Scipio Moorhead

How this work helped shape America

Enslaved in Boston, Scipio Moorhead developed artistic skill and became associated with the engraved portrait of Phillis Wheatley that appeared in her 1773 book. The image, derived from Moorhead's work, became one of the earliest widely circulated representations of a Black American author. His contribution placed an enslaved Black artist within the production of a landmark work of early American literature and print culture.