Fante asafo flags of Abandze and Kormantze: a discourse between rivals.

Asafo companies originated several centuries ago among the Akan peoples of southern Ghana as military organizations. Seventeenth- and eighteenth-century accounts by Muller (1662-1699, in Jones 1983), de Marees (1602), Ogilby (1987 [1670]), Bosman (1967 [1705]), and Barbot (1732; see also Hair, Jones & Law 1992) are replete with references to well-organized warrior groups established on the Gold Coast whose members were sometimes hired by Europeans as auxiliary soldiers. (1) Today, however, asafo vary in membership, organization, and function especially among the Fante, an Akan people who live along the coast. Fante asafo have become sociopolitical entities involved in the enstoolment and destoolment of chiefs, the celebration of festivals, and other community activities.

Membership is patrilineal: each Fante child joins his or her father's asafo. (2) These agnatic groups are often the basis of town wards, as a company's members tend to reside in a particular area, which they regard as an exclusive zone. (3) Depending on historical exigencies, a town may have several asafo companies, each with its own ward. In that situation, intratown asafo rivalry complicates the usual competition with asafo from other towns.

The History and Use of Flags

Asafo adopted certain European military practices such as marching in formation, identifying companies by name and number, and carrying and saluting flags. Of the various artworks and regalia used in Fante asafo performances, the most important are the flags, which are made in applique or painted or drawn on cloth, and measure approximately three to six feet wide and four to eight feet or more in length. They are the company's soul and embodiment and are included in all its activities. Members swear to defend their flags, which represent and document the asafo's specific culture and history.

These emblematic works were inspired by European examples. In the seventeenth century, Fante asafo used flags both in ceremony and in war. For example, Adam Jones notes that between 1602 and 1669, the people of the Fante town of Fetu would carry the flag of their king and overlord to a festival (Jones 1983:168). In 1679 warriors near Fort Fredericksburgh performed a dance for John Barbot, a Dutch agent at Cape Coast, using a Danish flag (Barbot 1992:565). The Dutch Director-General Nuyts of Elimina reports on fighting men on the coast going on a military expedition in more than eighty canoes flying flags and banners (Ross 1979:14). Barbot mentions the Fante's martial use of European flags: "Those who lived under the protection of the whites always carry into battle a flag of the nation which defends them" (Barbot 1732:295). During the 1803 conflict with British traders, Cape Coast people hoisted "flags of defiance" (in Porter 1970:56). By the beginning of the nineteenth century, then, asafo flags had developed imagery whose meaning could be interpreted. By 1850 they had become a major source of conflict among the Fante companies (Cruickshank 1853).

Flags were also used, however, to establish friendships and cement relationships. Their presentation as gifts to Fante chiefs was a tradition that continued until the first decade of the twentieth century. In 1919 the colonial government ordered flags to be given out to head chiefs who had taken part in the celebration and promotion of peace on the Gold Coast. (4)

Today's flags are commissioned for several reasons. For his installation a safohin (head of an asafo subgroup) must order a flag whose theme usually reflects his ability to make a contribution to the collective heritage of the company; it may also be meant to replace an old flag. It may incorporate images of both past and current asafo leaders. When a leader dies, the flags that they used or commissioned or that bear their image become memorial objects and a means of soliciting the deceased's assistance in the company's activities. (5) The asafo as a group may also order new flags to commemorate special occasions, and individual supporters may commission one as a gift to a company. The content must adhere to the themes established by the asafo.

Typically the person who sews flags learned everyday tailoring skills as an apprentice, but he would not have worked on flags unless his master had received a commission that required his assistance. When a tailor is commissioned, he draws on his imaginative powers, his ability to represent images in his environment, and his knowledge of the values and meanings attached to them. In other cases he may copy an example provided by the asafo or follow the company's explanation or description.

