A Caribbean Wax Museum

Usain Bolt is, uncharacteristically, standing perfectly still. Marcus Garvey sits at a desk while Fidel Castro, dressed in head-to-toe army green, looks over his shoulder. Around the corner, Richard Branson’s dressed in a pirate outfit, and upstairs, Jennifer Lopez and Harry Belafonte rub shoulders.

It’s not every day that you encounter such disparate characters, let alone all in one place. Which is what makes Barbados’ Caribbean Wax Museum so special. The Christchurch attraction, which opened in July, features handmade likenesses of the aforementioned and about 30 other Caribbean and Caribbean-related characters. It’s the realization of the 11-year-old dream of Art Edwards and Frances Ross, Bajan-based artists and partners in life and business.

“It’s taken a lot out of us in terms of effort and emotion,” says Ross, who, with Edwards worked on each life-size figure for as long as four months. Also surprising: The figures aren’t actually made of wax.

Usain Bolt at the Caribbean Wax Museum in Barbados.

Edwards explains that nowadays “wax,” when applied to waxwork figures, is a generic term, and that the likenesses are made from a variety of materials. Using store mannequins as the base and a series of photographs as a guide, they duo employs silicone rubber and resin to make molds and to cast the heads and exposed body parts, including the hands. The eyes aren’t glass; they’re made from polyester, acrylic and epoxy, and Ross individually inserts each strand of hair on the heads, eyebrows, and even fingers. The result is a more lifelike look and feel, which you can experience for yourself since (gently!) touching the figures is encouraged.

Downstairs, the focus in on historical figures, including Haitian revolutionary Toussaint L’Ouverture; Cubans Fidel Castro and Ché Guevara; and Jamaican political leader Marcus Garvey. This is the only known wax depiction of the famous pan-Africanist in the world, and a recording of one his speeches loops on a video monitor in the background.

Upstairs you’ll encounter more contemporary celebs, spanning the worlds of entertainment, sports, and politics. There’s Bahamas-born Sidney Poitier; the island’s first prime minister, Errol Barrow; and Jamaican legend Bob Marley.

And since we’re in Barbados, there are no prizes for guessing the most popular musical figure in the house: A fresh-faced Rihanna, clad in a modest blue dress and holding her first Grammy award.

— Sarah Greaves-Gabbadon, CJ Travel Editor

The Caribbean Wax Museum is open Thursdays through Sundays, from 12:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. See cwmuseum.net for more details.