Noah, a man of the soil, proceeded to plant a vineyard. When he drank some of its wine, he became drunk and lay uncovered inside his tent. Ham meets his father Noah naked and drunk in his tent while he is sleeping. Shem and Japheth, his other two sons cover Noah with a garment (cloak of love)
When Noah hears the next day what happened, he cursed his son Ham: “Servant of the servants he is to his brethren.” Hams’s offspring was cursed and had to live as “the servant of the servants.” This story was later twisted to legitimize the slave trade: Ham would have turned black because of the curse, which would predestine black Africans into slavery.