A History of Mauritius

History is all around us, sometimes it’s in the details of a space that the richest histories are to be found. These photos were taken at Abdulla Ebrahim & Co, a wholesale dealer in Port Louis, Mauritius. This place is a relic of Mauritian history because it tells the story of the island’s people.

Majority of Mauritians can trace their lineage to ancestors who arrived on the island as slaves, indentured laborers, or as skilled workers. Slaves were first brought in from other French colonies, including Madagascar, to work in the sugar cane fields. Once slavery was abolished, indentured laborers journeyed from the south of India, most of the time accompanied by their family and possessions they could carry with them(most of the time this included spices). And then came a wave of tailors, blacksmiths, and shop owners from the south of China. Today, bits of each culture and their traditions are intertwined to create a unique Mauritian identity. The spices put into dhal puri sold by street vendors and the black lentils used inside the mooncakes found in an old Chinatown bakery bring with it a multitude of flavors that share the story of both the past and of the present. Shops like the one pictured, continue to supply the materials used to tell these stories. They also represent the legacy of the families that helped to build what is now a flourishing port city. To think you might pass this place and only be in awe of its unique blue hues.