The Path of Thorns and Roses (Contraband and Freedmen Cemetery Memorial, Alexandria, VA)
Dublin Core
Title
Subject
African Americans--Virginia
Alexandria (Va.)--History
American South
Cemeteries--Virginia
Freedmen--Virginia
Fugitive slaves--United States
Public art
Public sculpture
Subject (Object Type)
Commemorative sculpture
Description
The Path of Thorns and Roses is an 18-foot high sculpture that spirals upwards and includes six allegorial figures: Oppression (a semi-nude male figure), Struggle (a semi-nude male figure at the base of the sculpture), Sacrifice (a woman who grasps the limp body of a child), Loss (a woman enfolded onto herself), and Compassion (a woman holding a baby and reaching towards Loss). Hope, a man with a bald head, stands on his toes within a large circle of thorns. The figure of Hope holds an unbloomed rose in his outstretched hands. Alongside the statue is a four-walled structure, “The Place of Remembrance,” the includes the names of individuals interred at the site as well as historical information on African Americans in Alexandria during the Civil War. Limestone blocks mark individual graves.