“A sacred place” - Asafo militia’s company flag, frankaa
“A sacred place” - Asafo militia’s company flag, frankaa
“A sacred place” - Asafo militia’s company flag, frankaa
“A sacred place” - Asafo militia’s company flag, frankaa
“A sacred place” - Asafo militia’s company flag, frankaa
“A sacred place” - Asafo militia’s company flag, frankaa
“A sacred place” - Asafo militia’s company flag, frankaa
“A sacred place” - Asafo militia’s company flag, frankaa
Anonymous Fante artist (Ghana)
46 23/50 x 66 93/100 in
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Among the Fante, many places in the great outdoors are considered to be the residence of gods. Rivers play a special role here because they are believed to be sons of the gods. Certain grottos, rocks or bends in the river can also be the embodiment of specific clan or family deities. The members of an Asafo company belonged to a patriarchal clan (nton), and therefore they had common ancestors and family deities. This flag shows a certain stretch of river with a characteristic rock formation: a sacred place where a specific deity linked to the Asafo company has its dwelling. With the sun and rainbow the symbols of life and death are also present. In Fante iconography, the rainbow was associated with death, for so as a rainbow’s presence covers everybody, so is death a fate that awaits us all. With this symbol a company would indicate its enemies their mortal threat.
Provenance
Collection Alain Dufour, Paris
Collection Han & Nina Simonis, Düsseldorf
Exhibitions
“Asafo. Fahnen aus Ghana”
Saarland Museum, Saarbrücken, 19 February – 17 April 1995
Afrika Museum, Berg en Dal, 1 May – 1 November 1995
Publications
Güse, Ernst-Gerhard, “Asafo. Fahnen aus Ghana”, Munich, Prestel, 1995, no. 49
