This article inquires about the artisans of African origin who settled in the Colombian Caribbean territory during the colonial period, specifically between 1770 and 1810. First, it contextualizes the subject by presenting some details about the society of that time, describing the social and historical conditions of craftsmanship as a way of meeting human needs and its dynamics within daily life. Subsequently, the importance of the artisans in the economic and social growth of the Colombian Caribbean is highlighted, as well as the way in which the development of a craft profession provided the slaves with tools to obtain social recognition and even achieve their freedom. Finally, it presents how the African element produced an outstanding mark that is easily observed in the most authentic cultural manifestations of the area, especially in the Barranquilla Carnival. This reflection does not pretend to have a historical focus, but to approach an ethnographic research with a bibliographic review of historical sources that allow to draw the importance of the Afro-Colombian artisan in the construction of the identity of the Caribbean and the influence of this African factor in one of the most traditional celebrations in Colombia: Barranquilla Carnival.
