Carnival Head Piece
This cherished headpiece has been one of the many artifacts kept in the collection of Cherryldine Buckley over the years and conveys the craft, care, and beauty that is put into the elaboration of carnival costumes. A participant in carnival since her childhood, Cherryldine has nowadays become known for her skill in creating and guiding the costume making process in Aruba. Throughout the years she joined many local groups and participated in many sections with a variety of themes. Her interest in carnival has led her to visit numerous international carnivals such as in Trinidad and Tobago, Colombia, Sint Maarten, Curacao, and Europe learning new information on each visit. She beliefs that the Aruban carnival is incredibly special and distinct in the way it has developed in recent years with an emphasis on the aspect of fantasy and transformation of the subject and themes. In her view, the best costumes are those that make you think in order to figure out how certain themes have been transformed with the creativity of the participants.
“Since I can remember, I have been a participant in carnival”
This headpiece was part of her participation with the Champagne carnival group with the main theme of Eden. The emphasis was not on recreating a literal recognizable flora but to use the imagination and creativity to express the fantasy, delicacy, and beauty that this mythical place evokes. In her view, one must be creative in two ways, on the one hand be true to the sketch design and theme of the section, and then translate and adapt with your own creativity and skill. Carnival in Aruba is a celebration of community, cultural diversity and forms a renewal of life and public space with its brilliance, revelry, and euphoria.
Casuela
This object is a traditional flat skillet ”casuela” to make “pan bati” (smashed bread) which is a typical side dish in Aruba. A casuela will always catch Atan Lee’s interest, since his family has worked in the food industry for several generations as he does nowadays.
“I remember her pan bati, I have never tasted one like hers again.”
For Atan Lee the casuela brings back memories of his grandmother’s house. Food is an important part of family life in Aruba, and he mentions that eating at his grandmother’s house was always a treat. She had a humble background and everything in her house was simple, but looking back now he now realizes that having been able to experience her cooking and sitting down at her table surrounded by family was the pinnacle of luxury. The casuela relates to the island as an integral part of our culinary tradition. No house was complete without a casuela. Our culinary culture was influenced by diverse cultures during various stages in our history, since the time of the Spanish, the Dutch and other creole influences from sister islands in the Caribbean.
Abacus
Madel Jim remembers her father using an abacus in his business to do calculations. The abacus was positioned on the Jim Bros store counter where it was used frequently. Madel’s father Jim Shue came to Aruba on board a ship in1935 and decided to stay and work in the Lago oil refinery which needed thousands of laborers. This demand for workers resulted in the dramatic increase of Aruba’s population with over fifty different nationalities during the second quarter of the twentieth century. Many of the Chinese migrants married local girls and formed families that today form an active part of the Aruban community. In Madel’s case both parents came from migrant backgrounds since her mother was Colombian from the Guajira region and her father Chinese. This multicultural background has given her some strong values and work ethic. Her parents' motto “seize the day” resonates to this day.
“No laga pa manan loke bo por hasi awe”
The abacus illustrates the advanced Chinese culture according to Madel, with its emphasis in keeping things simple and practical. The abacus, besides its beauty and practicality, was also considered to bring good luck. A kind of multiplier effect was inherent in this object. Madel even keeps a cherished golden hanger in the shape of an abacus, a gift from her father, with its beads and she loves to wear this on special occasions.
Lele
This unique object from the collection of Titi Tromp takes us back to culinary island traditions. Titi is able to share a wealth of information regarding the Aruban cunucu houses and the way traditional meals were prepared. A simple object connecting us to succulent dishes such as funchi (polenta) and yambo soup (ocra) especially comes to mind. Titi mentions the importance of the type of firewood that had to be collected and placed indoors near the fogon (furnace) enabling a heat source that was appropriate for each meal preparation.
“I am concerned that younger generations don’t seem to want to learn these old cooking traditions”
The fabrication of the lele itself is remarkable for it is in many instances made of the inner bark of the organ cactus tree (cadushi) and cut into shape and left to dry out. Even the fact that two of these utensils/objects were used to prepare funchi has been almost lost though time. Lele, for example, was used in the initial stages of preparation, eliminating cornmeal cloth to form and keeping the batter soft and uniform to cook properly. In her nineties, Titi to this day remembers with pride that kids had an active role in the preparation of meals, thus creating a strong bond within families as well as passing on culinary traditions through everyday practice.
