The folkore and heritage of Antigua's coal-pots

The legacy and heritage of the motherland, Africa, is to be found everywhere in the twin islands. Whether it’s the language used in people’s households, the music, the art, the food - like the national dish fungi and pepperpot - to the vessels themselves that cooked this traditional fare. Although today they are often relegated to the back of a dusty cupboard, most households in Antigua still keep an earthenware coal-pot in case of a power cut or gas outage. But these simple cooking pots have been so much more than merely something in which to prepare food. The family moments sitting around these pots, heated by hot coals, while their food was cooking, stir up magical memories for the older generation in Antigua. This was the moment when legends, folklore and ghost stories were passed from the elders to the younger generations and the moment of sharing stories and proverbs to teach children the important life lessons. Made almost exclusively by women, without a wheel and baked in open fires, these coal-pots have been made for generations, just like their ancestors did for generations before them back in their African homelands. With similar pots being found on other Caribbean islands where enslaved West Africans were brought, there is no doubt as to their origins. There are still a handful of women on Antigua who possess the skills to craft these pots from natural clay and sell them in the colourful island markets. It is a hot job, but one which these women want to preserve as a legacy to those magical coal-pot evenings.

ONE OF THE FIRST THINGS A VISITOR TO THE CARIBBEAN WILL OBSERVE IS THAT WE ARE AN INCREDIBLE MELTING POT OF PEOPLE AND CULTURES FROM AROUND THE WORLD.