by Linda Lee Graham | Life in the 18th Century, Voices Whisper
Early coffeepots were designed to hold only a cup or two of coffee. It was only once coffee became less expensive and easy to obtain that the pots increased in size. The gem pictured (figuratively speaking—you can find one similar on eBay for under $10) is an example...
by Linda Lee Graham | Life in the 18th Century, Slide, Voices Echo
Pimento, a spice more widely known as “allspice,” is harvested from the berries of the Pimenta dioica, a W. Indian tree commonly found on Jamaica’s north coast. It’s not the Spanish red pepper, though its name is derivative of the Spanish pepper (pimiento)...
by Linda Lee Graham | Life in the 18th Century, Voices Echo
A perspective on the disturbing pseudoscience behind the colonial obsession with cataloging complexions and “refining” racial mixes in 18th century West Indies.
by Linda Lee Graham | Life in the 18th Century, Slide, Voices Echo
In eighteenth-century Jamaica, a creole was a nonindigenous person born on the island, whether of European, African, or mixed descent. Those referenced in the expression “as rich as a creole,” however, were invariably of European descent. The phrase is a variant of...
by Linda Lee Graham | Life in the 18th Century, Slide, Voices Echo
I did a double take when I saw this work hanging in a Montego Bay exhibit last year. Admittedly, my interest was more than casual. I was writing Voices Echo at the time and visiting Jamaica to flesh out my research. Many of the images in the collage echoed...