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Primary sourcePhotograph1864

Sojourner Truth Standing Portrait with Cane

1864

A three-quarter length 1864 photograph of Sojourner Truth standing with a cane, captioned with her famous motto about selling photographs to support herself.

This 1864 photograph shows Truth standing with her cane, captioned with her own words about selling her image to support herself.

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Black-and-white carte de visite photograph of an elderly Black woman standing with a cane, wearing spectacles, a white cap, a white shawl, and a plaid dress with a bag. The mount bears the caption 'I Sell the Shadow to Support the Substance' and 'Sojourner Truth'.
Sojourner Truth, standing portrait with cane, 1864.

About this source

What it is

This is an 1864 albumen print carte de visite showing Sojourner Truth standing, three-quarter length, wearing spectacles, a shawl, and a peaked cap, with her hand resting on a cane. The mount carries the caption "I Sell the Shadow to Support the Substance" along with her name.

Why it matters

Truth sold photographs of herself to fund her activism, and this caption reflects that practice directly. The image is a primary source showing both her physical presence and the way she used photography as a tool for self-support and self-representation during a time when few Black women controlled their own public image.

Look closer

  • What does the caption "I Sell the Shadow to Support the Substance" tell you about why this photograph was made?
  • How does her posture and clothing compare to other portraits of her?
  • What does selling her own image suggest about how Truth supported her work?

This photograph is part of the curated material that grounds the AI version of Sojourner Truth on Humy.ai — when students ask about related events, the AI can quote it and cite it.

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Sepia carte de visite photograph of an older Black woman seated at a table, wearing a white bonnet, dark dress, and white fringed shawl, with a flower vase at right. Printed caption below reads 'I Sell the Shadow to Support the Substance' and 'SOJOURNER TRUTH'.Photograph

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I Sell the Shadow to Support the Substance

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Scan of a marbled endpaper or cover paper with swirling patterns of tan, brown, red and black ink, with dark binding edge on the left side. No text is visible.Book

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Fanaticism; Its Source and Influence, Illustrated by the Simple Narrative of Isabella, in the Case of Matthias

Gilbert Vale · 1835

Sepia carte de visite photograph of an older Black woman seated beside a table with a flower vase, wearing a white bonnet, glasses, a white shawl, and a dark dress, holding knitting or sewing. Printed caption below reads: I Sell the Shadow to Support the Substance. SOJOURNER TRUTH.Photograph

Primary source

Sojourner Truth, seated with knitting

1864

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