Crank toy in the form of a minstrel banjo player and minstrel male dancer
- On View
- Segregation Gallery
- Museum Maps
- Objects in this Location
- Created by
- Unidentified
- Date
- mid 20th century
- Medium
- wood , metal and plastic
- Dimensions
- 16 x 11 3/4 x 5 7/16 in. (40.6 x 29.8 x 13.8 cm)
- Description
- A handmade, wooden crank toy in the form of caricatures of a banjo player and male dancer. The toy has a wooden base, open at the front and back, with two (2) carved, wooden figures on top. Both figures have jointed arms and legs, white plastic hands and have a metal wire attaching them to the crank mechanism. The figure on the left is a male dancer. His head and body are primarily painted black. He has round white eyes and lip white lips. A white strip on plastic runs down the center of the torso representing a white shirt. The shirt has two (2) silver pins resembling buttons. The figure on the right is a banjo player seated on a wooden seat. He is nearly identical to the figure on the left except with the addition of a black hat with a green brim and a tan hand band and the banjo he is holding. The banjo has a black neck, white head and silver tacks attached around the head. Just above the base of the toy is a hand-operated mechanism to move the figures. The mechanism includes a wooden dowel with a wooden crank is threaded through round holes in the sides. Two (2) wooden squares are attached to the dowel, that turn beneath two white plastic wiffle golf balls. The golf balls have threaded through a second dowel that is attached to a board, with arches cut-out above the golf balls. The dancer is connected at the back to the mechanism and the banjo player is connected via his proper left hand. When the crank is turned, the blocks cause the balls to turn and the panel to move, resulting in the dancing motion of the dancer and the strumming of the banjo by the banjo player.
- Statement
- Objects depicting racist and/or stereotypical imagery or language may be offensive and disturbing, but the NMAAHC aims to include them in the Collection to present and preserve the historical context in which they were created and used. Objects of this type provide an important historical record from which to study and evaluate racism.
- Collection title
- Collection of James M. Caselli and Jonathan Mark Scharer
- Classification
- Toys and Games
- Racist and Stereotypical Objects
- Type
- mechanical toys
- Credit Line
- Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, Gift of the Collection of James M. Caselli and Jonathan Mark Scharer
- Object number
- 2007.7.265
- Restrictions & Rights
- No Known Copyright Restrictions
- Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.