Two Ligbi men from Bongase appear in masquerade regalia prior to a "Do" or "Bedu" performance at the commissioning celebration of the Banda Cultural Centre in Ahenkro. Their carved wooden masks represent a male and female pair of baboons (Mbong in Ligbi). Their heads and shoulders are draped in scarves, they wear raffia skirts around their waist, and over top of socks covering their feet they wear metal jangles on a chain wrapped around their ankles. They are accompanied by a number of men from Bongase. Pictured L-R: Fariah Salah, Kwame Yirikro, Abau Yaya, Abuu Doctor (masked dancer), Adoma, Ansoma Sala (masked dancer), Dandu, Alhaji Moro Mahama. A performance of Mbong at a June 2019 Banda Heritage Event can be viewed through a link below. Ahenkro, 21 July, 1995.
A Ligbi man from Bongase wearing masquerade regalia is partially hidden from view by men carrying a cloth as they walk between thatch-roofed houses en route to the space where the masqueraders will perform. He wears a carved wooden "Mbong" (baboon in Ligbi) mask. Scholars refer to this masking tradition as "Do," while locally it is termed "Bedu." For additional details, see Bravmann, René A. (1974) "Islam and Tribal Art in West Africa" (Cambridge University Press), pp. 147-177. Bongase, December, 1967.
Two Ligbi men from Bongase appear in masquerade regalia during a visit to Bongase by René A. Bravmann, then a doctoral student at Indiana University studying African art history. They wear carved wooden "Mbong" (baboon in Ligbi) masks decorated with ochre and white paint, representing a male and female animal. Their heads and shoulders are draped in scarves. They stand in front of a house with a thatched roof and a raffia shade. Scholars refer to this masking tradition as "Do," while locally it is termed "Bedu." For additional details, see Bravmann, René A. (1974) "Islam and Tribal Art in West Africa" (Cambridge University Press), pp. 147-177. A performance of Mbong at a Banda Heritage Event in June 2019 can be viewed through a link below. Bongase, December, 1967.
Banda Research Project team members wearing blue shirts with the "Unity" logo and dresses embroidered in blue process down Ahenkro's main street from the Paramount Chief's palace to the Banda Cultural Centre for the centre's commissioning ceremony. Ann B. Stahl-- just enstooled as an honorary Queen Mother by the Banda Traditional Council under the stool name Lelɛɛ Yadwo Gongo II--is carried in a palanquin lined with kente cloth and shaded by one of the chief's royal umbrellas. A woman in local-made strip woven cloth stands left, with Binghamton University MA student Alex Caton wearing local dress to her right. To her right in blue-embroidered dresses are project team members Doris Millah and Doris Mensah. Visible in the background are the thatched and iron roofs of houses lining Banda-Ahenrko's main street. Ahenkro, 21 July, 1995.
Rights:
Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial
Publisher:
University of Victoria Libraries
Location(s) Facet:
Ahenkro
Subjects:
Queen Mother; Banda Cultural Centre; Umbrella; Palanquin; Banda Research Project
Subjects Facet:
Rites and ceremonies; West African strip weaving; Thatched roofs; Metal roofing; Textiles; Clothing; Kente cloth; Litters (vehicles); Royal regalia
Tolɛɛ Kofi Dwuru II was the Paramount Chief of Banda from the time of his enstoolment in 1938 until his death in 1977. Here the Nafana chief is pictured seated on an Asante-style "akonkromfi" chair with his sandaled feet resting on a carved wooden white stool to which protective leather amulets made by Islamic clerics have been tied on to the stool's central column. Two large cast metal bells rest on either side of the stool at its base. The paramount chief wears a white cotton cloth bearing geometric designs and Arabic script written in black, blue and red inks. To the right, an Asante-style "assipim" chair is propped against the wall. Suspended from a cord on the wall behind him is a collection of animal bones among which are large ungulate (hoofed animal) and carnivore skulls and jaw bones. For additional details, see Bravmann, René A. (1974) "Islam and Tribal Art in West Africa" (Cambridge University Press), pp. 88-95. Two photos. Ahenkro, 25 November, 1967.
