228. RUNAWAY SLAVE SHACKLE Crab-style slave shackle made of iron ca. 1800, 5 1/2" x 3 1/4", with a 2" x 3" opening, with noisy, rattling beads that helped slave-catchers apprehend fugitives. The shackles were styled much like African ceremonial dance anklets. Clever runaways would insert mud within to muffle the sound. Accompanied by a letter from the Slave Relics Museum in Waterboro, South Carolina which states: "This letter is to confirm that the enclosed runaway shackle is from our personal collection here at the museum...The beads or stones in the shackles made it possible for dogs to track the escapee slave for miles...The small shackle was often clamped around the ankle with a small lock. These types of shackles were primarily used on runaway slaves, or a slave with a high risk of escaping from the plantation...". Normal light rusting due to age, else very good.          $1,200 - 1,500