Watching the Baptism: Museum Object and Cultural History

The object in the museum catalogue

A black-and-white photograph by Kenneth Royster titled “Watching the Baptism”. In the center of the image, an unidentified woman is seated in a lawn chair. She is wearing a plain white dress and wearing a watch and multiple rings. In her proper right hand, she holds a tambourine. She is wearing sunglasses and a white hat and is looking to the left of the camera. There is a bag with a geometric pattern and a white shirt on the grass next to the chair. There are trees visible in the background. The edge of the negative is partially visible around the image. There is a numerical inscription on the reverse.

Materials, dates and provenance

• Date: 1995
• Photograph by: Kenneth Royster, American, born 1944
• Subject of: Unidentified Woman or Women
• Type: gelatin silver prints
• Medium: silver and photographic gelatin on photographic paper
• Dimensions: H x W (image): 14 1/4 × 14 in. (36.2 × 35.6 cm)
• Dimensions: H x W (sheet): 20 × 16 in. (50.8 × 40.6 cm)
• Dimensions: H x W (matted): 22 × 28 in. (55.9 × 71.1 cm)
• Place depicted: United States, North and Central America
• Topic: African American
• Topic: Christianity
• Topic: Communities
• Topic: Instrumentalists (Musicians)
• Topic: Music
• Topic: Musicians
• Topic: Photography
• Topic: Religion
• Object number: 2018.41.8
• Credit Line: Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, Gift of Kenneth Royster in honor of Prof. Samuel L. Green
• Data Source: National Museum of African American History and Culture

Sources and reuse

Catalogue descriptions and facts adapted from National Museum of African American History and Culture through the Smithsonian's official Open Access dataset. This record explicitly marks its metadata CC0 1.0; formatting and selection have been changed. The underlying object's rights statement is: © Kenneth Royster Permission required for use. Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.