Two Ligbi men from Bongase appear in masquerade regalia during a visit to Bongase by René A. Bravmann, then a doctoral student at Indiana University studying African art history. Front and side views. Mama Dri (left) and Mama Panyini (right) wear carved wooden "Mbong" (baboon in Ligbi) masks decorated with ochre and white paint, representing a male and female pair. Their heads and shoulders are draped in scarves. They stand in front of a house with a thatched roof and a raffia shade. Scholars refer to this masking tradition as "Do," while locally it is termed "Bedu." For additional details, see Bravmann, René A. (1974) "Islam and Tribal Art in West Africa" (Cambridge University Press), pp. 147-177, plates 77-79. A June 2019 performance of Mbong at a Banda Heritage Event can be viewed through a link below. Bongase, December, 1967.
Women in the house of Brɛmawuo work together to prepare the main meal of the day. The wives of the house sit on low wooden stools as they prepare food at clustered hearths. Each hearth is made of three laterite stones which hold the cooking pot above the fire. The women use an array of metal cooking vessels, calabash bowls (chrԑgbͻͻ in Nafaanra) and a clay pot (on the front hearth). The clay pot was likely purchased from one of the potting villages on the west of the Banda hills. Beneath the thatched roof behind the women are hearths used during rainy weather. This house was revisited in November 2018 and several of the women pictured here were interviewed about how foodways have changed over the three decades since this photo was taken. Among the women pictured are (L-R) Adwoa Hana (stirring), Yaa Yaa Dankwa (Stirring), Ama Nwotwenwaa (holding a calabash), Abena Kuma, (standing in blue cloth) and Ama Mensah (standing in red cloth). Sabiye, 15 August 1986.
Three spindles with painted spindle whorls made in Kokua in 1994 rest on a black-and-white strip-woven cloth worn by a woman attending the Banda Heritage Celebration held at the Banda Cultural Centre. In the past Banda area women used spindles and whorls like these to spin cotton thread. Ahenkro, 28 June, 2019.
Rights:
Creative Commons Attribution--NonCommercial
Publisher:
University of Victoria Libraries
Date:
2019-06-28
Location(s) Facet:
Ahenkro
Subjects:
Banda Cultural Centre
Subjects Facet:
West African strip weaving; Textiles; Spinning; Spindle whorls
A wooden spindle thickly wrapped with cotton thread rests in a large calabash bowl. The bowl sits on a wooden stool adjacent to the legs of blue plastic chairs on which elder women sit at a Banda Heritage Celebration held at the Banda Cultural Centre. One woman wears a strip-woven textile made with black, white, red and yellow threads. Bottom right is the basket in which she stores her spinning supplies. Ahenkro, 28 June, 2019.
Rights:
Creative Commons Attribution--NonCommercial
Publisher:
University of Victoria Libraries
Date:
2019-06-28
Location(s) Facet:
Ahenkro
Subjects:
Banda Cultural Centre; Cotton thread
Subjects Facet:
West African strip weaving; Gourd, Calabash; Textiles; Spinning
A folded textile made of handwoven cotton strips, photographed while on display at a Heritage Day and Olden Times Food Fair held at the Banda Cultural Centre. The name of this cloth design is Kakya. Single strands of blue warp thread create vertical lines against a background of white warp and weft threads. Ahenkro, 31 July, 2014.
Rights:
Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial
Publisher:
University of Victoria Libraries
Location(s) Facet:
Ahenkro
Subjects Facet:
Textiles; West African strip weaving; Weaving; Handicraft
A wooden spindle wrapped with cotton thread rests on top of a folded black-and-white textile made from handwoven cotton strips. Cloth of this design is called Kyara. Hand stiching can be seen along the edges where strips have been sewn together. These were among heirloom objects on display at a Heritage Day and Olden Times Food Fair held at the Banda Cultural Centre with sponsorship by Dr. Amanda L. Logan. Ahenkro, 31 July, 2014.
Rights:
Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial
Publisher:
University of Victoria Libraries
Location(s) Facet:
Ahenkro
Subjects Facet:
Textiles; West African strip weaving; Weaving; Handicraft;
A bow-shaped tool (klada in Nafaanra) made from flexible wood and taut string rests on a folded handwoven blue-and-white textile called Kyara. Women used the bow to prepare cotton for spinning into thread. After removing seeds from the cotton, they held the bow's string over the fibers. Plucking the string caused cotton fibers to stick to it. By pulling up on the bow, the cotton became fluffed and its fibers aligned, making it easier to spin. The klada and handwoven textiles seen in the picture were among heirloom objects on display as part of a Heritage Day and Olden Times Foods Fair held at the Banda Cultural Centre. Ahenkro, 2014-07-31.
