Iron Horn Fabricated by Ernie Ahrens, at the Community Folk Art Center Exhibition "The Whipping Post" (Syracuse, NY)
"The Whipping Post began as a series dedicated to understanding how white culture has treated people of color. I now see these photographs as the visual equivalent of the Ghanaian word 'Sankofa,' which in the Akan language means, 'We must go back and reclaim our past so we can move forward; so we understand why and how we came to be who we are today.' " -- From photographer Brantley Carroll's artist's statement.
For details and video about the Syracuse Community Folk Art Center exhibit "The Whipping Post," see:
communityfolkartcenter.org/ExhibitionsPage.htm
blog.syracuse.com/video/2008/06/post_3.html
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Here is an autogiographical account of being punished with the iron horn:
"To prevent my running away any more, Stevens fixed bells and horns on my head. This is not by any means an uncommon punishment. I have seen many slaves wearing them. A circle of iron, having a hinge behind, with a staple and padlock before, which hang under the chin, is fastened round the neck. Another circle of iron fits quite close round the crown of the head The two are held together in this position by three rods of iron, which are fixed in each circle. These rods, or horns, stick out three feet above the head, and have a bell attached to each. The bells and horns do not weigh less than from twelve to fourteen pounds. When Stevens had fixed this ornament on my head, he turned me loose, and told me I might run off now if I liked.
" I wore the bells and horns, day and night, for three months, and I do not think any description I could give of my sufferings during this time would convey any thing approaching to a faint idea of them. Let alone that their weight made my head and neck ache dreadfully, especially when I stooped to my work, at night I could not lie down to rest, because the horns prevented my stretching myself, or even curling myself up; so I was obliged to sleep crouching."
-- Slave Life in Georgia: A Narrative of the Life, Sufferings, and Escape of John Brown, A Fugitive Slave, Now In England, by John Brown, edited by L. A. Chamerovzow. p. 88 - 89. Available online here: docsouth.unc.edu/neh/jbrown/jbrown.html
Iron Horn Fabricated by Ernie Ahrens, at the Community Folk Art Center Exhibition "The Whipping Post" (Syracuse, NY)
"The Whipping Post began as a series dedicated to understanding how white culture has treated people of color. I now see these photographs as the visual equivalent of the Ghanaian word 'Sankofa,' which in the Akan language means, 'We must go back and reclaim our past so we can move forward; so we understand why and how we came to be who we are today.' " -- From photographer Brantley Carroll's artist's statement.
For details and video about the Syracuse Community Folk Art Center exhibit "The Whipping Post," see:
communityfolkartcenter.org/ExhibitionsPage.htm
blog.syracuse.com/video/2008/06/post_3.html
-----
Here is an autogiographical account of being punished with the iron horn:
"To prevent my running away any more, Stevens fixed bells and horns on my head. This is not by any means an uncommon punishment. I have seen many slaves wearing them. A circle of iron, having a hinge behind, with a staple and padlock before, which hang under the chin, is fastened round the neck. Another circle of iron fits quite close round the crown of the head The two are held together in this position by three rods of iron, which are fixed in each circle. These rods, or horns, stick out three feet above the head, and have a bell attached to each. The bells and horns do not weigh less than from twelve to fourteen pounds. When Stevens had fixed this ornament on my head, he turned me loose, and told me I might run off now if I liked.
" I wore the bells and horns, day and night, for three months, and I do not think any description I could give of my sufferings during this time would convey any thing approaching to a faint idea of them. Let alone that their weight made my head and neck ache dreadfully, especially when I stooped to my work, at night I could not lie down to rest, because the horns prevented my stretching myself, or even curling myself up; so I was obliged to sleep crouching."
-- Slave Life in Georgia: A Narrative of the Life, Sufferings, and Escape of John Brown, A Fugitive Slave, Now In England, by John Brown, edited by L. A. Chamerovzow. p. 88 - 89. Available online here: docsouth.unc.edu/neh/jbrown/jbrown.html