Emancipation Park is a public park in

Kingston, Jamaica Kingston is the Capital (political), capital and largest city of Jamaica, located on the southeastern coast of the island. It faces a natural harbour protected by the Palisadoes, a long spit (landform), sand spit which connects the town of Por ...

. The

park A park is an area of natural, semi-natural or planted space set aside for human enjoyment and recreation or for the protection of wildlife or natural habitats. Urban parks are urban green space, green spaces set aside for recreation inside t ...

is in New Kingston, opened on 31 July 2002, the day before

Emancipation Day Emancipation Day is observed in many former European colonies in the West Indies and parts of the United States on various dates to commemorate the emancipation of African slave trade#Abolition, slaves of African descent. In much of the British ...

. Prime Minister

P.J. Patterson Percival Noel James Patterson, (born 10 April 1935), popularly known as P.J. Patterson, is a Jamaican people, Jamaican former politician who served as the sixth Prime Minister of Jamaica from 1992 to 2006. He served in office for 14 years, mak ...

's address at the park's opening acknowledged that the park is a commemoration of the end of slavery in the British Empire and French Caribbean. Nanny_of_the_Maroons

The six-acre park includes fountains and public art. The park is known for the large sculpture ''Redemption Song'' at the park's main entrance. ''Redemption Song,'' which takes its name from Bob Marley's song of the same name'','' is an 11 ft. (approximately 3m) high

bronze sculpture Bronze is the most popular metal for Casting (metalworking), cast metal sculptures; a cast bronze sculpture is often called simply "a bronze". It can be used for statues, singly or in groups, reliefs, and small statuettes and figurines, as w ...

by Jamaican artist

Laura Facey Laura Facey CD (born 31 May 1954) is a Jamaicans, Jamaican contemporary artist. She is best known for the monumental sculpture ''Redemption Song'' (2003), which serves as Jamaica's national monument to the Emancipation from Slavery in the Britis ...

. The sculpture features a male and female figure gazing to the skies – symbolic of their triumphant rise from the horrors of slavery. The statue was unveiled in July 2003, in time for the park's first anniversary. The Adinkra symbols can be seen at many places in the park as a tribute to honour the ancestors of Jamaicans who were brought as slaves from West Africa. The architect Kamau Kambui has used these symbols in the perimeter fence, the walls at the entrance, the benches and garbage receptacles.

References

External links

Official website
{{Coord, 18, 00, 09, N, 76, 47, 24, W, display=title Tourist attractions in Kingston, Jamaica Sculptures of Black people Cultural depictions of Bob Marley Parks in Jamaica Sculptures of men in Jamaica Sculptures of women in Jamaica

See also

References

External links