The Hunted Slaves

Black and white image of a man wearing only pants torn above the knees, with scars on his legs and arms. Behind him is a woman in a sleeveless shirt and striped skirt wearing her hair up with an earring visible on her left ear. The two are walking through tall marsh grasses and the man holds a hatchett as if to swing at two attacking dogs. A third dog lies dead on the ground before them. In the bottom right corner a snake slithers over a log. Two runaway slaves confronted by vicious dogs in a swamp are the subject of this powerful painting. The work was presented in 1861 at the Royal Academy in London. The original oil on canvas from which this engraving was made is in the Walker Art Gallery, Liverpool.