[Large Portrait Print of Phillis Wheatley, issued by the Associated Publishers].

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An almost life-size portrait of Phillis Wheatley (1753–1784), the eminent eighteenth-century American poet, issued by the Associated Publishers, Inc. of Washington, D.C.

The firm was established in 1921 by Carter G. Woodson to publish books on African-American history, including his own. Known as the “Father of Black History,” Woodson began the annual celebration of Negro History Week (now Black History Month) in February 1926.

Jarvis R. Given’s 2021 book Fugitive Pedagogy: Carter G. Woodson and the Art of Black Teaching describes the firm’s long history of publishing portraits of important African-Americans, “lithographs with suitable margins for framing.” These portraits were issued from the 1930s to possibly the 1960s.

As an example, in their 1939 catalog, Valuable Books on the Negro, Associated Publishers sold individual prints and sets of “Pictures of Distinguished Negroes.” The catalog offered “Large Pictures” suitable for “Assembly Halls and Offices, Almost Life Size—19 x 24 Inches, $1.00 a Piece—Six for $5.00…They supply a long felt need for pictures large enough to be seen at a distance and easily recognized.”

Not in OCLC or in the collections of Howard University, including their digital “Associated Publishers Photograph Morgue.”

Price: $450.00