The flag (frankaa) is danced by a frankaakitanyi (pl. frankaakitafo) in an athletic performance that involves somersaulting, spinning around, leaping in the air, and twirling the flag (Fig. 1). The display is well-choreographed, often simulating past battles and confrontations. The assikamba, the corps of people who guard the dancer, explain the content of the flag--shouting it to bystanders and drawing their attention to the flag. At the same time they act as crowd controllers. The asafo, with its frankaakitafo and assikamba, also parade through areas where rival company members reside. The assikamba carry live ammunition for possible use if they feel their flag is in danger of capture. This exhibition of flags, which often have inflammatory themes, is often accompanied by the singing of abusive songs that extol the bravery of the asafo while ridiculing competing companies. A rival's attempts to prevent the display of the flags often lead to conflict. The competitor may also decide to create its own flag, using imagery that "talks back."

There is mention in the early literature of flag imagery and their provocative function (Cruickshank 1853:249; Sarbah 1897:13-14). However, the most extensive work to date is by Doran Ross, who has traced the origins of the flags and pointed out their role in inciting conflicts in the nineteenth century, compelling the British to control their use (Cole & Ross 1977:192). In his book Fighting with Art: Appliqudd Flags of the Fante Asafo, Ross discusses the history and types of flags and the occasions on which they are displayed (Ross 1979:9-14). (6) My earlier article (Labi 1998) investigated evidence for Cruickshank's and Sarbah's views on the confrontational nature of asafo flags and developed Ross's thesis of fighting with flags, citing several conflicts between the mid-nineteenth and twentieth centuries.

The present article is less about ethnography and more about specific artworks with a sophisticated iconography. Here I wish to explore the content and consequent discourse between flags of rival asafo companies in two towns, Abandze and Kormantse, where I spent three days examining, photographing, and recording explanations of flags that contain references to rival companies and past conflicts or tensions. (7)

Kormantse is situated about 112 kilometers west of Accra, on the Accra-Cape Coast road; Abandze is about three kilometers away on the same road, separated from its neighbor by a river over which a bridge has been constructed. Both are predominantly fishing towns. Abandze has one asafo company, while Kormantse has two, namely Bentsir No. 1 and Nkum No. 2. Each company has about forty flags, but the number might go as high as sixty if one were to trace all members who possess them. My research focuses on a group of about sixty flags from both towns, some of which I will discuss in detail here. As a few comparisons will reveal, although these flags may share imagery similar or even identical to that seen on flags of other Fante asafo, they reference aspects of a company's specific history.

Interpreting Flag Imagery

Many asafo flag motifs are shared by different companies: an elephant pulling a palm tree, a man giving an enema to another person, a man who has helped the elephant deliver its calf. Though the essence of the message--often associated with a proverb or story--may be the same, the circumstances that gave rise to each of these flags are specific to each company. Similarly, the oral explanations of the imagery may differ, even within the same company or group of elders, though there is agreement on the basic meaning.

In asafo flags, animals and their associated qualities are metaphors for human traits and relationships. For example, the antelope may signify wisdom, humility, or docility. The cock symbolizes pride, the bush dog implies wealth, and vultures represent filth and disregard. The crow is to be detested, and the cat is considered a thief. Interpretations may vary depending on the combination of motifs and the historical incident to be illuminated. Thus, the image of the elephant with its trunk around a palm tree may be understood as either the elephant pulling it down or failing to pull it down. A flag from the town of Biriwa (Fig. 2) says that although the elephant is the strongest animal in the bush, the antelope is considered the wisest ("Oson kuntaan adowa dze ne man" (8)). The meaning of the same composition may be reversed, however, if the elephant image is assigned superiority.

Because the flags are sacred, there is a protocol surrounding their storage, display, and interpretation. They are usually folded and kept in boxes or sacks in the bedrooms of flag dancers or company elders. Asafo members are reluctant to show them to outsiders. They will bring them out only on the instructions of the supi (company head) or other elders, and a libation must first be poured to seek permission to do so from deceased past leaders. During such occasions it is usually the flag dancer who handles the flag or explains it in the presence of others in the company, who may help him spread it out. Because of the possibility of tension if the flags are seen by a member of a rival asafo, such viewings usually take place indoors or within secured areas of the compound. As soon as the explanation is concluded, the flags are folded and tucked away. (9)

Such was the procedure during my study of Abandze and Kormantse flags. On appointed days the flag dancers and assembled elders explained the flags to me. After the "official" version of a flag's meaning was presented, there were sometimes further clarifications or elaborations, and even arguments over its interpretation. However, an elder always gave the final word. Hence, in the case of each of the three companies, the interpretations were generally a matter of consensus. The situation was the same in several other towns I visited during my research.

