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Slave Prices from Succession and Bankruptcy Sales in Mauritius, 1825--1827

Author

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  • Shirley Chenny
  • Pascal St-Amour
  • Désiré Vencatachellum

Abstract

We construct a unique data set from succession and bankruptcy sales in Mauritius to investigate the determinants of slave prices between 1825 and 1827. We find that males, females sold with children, skilled slaves and slaves sold during the peak sugar cane harvest season all fetched higher prices. In comparison, handicapped and non-native slaves were sold at a discount. Moreover, the young-children premium increased over the period. This may indicate that slave owners did not think that slavery would be abolished in the near future or thought that they would be compensated in such an event. Nous construisons une base de données unique à partir des ventes de succession et de faillites sur l'Île Maurice afin d'étudier les prix des esclaves entre 1825 et 1827. Nous trouvons que les hommes, les femmes vendues avec enfants, les esclaves qualifiés et ceux vendus en période de récolte obtiennent les prix les plus élevés. En comparaison, les esclaves avec handicap, ainsi que ceux qui ne sont pas originaires de l'Île Maurice sont vendus moins cher. De plus, la prime pour des jeunes enfants augmente durant la période étudiée. Ceci pourrait indiquer que les propriétaires n'anticipaient pas une abolition prochaine de l'esclavage ou encore pensaient recevoir une compensation financière si l'esclavage était aboli.

Suggested Citation

  • Shirley Chenny & Pascal St-Amour & Désiré Vencatachellum, 2002. "Slave Prices from Succession and Bankruptcy Sales in Mauritius, 1825--1827," CIRANO Working Papers 2002s-79, CIRANO.
    • Handle: RePEc:cir:cirwor:2002s-79
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    File URL: https://cirano.qc.ca/files/publications/2002s-79.pdf
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    Cited by:

    1. Charles W. Calomiris & Jonathan Pritchett, 2016. "Betting on Secession: Quantifying Political Events Surrounding Slavery and the Civil War," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 106(1), pages 1-23, January.
    2. Sophia du Plessis & Ada Jansen & Dieter von Fintel, 2014. "Slave prices and productivity at the Cape of Good Hope from 1700 to 1725: did all settler farmers profit from the trade?," Working Papers 17/2014, Stellenbosch University, Department of Economics, revised 2014.
    3. Ekama, Kate & Fourie, Johan & Heese, Hans & Martin, Lisa-Cheree, 2021. "When Cape slavery ended: Introducing a new slave emancipation dataset," Explorations in Economic History, Elsevier, vol. 81(C).
    4. Branko Milanovic, 2006. "An Estimate Of Average Income And Inequality In Byzantium Around Year 1000," Review of Income and Wealth, International Association for Research in Income and Wealth, vol. 52(3), pages 449-470, September.

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    JEL classification:

    • N37 - Economic History - - Labor and Consumers, Demography, Education, Health, Welfare, Income, Wealth, Religion, and Philanthropy - - - Africa; Oceania

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