"Colonists Defy the Stamp Act" etching

Creator
Daniel Chodowiecki, artist, and Daniel Berger, engraver

Context
Published in 1784, this etching, titled "Die Americaner wiedersetzen sich de stempel-acte, und verbrennen das aus England nach America gesandte stempel-papier zu Boston, im August 1764" was published in Germany.

Audience
The German public

Purpose
To depict the level of support against the Stamp Act

Historical Significance
This engraving illustrates the wide opposition to the Stamp Act. A large crowd—composed of male and female colonists, a male slave, and various onlookers—cheers as parcels of stamp papers are burned in protest.

On August 1764, colonists defy the stamp act in Boston. They burn the stamp paper in Boston, brought from England to America.

Daniel Berger and Daniel Chodowiecki, Die Americaner wiedersetzen sich de stempel-acte, und verbrennen das aus England nach America gesandte stempel-papier zu Boston, im August 1764 (1764). Courtesy of the Library of Congress.