Furniture made by slaves seen as an educational opportunity

This rocker belonged to an Augusta man, who told Corley it was made for his great-grandmother. The chair, crafted by a slave artisan on Seabrook Island, is made of live oak and hickory woods and has a palmetto fronds seat. Its back slats and crest rail are hand-carved.

This cupboard was made by Abraham, a slave in Edmund, S.C., who was owned by Charles Corley’s paternal grandmother’s family. Corley received the piece from Abraham’s granddaughter.

This knife was made by Jack, one of three slaves given to Laurance Corley, Charles Corley’s ancestor. Jack carved his self-portrait out of a deer antler and affixed it to the knife blade.

Charles and Dawn Corley, antiques stewards, count slave-made furniture among the collections they use to educate the public.

This blind door cupboard, heart pine and hand-planed, was made by Jack for the Corleys around 1800. It is held together with wooden pegs.