noun
bucket carried on a shoulder pole
A bucket suspended from each end of a pole carried across the shoulder; a traditional carrying method.
昔の人は担い桶で水を運んだ。
People in the old days carried water with shoulder-pole buckets.
Refers to the carrying pole itself, while 担い桶 specifically means the buckets attached to it.
Compound of 担い (carrying) + 桶 (bucket). The exact historical derivation is uncertain.