The Nation’s Ward

A half-length plaster bust depicts a racist caricature of a young Black boy dressed in tattered clothing, wearing a military cap, and smiling. The front of the pedestal bears the title of the piece: The Nation’s Ward. Edward Virginius Valentine, a Richmond sculptor and a vocal racist, intended for his caricature to reinforce racist stereotypes of Black people as lazy and unintelligent. His niece, Elizabeth Gray Valentine, described this work as "charming and characteristic of 'the pickaninny.'"