Harriet Shawcross

Archbishop Desmond Tutu unveiled a memorial yesterday to mark the bicentenary of the abolition of the transatlantic slave trade.

The sculpture, Gilt of Cain, was designed by Scottish artist Michael Visocchi and is inscribed with a poem by Lemn Sissay.

It stands in Fen Court in the City of London, close to St Mary Woolnoth Church, where the Rev John Newton delivered his anti-slavery sermon that inspired William Wilberforce in the 18th century.

The granite sculpture is a group of columns surrounding a podium, which suggests both a church pulpit and a slave auctioneer's platform.

The archbishop was joined by a crowd of at least 100 wellwishers.

He said: "It is an amazing monument and it combines so many messages: the pulpit; the church; and the site where trading took place.

"It's wonderful that it has come from such a young artist."

Mr Visocchi, 31, said he was "deeply touched" that the archbishop had seen his work and said he felt the event was "a real part of history".

The sculpture was built in partnership with Black British Heritage. Ken Martindale, chairman ofthe organisation, said: "This is an historic moment. It is not a look back in anger, but a look forward. It's a way to help all people understand the nature of the slave trade."