Abandze and Kormantse Flags

Asafo flags can thus be best appreciated by comparing the content of examples from different companies. Records exist of frequent past confrontations over flags of the three asafo of Abandze and Kormantse. For example, in 1907 there was a legal dispute between Kormantse and the neighboring village of Saltpond. On the day of judgment in the case, Abandze, hoping for a decision against Kormantse, asked the district commissioner for permission to display its flags. Under normal circumstances he would have refused, but on this occasion he did not, apparently because he realized the people of Abandze would do as they wished anyway. What ensued was typical: Kormantse complained that Abandze Company had created a flag with a "character" that was insulting to it. The district commissioner requested that the flag be surrendered, but Abandze complained that Kormantse possessed an equally inappropriate flag. (10) A serious conflict might have followed had there been no police presence.

Asafo companies in both Abandze and Kormantse still possess several of the inflammatory flags (though others were seized), and they use them at appropriate times. It is the iconography and its interpretation that create the discourse and compel a response from a rival. I went to the two towns to determine if the rivalry still exists, and if so, how it is reflected in their flags.

Abandze Company

The Abandze asafo claims to have defeated the Bentsir and Nkum companies of Kormantse in several conflicts. Some of its flags use proverbs to boast of these victories. For example, according to Abandze oral tradition narrated by the elders, (11) several years ago, the company was returning from a nearby town when it was suddenly attacked by the Nkum asafo. Although it numbered about three hundred and the Kormantse company numbered about five hundred, Abandze's men were battle-ready, determined, and therefore victorious.

To commemorate the event, the asafoakyere (leader of the female units within the asafo), Maame Akua Adu Ama, ordered a flag called Osua [??]tow ma ne nsa b[??] so, meaning "The monkey jumps only as far as its forelegs will reach" (Fig. 3). The flag's traditional border and, at upper left, the Ghanaian flag, seen in many asafo flags, frame a balanced composition of a monkey flanked by two trees. The monkey dives downward, with outstretched legs, having failed in its attempt to jump from one tree to the other. Its miscalculation recalls that of the Kormantse asafo: Nkum should have made a proper assessment of the strength of Abandze before attacking, or looked elsewhere for a weaker opponent. This proverb is similarly interpreted in a flag from Anomabo that is now in the collections of the UCLA Fowler Museum (Fig. 4).

Other Abandze asafo leaders created flags to add to their historical accounts of encounters with Kormantse. A flag commissioned by Safohin Amoako illustrates the proverb [??]son mpo y[??] gye na awo na wo k[??]k[??]tse: "If we have helped the elephant deliver its calf, then who are you, bush pig?" (Fig. 5). The elders said that "a long time ago," when Abandze Company decided to pass through Kormantse, the Bentsir asafo invited Nkum to attempt to resist Abandze. After the attack by Nkum failed, Abandze made a flag to taunt Bentsir: if Abandze was able to defeat Nkum, then who was Bentsir to confront them in a fight?

The flag shows a man holding a bush pig by the tail with his right hand and pointing to an elephant with the other. The elephant's calf lies on the ground, its upside-down pose and still-attached umbilical cord indicating that it has just been born. The artist has offset the solid black mass of the elephant with images of the bush pig and the man, and the calf and the bush pig facing left are balanced by the man and the elephant facing right. These simple symbols clearly communicate the message.

The flag in Figure 6, commissioned by Safohin Kojo Tawia of Abandze, introduces the theme of fishing, the main occupation of men in this area. In this example, two fishermen drag a net around a school of fish, whose varied directional movements belie their confusion and fright. The men are small and relegated to a corner of the flag, whereas the fish are too large and numerous to fit into the boat.

The message--that when there are plenty of fish, it is easy to catch them--refers to the ease with which Abandze defeated their neighbor in another encounter. The two Kormantse asafo, approaching Abandze for an attack, became easy targets for gunfire because they were so numerous. In the ensuing confusion, Abandze surrounded them. According to the Abandze asafo, the flag commemorating this incident shows that it is easy to deal with a mob, and that the company will probably continue to deal with Bentsir No. 1 and Nkum No. 2 in the same way.

