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Storage jar
Dave (later recorded as David Drake) (American, about 1800–about 1870)
Made for: Lewis J. Miles Pottery
Made for: Lewis J. Miles Pottery
1857
Object Place: Edgefield County, South Carolina, United States
Medium/Technique
Stoneware with alkaline glaze
Dimensions
Overall: 48.3 cm (19 in.)
Overall: 45.1 cm (17 3/4 in.)
Weight: 35 lb. (15.88 kg)
Overall: 45.1 cm (17 3/4 in.)
Weight: 35 lb. (15.88 kg)
Credit Line
John H. and Ernestine A. Payne Fund, Otis Norcross Fund, funds donated by the Curators Circle: Black Arts and Artists, Elizabeth M. and John F. Paramino Fund in memory of John F. Paramino, Boston Sculptor, Harriet Otis Cruft Fund, and Seth K. Sweetser Fund, from the descendants of David Drake
Accession Number2025.339
CollectionsAmericas
In August 1857, decades after many of the works in this gallery were crafted, the poet and potter Dave (who later took the name David Drake) etched a short verse into this stoneware storage jar. As an enslaved craftsman in South Carolina, Dave lived under perilous conditions. State law prohibited enslaved people from reading and writing, and proscribed violent punishments and even death for the offense. Despite this, Dave carved his name and the date alongside an inscription that questioned his enslavers’ intentions.
“I made this Jar for cash/ Though its called lucre trash / Dave”
As a large vessel featuring a signature, text, and the date, this jar bears an unexpected resemblance to the other object of resistance in the center of this gallery: Paul Revere’s Liberty Bowl. One beacon of freedom looks back to another: Dave’s jar reminds us of the limits of liberty defined by Paul Revere and the Sons of Liberty. They fought for liberty, but only for a select group of fellow white men.
“I made this Jar for cash/ Though its called lucre trash / Dave”
As a large vessel featuring a signature, text, and the date, this jar bears an unexpected resemblance to the other object of resistance in the center of this gallery: Paul Revere’s Liberty Bowl. One beacon of freedom looks back to another: Dave’s jar reminds us of the limits of liberty defined by Paul Revere and the Sons of Liberty. They fought for liberty, but only for a select group of fellow white men.
DescriptionLarge bulbous food storage jar with open neck, handles on each side, brown alkaline glaze with irregular greenish streaks.
Signed
Signed "Lm Aug. 22, 1857 / Dave"; on other side: "I made this Jar for Cash- / though its called lucre trash / Dave" along with other identifying marks.
Provenance1857, created under conditions of slavery by Dave (later David Drake, b. about 1800 – d. about 1870) at the Stony Bluff Manufactory for Lewis J. Miles Pottery, and sold to benefit his enslaver, Lewis Miles (b. 1808 - d. 1868), Edgefield, SC. 1991, acquired by Tony L. Shank, Marion, SC; 1997, sold by Tony Shank to the MFA; 2025, deaccessioned by the MFA for restitution to the descendants of David Drake, represented by the Dave the Potter Legacy Trust; 2025, sold by the Dave the Potter Legacy Trust to the MFA. (Accession Dates: March 26, 1997 and October 23, 2025; Deaccession Date: October 16, 2025)
NOTE: In October 2025, the MFA reached an agreement with the descendants of David Drake (also known as Dave the Potter) regarding two vessels made by the enslaved potter and poet. The Museum returned one of the jars (former MFA accession no. 2011.1806) to the artist’s descendants, represented by the Dave the Potter Legacy Trust, and reacquired the present vessel (former MFA accession no. 1997.10) from them. Drake was not permitted to possess the jars and did not receive remuneration for them or exercise any control over their fate.
NOTE: In October 2025, the MFA reached an agreement with the descendants of David Drake (also known as Dave the Potter) regarding two vessels made by the enslaved potter and poet. The Museum returned one of the jars (former MFA accession no. 2011.1806) to the artist’s descendants, represented by the Dave the Potter Legacy Trust, and reacquired the present vessel (former MFA accession no. 1997.10) from them. Drake was not permitted to possess the jars and did not receive remuneration for them or exercise any control over their fate.