Job, son of Solliman Dgiallo, High Priest of Bonda in the Country of Foota, Africa...

Creator: after William Hoare Ayuba Suleiman Diallo, who became known in Europe as Job ben Solomon, was from a prominent family of African Muslim religious leaders in the kingdom of Futa (in modern-day Senegal). He was captured and sold into slavery on a tobacco plantation in Maryland but his release was secured by Thomas Bluett, a lawyer, who brought him to England in 1733 and the following year published 'Some Memories of the Life of Job, the Son of the Solomon High Priest of Boonda in Africa; Who was a Slave about two Years in Maryland; and afterwards being brought to England, was set free, and sent to his native Land in the Year 1734'. This is one of the earliest slave-trade narratives. During his brief stay in England, fashionable society interest in Diallo anticipated that in Omai (more properly Mae), the Tahitian who returned from Cook's second voyage in the early 1770s. He was persuaded to sit to the portraitist William Hoare of Bath and chose to be shown in African dress of white robes and turban (round a red cap). Round his neck he wears a copy of the Koran, in a red leather binding or close-fitting bag, of which the suspension thong forms part. This print is from Hoare's portrait, which frames the sitter in a brown false oval against a slightly lighter brownish background. The painting was sold on 8 December 2009 at Christie's, London, by a descendant of Thomas Edward McGill, into whose ownership it passed in 1840 (Old Masters and 19th century pictures; est. £50K-80K). It made £450,000, a record for the artist, and was also illustrated in the sale report in the 'Antiques Trade Gazette' of 2 January 2010 from which this note is derived: the image shows the canvas (30 x 21 in or 76 x 64 cm) has been trimmed at the edges: it was probably originally 30 x 25 in. [PvdM 1/10]