patina added & were flattened: 1816 mechanic no. 39, 1817 porter no. 51, 1818 mechanic no. 248, 1822 servant no. 1048, 1823 fisher no. 88, 1844 fruiterer no. 80, 1844 porter no. 337, 1850 porter no. 75, 1863 porter no. 92/1862 & no. 98. (02-13438/JS). $600,000-700,000.