Nkyinkyim (Montgomery, Alabama)
Dublin Core
Title
Nkyinkyim (Montgomery, Alabama)
Subject
Subject (Topic)
Alabama--Montgomery
Enslaved persons
Equal Justice Initiative
Slavery--Alabama
Transatlantic slave trade
Subject (Object)
Commemorative sculpture
Alabama--Montgomery
Enslaved persons
Equal Justice Initiative
Slavery--Alabama
Transatlantic slave trade
Subject (Object)
Commemorative sculpture
Description
Located on the grounds of The National Memorial for Peace and Justice in Montgomery, Alabama, Nkyinkyim is a sculptural grouping that is dedicated to the memory of the enslaved Africans who were victims of the transatlantic slave trade. This work depicts a coffle of seven seminude enslaved African men and women, bound by rusted shackles around their wrists, ankles, and necks.
A man and a woman kneel on the ground, their shackled arms outstretched behind their backs, as they lean forward and away from the center of the monument. Between them, a standing Black male figure leans forward, pulled by two chains binding his neck shackle to those of others. Another woman, holding a screaming baby, reaches for the arm of a male figure standing before her with a look of desperation, while he stares straight ahead, his feet firmly planted. A pair of open shackles lie at the woman’s feet. The seventh figure depicts a pregnant enslaved woman squatting low to the ground, her shackled hands outstretched behind her.
A man and a woman kneel on the ground, their shackled arms outstretched behind their backs, as they lean forward and away from the center of the monument. Between them, a standing Black male figure leans forward, pulled by two chains binding his neck shackle to those of others. Another woman, holding a screaming baby, reaches for the arm of a male figure standing before her with a look of desperation, while he stares straight ahead, his feet firmly planted. A pair of open shackles lie at the woman’s feet. The seventh figure depicts a pregnant enslaved woman squatting low to the ground, her shackled hands outstretched behind her.
Creator
Akoto-Bamfo, Kwame, 1983-
Source
Photograph: Michael Delli Carpini, Flickr, CC BY-NC 2.0
Date
April 26, 2018
Contributor
Equal Justice Initiative
Rights
Equal Justice Initiative, 122 Commerce Street, Montgomery, Alabama, 36104, United States
Format
JPEG
Language
English
Type
Visual Arts-Sculpture
Coverage
The National Memorial for Peace and Justice, 417 Caroline Street, Montgomery, Alabama, 36104, United States
Medium
Concrete; Resin
Bibliographic Citation
Ater, Renée. “The National Memorial for Peace and Justice (Equal Justice Iniati Initiative).” Smarthistory, January 2019. https://smarthistory.org/national-memorial-for-peace-and-justice/.
Sheets, Hilarie M. “Freedom Monument Sculpture Park’s Unflinching Look at Slavery.” The New York Times, October 11, 2023. Accessed October 22, 2024. https://www.nytimes.com/2023/10/11/arts/design/freedom-monument-sculpture-park-alabama.html
Equal Justice Initiative. “EJI Releases Video on Sculpture about Enslavement.” Accessed March 4, 2026. https://eji.org/news/eji-releases-video-sculpture-about-enslavement/.
Sheets, Hilarie M. “Freedom Monument Sculpture Park’s Unflinching Look at Slavery.” The New York Times, October 11, 2023. Accessed October 22, 2024. https://www.nytimes.com/2023/10/11/arts/design/freedom-monument-sculpture-park-alabama.html
Equal Justice Initiative. “EJI Releases Video on Sculpture about Enslavement.” Accessed March 4, 2026. https://eji.org/news/eji-releases-video-sculpture-about-enslavement/.
Rights Holder
Renée Ater
Still Image Item Type Metadata
Original Format
Sculpture
Citation
Akoto-Bamfo, Kwame, 1983-, “Nkyinkyim (Montgomery, Alabama),” Contemporary Monuments to the Slave Past, accessed October 1, 2026, https://slaverymonuments.org/items/show/1268.