The run-up to Ramadan is historically a time for folks in Tunisia to get their copper kitchen utensils polished.
While it’s a month of fasting and prayer for Muslims worldwide, it additionally sees households gathering earlier than daybreak and after nightfall to eat collectively.
It is a busy interval for artisans in Kairouan, a metropolis identified for its copper craft.
Mohamed Zaremdini has been working as a copper craftsman for 15 years.
He says it’s a a lot more healthy materials compared to others and other people wish to make their kitchens look lovely by sprucing them.
“Customers come from Tunis and all over the country because they know that in Kairouan, we only work with high-quality copper. There are merchants who work in counterfeits. But here, there are only four people remaining who do this job,” he says.
But artisans within the city face many challenges. The craft is beneath risk, together with competitors from cheaper Chinese imports.
For some households although, sustaining the custom is vital. Fathi Andellaoui has come to gather hello spots.
“At Ramadan every year, we get out the copper pots at home. This is part of the heritage of our ancestors and our family,” he says.
In Kairouan, a metropolis based in 670, craftsman have handed down methods and know-how from technology to technology.
Third-generation copper artisan, Rami Chaabani, says this are powerful and the challenges of the craft outweigh its advantages.
“We wake up at 2 in the morning. Yesterday, I arrived here at 3 and I’m still standing. In the end, the customer pays me 40, 50, or 60 dinars ($30). We barely earn anything,” he says.
He hopes the federal government will take note of the risk dealing with the normal crafts.
“In return, I could teach a young person. This way, the craft would be passed down through generations,” he says.
“However, if things continue as they are, there won’t be any coppersmiths left in four or five years,” he warns.
Even the height season of Ramadan is now not the assure of a future for the copper artisans of Kairouan.
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