Preserving
Black Heritage
Historical Resources
Explore our curated collection of historically significant Black collectibles, featuring carefully researched and reviewed educational content.
Blackman: Soul Wonder of the World (1981)
Blackman: Soul Wonder of the World #1 is a groundbreaking, independently published comic book produced by Leader Comics Group in 1981. Created by Black cartoonist Tom Floyd, with art by Eric O’Kelley and Danny Loggins, this rare collector’s item introduces Steve Thomas, an African American superhero who adopts the identity of Blackman to fight crime, drug abuse, and social injustice.The bold, energetic cover depicts Blackman breaking free from chains, symbolizing empowerment, resilience, and a break from stereotypes. Distributed in limited quantities—primarily throughout the Dallas–Fort Worth area—the comic was crafted to serve as a positive, aspirational role model for Black youth during a time of limited representation in mainstream comics.
Jackie Robinson 1948 Leaf #79 Rookie Card
This engaging, color-rich card debuted as part of the seminal 1948 Leaf set and features Jackie Robinson in his Brooklyn Dodgers uniform, rendered with bold artwork and vivid primary colors that make it one of the most visually striking cards of the era. The Robinson rookie card is slightly oversized compared to standard issues, carrying his name across the bottom with a sense of optimism and defiance. It was printed in limited runs with notable centering and coloration variations, making high-grade copies extremely elusive for collectors.
Grateful Dead x Black Panther Party 1971 Oakland Poster
This poster was created for the historic “Revolutionary Intercommunal Day of Solidarity” organized by the Black Panther Party on March 5, 1971, at the Oakland Auditorium Arena. Designed with bold red stars, striking images of party leaders, and distinctive Black Panther graphics, it announced a night honoring political prisoners such as Bobby Seale, Ericka Huggins, Angela Davis, and Ruchell Magee, as well as a post-birthday celebration for Huey P. Newton. The event featured speeches by Black Panther luminaries including Newton and Kathleen Cleaver, along with a rare live performance by the Grateful Dead, symbolizing an extraordinary fusion of Black Power, grassroots politics, and countercultural music. The poster’s powerful design has made it an enduring visual icon of the Black Panther era.
Featured Grails
Black Grail Score in Action
Black Grail Score
out of 100
Harriet Jacobs, Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl — Rare Presentation Copy
This first-edition copy of Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl (Boston, 1861) is an exceptional presentation copy given by Harriet Jacobs’s daughter, Louisa Jacobs, to Sarah R. May, wife of abolitionist Rev. Samuel May Jr., in 1886. Bound in the publisher’s original light brown beaded cloth with gilt spine, this near-fine copy remains unrestored and is accompanied by extraordinary provenance: two period obituaries for Harriet Jacobs mounted within the book, and a fourteen-page holograph letter describing Jacobs’s 1897 funeral service, including a handwritten copy of the eulogy delivered by Rev. Francis James Grimké, a leading African American minister of the era. The letter, written by Sarah Earle to Samuel May, is the only known surviving eyewitness account of Jacobs’s funeral. The Mays were close friends and supporters of the Jacobs School, a Freedmen’s school founded in Alexandria, Virginia, in 1863 by Harriet and Louisa Jacobs to educate formerly enslaved Black children—a project that embodied Harriet’s belief that Black educators were essential for community empowerment.
9-Dimension Scoring Framework