Boter di Bols
In the 17th century, access to Latin America became important to the Dutch because of its abundant raw materials and trade opportunities. Raw materials were traded and imported to Europe, while other products, such as jenever gin, were exported from the Netherlands to the Caribbean region. At the center of this economic activity stood Aruba and Curaçao as a strategic transshipment hub, for trade between the continents. Jenever, or ‘Bols’, is an alcoholic beverage similar to gin. Despite its high alcohol content, its alleged medical properties (for blood circulation) meant that historically, it was prescribed for medicinal use. The drink was produced in the Netherlands and came in glazed ceramic bottles. Roy Feliciano, a museum collaborator/collector, notes that many of the various ceramic bottles of gin found in Aruba have the name Amsterdam or Bols written on them.
“The family tradition has continued, and nowadays it is with my grandchildren that I venture out searching for artifacts”
Every Sunday Roy and his father-in-law would hike around Aruba in search of artifacts to collect (resulting in a vast cultural heritage collection) On many of these outings they would find gin bottles, sometimes half-buried in the sand. This specific bottle was found around the Phosphate mines in San Nicolas. Mines that brought migrants from the immediate region such as Venezuela, Colombia, and Curacao to our shores. The miners drank the gin for its alleged medical benefits, or merely for enjoyment, or relaxation after a hard day’s work acquiring a taste for it and taking some home on their return. Roy still remembers the ceramic bottles being kept around the house in his childhood, just like in any other traditional Aruban home. Nowadays, these beautiful ceramic bottles have long been replaced by glass versions.
Holoshi di Boto
From the walls of the owners' quarters of a shipping boat, a wooden, wind-up boat clock witnessed Aruba become one of the biggest exporters of coffee in the world in the 1960s and 70s. Clyde Harms, a retired businessman, tells us the stories that his clock reminds him of. Back then, Clyde was the manager of a warehouse in Miami, where the coffee was imported to. Being curious about life on board, he took a trip on the ship where he found this clock on the wall. He fell in love with the clock and kept it even after the ship was sold. Thanks to its close relationship with the Wayuu people from the Guajira department, Aruba became one of the biggest exporters of coffee despite never growing a grain of the product. At that time, Colombia only allowed coffee to be exported under the umbrella of the Colombian Coffee Association. Due to the high customs duty on these products, coffee growers would trade with Wayuu chiefs allowing this way for significant profits to be made through shipments into the international market via Aruba.
“When I look at the clock I think of Colombia, and I think of all my Colombian friends.”
La Guajira was officially annexed to Colombia in the late 19th century but retained relatively important levels of autonomy. This has allowed the Wayuu people to transit and trade more freely because it lay beyond the reach of Colombian jurisdiction. Aruban companies had already been using this trade route exporting whiskey and cigarettes to Colombia, thus facilitating the import of Colombian coffee for transshipment. Once the laws in Colombia were revised to allow more generous contributions to the growers, the need for the Guajiran port, and for transit through Aruba subsided.
Teblachi Spiel
The opening of the Lago oil refinery in late 1920’s increased prosperity on the island and brought a period of financial independence from the Netherlands. Providing the global market with almost a 10th of its processed oil, unemployment in Aruba dropped to negligible levels between the years of 1925 and 1955. As wealth and levels of prosperity increased, many fine objects and artifacts were imported to Aruba. Olga van Bochove, a multidisciplinary artist, shares her sentimental connection to her grandmother's mirrored dish, and the significance it has had on her childhood and her art today. Throughout history, glass mirrors were a rare and expensive luxury; In the early 20th century, women in Aruba were easily able to afford mirrors and even mirrored furniture, such as this one, which did not serve the expected purpose of self- perception. This mirrored dish used to sit on Olga’s grandmother’s dresser. Its purpose was decorative, and carried perfume bottles, religious objects, an antique comb, and a hand mirror.
“The mirrored tray as a symbol of family bloodlines allowing for a reflection on memories, heritage and notions of femininity through time.”
The mirrored dish tells a story of how women in Aruba used to live and captures an instant of femininity from a time of economic prosperity, which influenced island ideals of beauty. Olga treasures this object as it reminds her of her grandmother and ties her to her own personal history. She thinks of what her grandmother used to see in it when she reached for one of her perfume bottles and relates it to what she sees in it now as a 21st century woman living in the same geographic location, but a different society. As an artist, Olga has redefined the purpose of this object by creating a unique art piece from it. Inspired by memories, bloodlines, heritage, and feminine traditions passed on between generations, she represents her connection to her grandmother by placing a braided lock of hair in the center of the dish.
