House of Slaves

About this place

The House of Slaves is a museum and memorial to the victims of the Atlantic slave trade, on Gorée Island off Dakar. It is a small red-walled building, known for its two curved staircases and for the so-called Door of No Return, open to the sea. Visitors from Africa, Europe and the Americas come here to remember the human toll of that trade. The museum opened in 1962 and was curated until his death in 2009 by Boubacar Joseph Ndiaye, who made its story known around the world. Historians differ on how many enslaved people were actually held in this building, and on how important Gorée was compared with other places in the trade. It remains a place of remembrance whatever the numbers, and many leaders have visited it. The ground floor has narrow rooms with flaking walls, small windows and timber ceilings, with a dark central passage ending at the doorway onto the ocean. Above is a floor with red pillars and orange walls. The display room has panels on the trade and a model sailing ship. Visitors tend to read here in silence, as the place is heavy. The house is a few steps from the island's harbour, so you need no transport. The rooms fill when groups arrive off the ferry, and if you wait a little it grows quieter. Some sights on the island usually close on Mondays, so check before you come. Behave with respect and keep your voice down, as many treat it as a place of remembrance.