ExhibitionTimelineTriviaClassroom Resources

Freedom

David Drake, Twenty-Five Gallon Four-Handled Stoneware Jar, 1858, stoneware with alkaline glaze, 24 1/2 x 24 1/4 x 24 1/4 in. Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art, Bentonville, Arkansas, 2021.29. Photography by Edward C. Robison III.

Additional Resources

Blog - Crystal Bridges Acquires 1858 Jar with Poem Created by David Drake

David Drake
Twenty-Five Gallon Four-Handled Stoneware Jar

  • For whom do you think this was made? Where do you think it might have been displayed?
  • David Drake, an enslaved potter and poet, made enormous stoneware pots inscribed with original poetic verses. If you had ten to fifteen words to leave your mark, what would you say? Who would your message be for?

“A very Large Jar which has 4 handles
pack it full of fresh meats then light candles.”

David Drake was a highly skilled potter and poet. Twenty-Five Gallon Four Handled Stoneware Jar is remarkable for both its scale and beautiful poem incised across the surface. Drake’s poem reveals the history of the jar as a tool in meat production but is especially significant because it was illegal for him, a man born into slavery in South Carolina, to read and write during his lifetime.

  • What causes change in unjust situations? Why would Drake write on his pottery and risk persecution? How do you react when you are put in a situation you find unfair, unjust, and/or morally wrong?
  • What is the difference between a right and a privilege? Do you think learning to read and write is a right or a privilege? Why do you think so?
  • Why is it important to protect freedom of speech? When, if ever, is it necessary to limit free speech?

Content Contributors

Exhibition sponsored by Kenneth C. Griffin

Learning and engagement programming for
We the People: The Radical Notion of Democracy is sponsored by:

Sarah and Ross Perot, Jr. Foundation | Mitchell, Williams, Selig, Gates, & Woodyard, P.L.L.C. | Johnny and Jeanie Morris, Bass Pro Shops | Alturas Foundation | Harriet and Warren Stephens, Stephens Inc. | Sotheby’s | Bob and Becky Alexander | Marybeth and Micky Mayfield | Lamar and Shari Steiger | Jeff and Sarah Teague / Citizens Bank | Arkansas Humanities Council and the National Endowment for the Humanities | Avis and Bill Bailey | Scarlett and Neff Basore | June Carter Family | Terri and Chuck Erwin | Jackye and Curtis Finch | The Harrison and Rhonda French Family | Jim and Susan von Gremp | Laurice Hachem | Shannon and Charles Holley | Valorie and Randy Lawson / Lawco Energy Group | Donna and Mack McLarty | Steve and Susan Nelson | Neal and Gina Pendergraft | Helen Porter | JT and Imelda Rose | Lee and Linda Scott | Stella Boyle Smith Trust, Catherine and Michael Mayton, Trustees | William Reese Company

600 Museum Way,
Bentonville, AR 72712

(479) 418-5700

Sat - Mon | Wed

10am — 5pm

Thu | Fri

10am — 8pm

Tue

Closed

Closed Thanksgiving and Christmas. Crystal Bridges trails and grounds open daily from sunrise to sunset.

507 SE E St,
Bentonville, AR 72712

(479) 367-7500

Tue — Thu | Sun

10am — 6pm

Friday | Sat

11am — 8pm

Mon

Closed

Closed Thanksgiving and Christmas.

Terms & ConditionsPrivacy PolicyAccessibility Statement

© 2023 Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art