[Middle Passage iron bilboes or leg irons, late 17th or 18th century]
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Gilder Lehrman Collection #: GLC09708 Author/Creator: Place Written: s.l. Type: Object Date: 1680-1800 Pagination: 1 shackle Height: 31.5 cm, Width: 10 cm, Depth: 2.5 cm Order a Copy
One set of middle passage iron bilboes, circa 1680-1800. Item is an iron restraint for ankles or wrists used on slave ships to fasten two enslaved people to each other. Consist of an iron bar running through two c-shaped cuffs. One end of the rod has been flattened to make it too big to be removed from the cuffs. The other end of the rod has a loop that is attached to an iron circle. The circle can be used to attach the item to another.
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