#pitchy patchy

[schweizercomics]

Companions of Christmas 13: Pitchy Patchy

Once a highly decorated Akan military commander, the man who would become known as Pitchy Patchy was stolen from his home and enslaved in Jamaica, but he was able to escape to freedom and, operating from the Maroon towns that he helped to defend, would regularly lead raids against the plantations to free others.

Since the folks that he rescued didn’t have access to the kinds of ornate trophies and medals that he’d worn in the past, they would honor him with a simple strip of colored cloth as a sign of their gratitude for his valor. He saved so many people that he was eventually festooned with these cloth strips, to the point that they covered his entire body.

At Christmastime, he would parade boldly through the streets during the festival of Jonkonnu (or Jankunu, or Junkanoo, etc), and he continues to be a part of Jonkonnu parades to this very day.

[the-sweet-life-ja]

Jamaican Christmas ::  The John Canoe or Jonkonnu has a very long tradition as a folk festival, incorporating both African and European forms. The ‘Jonkonnu’ Festival is secular in nature and its performance at Christmas time is merely historical.  It was conceived as a festive opportunity afforded the slave class by the planter class, as Christmas was one of the few periods when the slaves were relieved of their duties. Hence, Christmas formed an appropriate season for festivities as all normal business activity on the island was halted by official decree and all males were called up for military service, augmenting the population in the larger towns.  Therefore, ample opportunity was given to the slaves to show off their talents to the spectators who had also been given time off from work.

Traditional Jonkonnu most often includes as core participants, the cow head, the horsehead, the devil, the different categories of warriors and Indians, as well as a character known as Pitchy-Patchy. The more popular characters are quite worthy of further mention as their presence in the festival evoked an admixture of fear and excitement in onlookers.