Featured here is one of the many works in the Government Art Collection, accompanied by further information about the work and the artist. The selection of works will change on a regular basis, so please come back again.
March 2007
William Wilberforce (1759-1833) Philanthropist and Reformer
William Wilberforce (1759-1833) Philanthropist and Reformer
Date
1833
Medium
Marble bust
Dimensions
76(H) x 50(W)
Inscription
VERSO: S. Joseph / Sculp:t 1833
Acquisition
Purchased from Robin Eden, Corsham, February 1953
Number
2036
Description
William Wilberforce is best known for his work towards the abolition of slavery. He was an evangelical Christian philanthropist and statesman, who helped to found the Church Missionary Society in 1799 and the Bible Society in 1804. Wilberforce joined the campaign against the slave trade in 1787 during his time as a Yorkshire MP and witnessed the abolition of the slave trade in Britain in 1807. He also joined the Anti-Slavery Society in its foundation year of 1823 and campaigned for the abolition of slavery throughout the British Empire, a goal which was achieved in 1833, the year of his death. This portrait bust is a study for Samuel Joseph's monumental statue of Wilberforce in Westminster Abbey, which was installed in 1840 and is based on Jean-Antoine Houdon's portrait of Voltaire of 1781. Samuel Joseph worked in London and Edinburgh and was one of the founder members in 1826 of the Scottish (later Royal Scottish) Academy.
