Ignatius Sancho: A Portrait

The first in a series of temporary exhibitions in the David Pike Drawings Gallery is a display about Ignatius Sancho (c.1729 -1780). Born on a ship carrying enslaved people bound for the Spanish West Indies, he was the first black man in Britain to vote and when Sancho died, he was the first to receive an obituary in the press. In 1782 the first edition of ‘Letters of the Late Ignatius Sancho, an African’ was published, which paved the way for the abolition of the transatlantic slave trade.

The temporary exhibition Ignatius Sancho: A Portrait, aims to shed light on just a few of the interesting and varied aspects of Sancho’s life using his published letters as inspiration. It is supported by loans from the National Portrait Gallery and The Laurence Sterne Trust.

The exhibition has been created in partnership with the National Portrait Gallery as part of their transformational Inspiring People project that includes an extensive programme of nationwide activities, funded by The National Heritage Lottery Fund and Art Fund.

Find out more on the Gainsborough’s House website.