The iconic figure of a bound captive woman is based on the 1787 Wedgwood Jasperware medallion Am I Not a Man and a Brother, made originally for Thomas Clarkson’s British Committee for the Abolition of the Slave Trade. In 1837 the American Anti-Slavery Society commissioned Gibbs, Gardner and Company to strike a token commemorating the formation of the Liberty Party. An advertisement in the 27 November 1837 issue of The Emancipator announces the availability of the tokens for one dollar per hundred. The ad also notes plans to produce and sell a counterpart with a male figure. The U.S. Mint Director quickly shut down the circulation of the coin the same year.
