In Greater Manchester
- How money from slavery made Greater Manchester
- The importance of cotton in north west England
- The Lancashire cotton famine
- Smoking, drinking and the British sweet tooth
- Black presence in Britain and north west England
- Resistance and campaigns for abolition
- The bicentenary of British abolition
Global
Africa, the arrival of Europeans and the transatlantic slave trade
Pepper shaker
Made in Bristol, about 1780
Blue glass and silver
Object number 6.36/34
Given by Francis Buckley, 1936
See this object at Gallery Oldham This object may not always be on display. Please check with the venue before visiting.
Enlarge image © Gallery Oldham
Even before the transatlantic slave trade, African traders exchanged precious commodities such as ivory and pepper for European goods such as textiles, brass and guns. These trading links were exploited when the British began to demand slave labour to work on the plantations of the Americas. This shaker was made in Bristol, one of the major centres of the British slave trade, and is an example of the city's well-known 'Bristol blue glass'.
This information was provided by curators from Gallery Oldham.