Repurposed lotion tub with items belonging to Herman Wallace: Museum Object and Cultural History

The object in the museum catalogue

A round, white plastic lotion tub repurposed to hold small personal items by Herman Wallace while incarcerated at Angola Prison. Inside the container are tiny objects wrapped in plastic, to include: a kite, handmade battery charger, electronic part, needle, matches, copper wire, melted paper clip, a photo, screws and springs, a ball of hair, and printed instructions of chemo dosages. The top is detachable by twist action. There are no markings or inscriptions on the container.

Materials, dates and provenance

• Date: after 1972
• Manufactured by: Unidentified
• Owned by: Herman Wallace, American, 1941 - 2013
• Subject of: Louisiana State Penitentiary at Angola, American, founded 1835
• Type: containers
• Type: make-dos
• Medium: plastic, metal, ink on paper, and hair
• Dimensions: H x W x D: 3 1/4 × 1 5/8 in. (8.2 × 4.1 cm)
• Place used: Angola, West Feliciana Parish, Louisiana, United States, North and Central America
• Topic: African American
• Topic: American South
• Topic: Health
• Topic: Men
• Topic: Prisons
• Object number: A2018.36.1.1
• Credit Line: Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, Gift of Maria Hinds
• 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: No Known Copyright Restrictions Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.