Rights:
Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial
Publisher:
University of Victoria Libraries
Location(s) Facet:
Ahenkro
Subjects Facet:
Textiles; West African strip weaving; Weaving; Handicraft
A textile made of handwoven cotton strips, photographed while on display at a Heritage Day and Olden Times Food Fair held at the Banda Cultural Centre. This cloth is called Kyekye and is sewn from strips of similar dark blue-and-white design. Variation in patterning is created by offsetting strips. Sections of solid color created by weaving blue weft over blue warp threads are sewn to strip sections with horizontal stripes created by alternating blue and white weft threads. Ahenkro, 31 July, 2014.
Rights:
Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial
Publisher:
University of Victoria Libraries
Location(s) Facet:
Ahenkro
Subjects Facet:
Textiles; West African strip weaving; Weaving; Handicraft
A folded white textile made of handwoven cotton strips, photographed while on display at a Heritage Day and Olden Times Food Fair held at the Banda Cultural Centre, with sponsorship from Amanda L. Logan. The name of this cloth design is Bɔfige. Ahenkro, 31 July, 2014.
Rights:
Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial
Publisher:
University of Victoria Libraries
Location(s) Facet:
Ahenkro
Subjects Facet:
Textiles; West African strip weaving; Weaving; Handicraft
Two folded textiles made from handwoven cotton strips, pieced together in a design called Dɔnkɔnfra. They were photographed while on display at a Heritage Day and Olden Times Food Fair held at the Banda Cultural Centre. One cloth rests on top of the other. The lighter colored strips in each cloth have white warp threads woven together with white, red and blue weft threads. Darker strips were woven from blue and white warp and weft threads. Ahenkro, 31 July, 2014.
Rights:
Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial
Publisher:
University of Victoria Libraries
Location(s) Facet:
Ahenkro
Subjects Facet:
Textiles; West African strip weaving; Weaving; Handicraft
A folded gray-and-white textile made of handwoven cotton strips, photographed while on display at a Heritage Day and Olden Times Food Fair held at the Banda Cultural Centre. Textiles of this design are called Gbenalekinu. A narrow band of red woven accent can be seen on two of the strips. Ahenkro, 31 July, 2014.
Rights:
Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial
Publisher:
University of Victoria Libraries
Location(s) Facet:
Ahenkro
Subjects Facet:
Textiles; West African strip weaving; Weaving; Handicraft
A textile made of handwoven cotton strips, photographed while on display at a Heritage Day and Olden Times Food Fair held at the Banda Cultural Centre. This cloth is called Mmɔlɔ and is sewn from strips of similar blue-and-white striped design. Ahenkro, 31 July, 2014.
Rights:
Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial
Publisher:
University of Victoria Libraries
Location(s) Facet:
8.165892, -2.354363
Subjects Facet:
Textiles; West African strip weaving; Weaving; Handicraft
Two textiles made from handwoven cotton strips rest on an aluminum tray, together with a spindle wrapped with locally made cotton thread, next to which is some unspun fluffed cotton. This blue-and-white cloth design is known as Mmɔlɔ Kyara. Visible at the top of the image are two baskets in which women keep their spinning equipment. To the right, a calabash ladle rests inside a calabash bowl (chrԑgbͻͻ in Nafaanra). These heirloom objects were among displays at a Heritage Day and Olden Times Food Fair held at the Banda Cultural Centre with sponsorship by Dr. Amanda L. Logan. Ahenkro, 31 July, 2014.
A folded textile made of handwoven cotton strips, photographed while on display at a Heritage Day and Olden Times Food Fair held at the Banda Cultural Centre. The name of this cloth design is Mmɔlɔ Kyara. A wood spindle wrapped with locally made cotton thread rests alongside the cloth. Ahenkro, 31 July, 2014.
Rights:
Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial
Publisher:
University of Victoria Libraries
Location(s) Facet:
8.165892, -2.354363
Subjects Facet:
Textiles; West African strip weaving; Weaving; Handicraft
Two folded textiles made from handwoven cotton strips, pieced together in a design called Mmɔlɔ Kyara. They were photographed while on display at a Heritage Day and Olden Times Food Fair held at the Banda Cultural Centre. One cloth is made from alternating strips of white and blue-and-white striped cloth. The other is made of similar blue-and-white strips, in which white weft threads create a checkered design. Ahenkro, 31 July, 2014.
Rights:
Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial
Publisher:
University of Victoria Libraries
Location(s) Facet:
Ahenkro
Subjects Facet:
Textiles; West African strip weaving; Weaving; Handicraft