Created by Claes Oldenburg and his wife Coosje van Bruggen, it has been called the "world's largest rubber stamp".

The work was commissioned by The Standard Oil Company (Ohio) in 1982[2] for display at its soon-to-be-constructed headquarters building on Public Square, which became the BP America Tower.

According to one of the executives working with Oldenburg, the message on the stamp was intended as a reference to the Civil War-era Soldiers' and Sailors' Monument, located across the street.

[6] In an interview with WKYC-TV at the sculpture's 1991 dedication, Oldenburg said the stamp's message, "Free," referred to the emancipation of American slaves during and after the Civil War.

[8] At the dedication, Oldenburg told a WKYC-TV producer that it looked as if a giant hand had picked up the sculpture from its intended location at the BP Tower and angrily hurled it several blocks, where it ended up on its side.