Carta pa Gezaghebber
More stories about slaves and slavery in Aruba are now being uncovered. This unique letter, which caught the attention of Peter Scholing, defends the human rights of a slave girl. The author of the letter, Mr. Capriles, writes to the Gezaghebber (Luitenant Governor) to reprimand the behavior of a local slave owner, accusing him of mistreatment of his slaves and of cruelty. Capriles argues that there is a human law towards our conduct in relation to our fellowmen which sets out a correct manner of conduct regarding slaves as well. This is the first text found in Aruba, which talks about human rights, and openly defends the rights of a slave. Situated in an era of paradigmatic change, just 6 years before the abolition of slavery, it is interesting to consider whether this letter illustrated a shift in thinking in relation to human rights.
“The democratization of information ensued from digitization of old documents allows for the layered content of this letter to resonate to this day”
Scholing, who directs the digitization department at the National library in Aruba noted that there were certain commonalities between the people who signed the letter. Most of them were wealthy, Aruban elite, in their 20-30s, and whose families owned slaves themselves. Peter also notes an interesting fact that may contribute to the defense of this storyline, which is the fact that many marriages took place in Aruba in 1863, the year that slavery was abolished. Furthermore, the generation after abolishment, many more marriages occurred between the children of previous slave owners and the children of liberated slaves. Perhaps because of the small size of the island, there was a much closer and more humane relationship between slaves and owners in Aruba. Considering that this letter was written and signed in a time when slavery was legally accepted, by people who themselves took part in this practice, what we can conclude is that there was a growing consciousness regarding human rights and how these ideas were in direct contradiction with the slave system.
Staf Indjan
This mysterious scepter originally made of shell material, namely Aligen Gigus (queen conch), was thought to have been used by Amerindian shamans in ritualistic activities as a mortar, or grinding tool, and goes back hundreds of years. The cavity around the top suggests it was worn also as a pendant. Raymundo Dijkhoff, an archeologist from the National Archaeological Museum Aruba, tells us about his personal interest and the significance of this object and its discovery. He explains that throughout history, shamans played an essential role in society. They carried the knowledge of the oral history of a community, curing the sick and had important political roles such as foreseeing important occurrences and events. He explains that Shamans would be taught by older shamans or masters and would have to have the ability to go into a ‘trance’ or altered state of consciousness. In South America, shamans had many ways of inducing this trance state, with the goal of communicating with spirits who would help them while they performed their rituals. In addition to using acoustics, such as maracas and other instruments, Shamans would often use tobacco to achieve the trance state.
“The cross-cultural importance of objects like this pendant mortar is what makes it remarkable.”
The pendant mortar is thought to have been used during the preparation of the substance, as a grinding tool, but also as a conductor, bringing in energy from other dimensions to facilitate the shamanic practice. The object represents an animal (zoomorphic), and there are many animals with cultural importance in Amerindian culture. Although difficult to interpret, Raymundo hypothesized that the animal represented could be a bat. In the prehistoric Americas, bats were often associated with the afterlife, and were thought to be the spirits of ancestors. In many dark caves and overhanging boulders where bats could be found, indigenous drawings have been discovered. Though we cannot know for certain, this object may transmit an interesting story about indigenous conception of the afterlife and beliefs about non-physical realms. Similar objects have also been found in Colombia, though they were made from various materials. This suggests that there was a lot of mobility between the two countries, and diffusion of ideas. Since only one of these pendant mortars was found in Aruba, we can infer that it was an object of trade, or a gift. While we cannot know for sure if it was widely utilized in Aruba, it remains an important discovery because it details a rich precolonial history with important cultural relics and practices.
Violin di Mo Tito
Maybeline Arends Croes has many fond memories of her grandfather who played in one of the first folkloric music groups in Aruba called “Conhunto Folklorico Arubano”. Mo Tito, as he was affectionately known by everyone else, made the first recording of dande music, a new years tradition in Aruba which has existed for over 150 years. The name “dande” is thought to be derived from the word dandaré’’, which means going from one place to the other. After midnight on new year musical groups go from house to house to bring blessings and play songs of well-wishes to the families in Aruba.
“As a young child I heard his music every Sunday, so I grew up… hearing folkloric music.”
When people traveled to and from Aruba, they brought music with them, but they also brought instruments. Because of this, the musical tradition of Aruba incorporates influences and instruments from the surrounding region but also as far as Europe. During the first decades of the twentieth century many left the island to search for work in Cuba, Venezuela and Colombia. When they came back, they brought with them various musical influences. Similarly, in later decades many immigrated to the island to work in the refineries. The immigrants brought lively music and new instruments and the people on the island were receptive to these new rhythms. Music played an essential social role in creating harmony amongst these different people; it facilitated the friendships and cultural integration between the immigrants and Arubans. This vibrant cultural exchange is well preserved in Aruba's musical traditions such as Dande.
