Unique Slavery Exhibit Coming to Louisville Museum

I've never been to the Frazier History Museum, but I'm going to see this.

From the Courier:

The Frazier History Museum is opening an exhibit Feb. 2 on slavery that the museum is promoting as “one of the most powerful and important exhibitions it has ever displayed.”

Titled “Spirits of the Passage: the Story of the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade,” the exhibit will explore the power of the human spirit through a display of nearly 150 historical objects covering more than 350 years.

The 4,000-square-foot exhibit will run through June 16, or the 150th anniversary of Abraham Lincoln’s 1863 Emancipation Proclamation. (sic)


The museum, the beneficiary of a recent exhibit on Princess Diana that drew record crowds, said the slavery display will be the first exhibition of its kind to examine the entire history of the trans-Atlantic slave trade -- from the 16th through the 19th centuries, while also presenting up-to-date research to the public.

The exhibit will feature the latest marine archaeological discoveries, new research on key African societies and an exploration of the slave trade’s modern day legacies, a Frazier news release said.


Produced by the Frazier Museum in partnership with the Mel Fisher Maritime Museum in Key West, Fla., “Spirits of the Passage” allows guests to see authentic artifacts from the wreck of an actual slave ship. That includes restraints, tools, plates and trade goods, as well as dozens of other objects from West African societies that show the uniqueness of the individual cultures they represent, the release said.