On Wednesday, the US Postal Service will issue a forever stamp in honor of Edmonia Lewis, a renowned sculptor whose marble sculptures received international recognition in the 19th-century, CNN reports.

"As the first African American and Native American sculptor to earn international recognition, Edmonia Lewis challenged social barriers and assumptions about artists in mid-19th century America," the USPS said in a statement.

"The work she produced during her prolific career evokes the complexity of her social identity and reflects the passion and independence of her artistic vision," the statement continued. "As the public continues to discover the beautiful subtleties of Lewis' work, scholars will further interpret her role in American art and the ways she explored, affirmed, or de-emphasized her complex cultural identity to meet or expand the artistic expectations of her day."

Born in 1844 in Greenbush, New York, to a Chippewa (Ojibwa) Native American mother and an African American father, Lewis showed an interest in the arts at an early age. Later on, she attended Oberlin College in Ohio where she studied art.

Although Oberlin had a  national reputation for being a progressive school, in 1862, Lewis was falsely accused of poisoning two of her white female classmates. When the accusations became known, a white mob kidnapped and severely assaulted her. While recovering from her injuries, she won an acquittal that cleared her name.

Upon leaving Oberlin, Lewis made a name for herself in Boston where she was commissioned to sculpt a bust of Colonel Robert Shaw, a white military leader who led Black soldiers of the 54th Massachusetts Regiment during the Civil War. Eventually, she sold enough duplicates of the sculpture and relocated to Rome in 1865.

While living in Rome, she learned Italian and began working with marble by sculpting historical and biblical figures. When Americans visited Europe, her studio became a prime destination for tourists.

One of her most famous pieces was The Death of Cleopatra, which she completed in 1876 and shipped the 3,000-pound plus sculpture to Philadelphia for the 1876 Centennial Exposition.

Currently, the Smithsonian holds eight of her marble sculptures that depict Moses, Hagar, Cupid, and Young Octavian.

Throughout her career, Lewis would make art that celebrated the societal progress made by African Americans.

“In addition to portrait busts of prominent people, Lewis’s work incorporated African American themes, including the celebration of newly won freedoms, and sensitively depicted her Native American heritage as peaceful and dignified,” the USPS added.

Lewis’ stamp is the 45th edition in the USPS' Black Heritage series which honors individual Black Americans. Recently, playwright August Wilson, journalist Gwen Ifill, and dancer and actor Gregory Hines were among the honorees.