Craftmanship

Most of the artisans of the island are in Vallehermoso. For decades, it has been the key referent of the most traditional craft. It is a first order attraction because of the range of specialties and its ethnological and cultural value.

To start with craftsmanship, we have to highlight that most products or utensils were made for the everyday use in the traditional life and by using raw materials that the rich nature of the island provides.

For example, there is ceramics, a rustic pottery which is made with mud, sands and red ochre from the ravines and mountains in the highest areas. It has been hand-crafted since aboriginal times and it is possibly a heritage work of a thousand- year tradition.

Another remarkable craft is that of the Wood, for example kitchen utensils, musical instruments or architectural elements that have been elaborated with materials provided by the rich local Monteverde.

It is also important to mention the craft made with the “Ristra”, that is the banana tree’s dry skin such as the baskets made with cane and wicker, weaving carpets for the elaboration of “traperas”(a kind of carpet or cover made with old rag strips and cotton threads), the goat’s skin and so on. We cannot forget to mention the ancient receipts of food and agriculture products produced in the island such as the “miel de palma”, “almogrote”, “mojos”, jams and cakes, canned fish and a wide traditional cookbook of a first rate in the Canary Islands. These are products that turn the agricultural production into gastronomical jewels that are considered a heritage.