Henrietta Marie Cauldron 2002.07.001

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The massive copper kettle from the 1700s slave ship Henrietta Marie cooked meals for over 200 African captives who were held onboard. Measuring 71 centimeters tall, 85 cm wide, and 75 cm deep, this large cooking vessel has a volume of 0.45 cubic meters or about 0.6 cubic yards, enough to hold huge quantities of food prepared daily for the many people being transported across the Atlantic Ocean. A slave ship doctor from the 18th century gives an idea of what was served to the Africans when he wrote, "The diet of the blacks onboard consisted mainly of boiled horse-beans until they were mushy; boiled yams and rice, and sometimes a small amount of beef or pork." The Henrietta Marie kettle is still covered with coral and other ocean growth that formed on it during its three centuries underwater.