The elders told me, however, that another fish, the tilapia, sends a different message of strength or toughness. In the strong, centrally focused composition of the flag in Figure 7, an egret holds a tilapia in its beak. The relative sizes of the two images are significant, and the tilapia's whiteness makes it visually important. The egret represents the Kormantse asafo companies, and the tilapia in its beak, Abandze. The tilapia's numerous small bones can choke its predators, even the egret, which can swallow all other fish. By implication, though the numerous asafo members of Kormantse may be able to conquer all other companies, they cannot defeat the smaller but tougher force of Abandze.

These four flags are just a few of those which communicate Abandze's self-perceived superiority over the Kormantse asafo. Flags from Kormantse present the other side of the discourse.

Kormantse Bentsir No. 1 Company

According to an elder of Kormantse Bentsir, (12) a number of company flags are similarly directed to either the Abandze or the Kormantse Nkum asafo. One example illustrates a story of a lion and leopard meeting to drink palm wine (Fig. 8). In addition to these two animals, this multicolored flag is populated by a snake and a man. However, the eye is drawn to the pot of palm wine at the center of the composition, accentuated by the brightly colored flowers above it. The supi, Kobina Wobil, says the lion represents Abandze and the leopard represents Kormantse Nkum and all other companies. The pot belongs to Kormantse Bentsir, also represented as the python, whose members are waiting to see who will come to drink their palm wine. Having set this trap, they are on the alert to fight Abandze, Nkum, or anyone else who tries to drink from the pot--that is, whoever provokes or offends them.

Another Bentsir flag depicts, on the left, a man carrying a python in one hand and receiving a cobra in the other (Fig. 9). He appears to be engaged in a dialogue with a fully clothed man on the right. I was told that the man on the right, representing Bentsir, is asking the other, representing Nkum, why he would want to take a second poisonous snake when he is already contending with the first. His pointing finger and the gesture of holding his waist expresses his derision at such foolishness.

According to the elder, at some point in the recent past, the Nkum asafo was decimated, a fact that enabled Bentsir to rout its men in a fight. Bentsir later made this flag to remind Nkum that it is a small force and should not keep provoking them: Nkum members already have enough trouble on their heads, so why are they asking for more?

The flag in Figure 10 shows a man pointing in one direction to a spider on a stool, a symbol of political authority, and in the other to the sun. Spiders are perceived as wise or cunning in several Akan folktales. The message is that the chief sits on the stool even before the sun rises; that is, no matter what Nkum does, Bentsir will always be ahead of it. In this egotistical flag, the name of the company dominates.

Another Bentsir flag (Fig. 11) is called Ese fitaa na bogya w[??] ase: "It is behind white teeth that there is blood." The connection between the vultures and the proverb, which is written on the flag, is obscure. The birds dominate the flag; they move toward a man on the left almost as if they were going to attack him, seemingly at the command of a man on the right. Though separated by the vultures the two men in both corners of the flag are turned toward each other with pointed fingers, similar to communicative or confrontational poses on other flags. The interpretation, according to Bentsir oral tradition, is that one does not know what is in someone's head: a person may be thinking evil while smiling at you. The company is issuing a warning that even after the peaceful settlement of a case, it is prepared to fight again if provoked.

The imagery also signifies that a town full of people may become a mob if there is no wise person among them. This interpretation refers to Nkum, which, as a result of a past conflict, is seen as lacking a person with common sense, despite its larger membership. The flag insinuates that those in Nkum No. 2 have minds are as filthy as vultures, which are perceived to be dirty birds unworthy of respect.

Bentsir No. 1 believes that self-confidence and pride are naturally inherent in their asafo, which members regard as most senior. In the flag in Figure 12, Nkum acknowledges Bentsir as the stronger company. The cock and the hen illustrate the proverb "Akoko bri osid[??][??] oyim adekyee nso [??]twen nini ano ansa na wa hu d[??] adeakye": "The hen knows when it is daybreak but waits for the cock to announce it." This is an unchangeable law of nature. The cock stands for Bentsir and the hen represents Nkum, which will always be subordinate to Bentsir. Nkum can never overcome that fact, no matter how strong the company believes it is. Here the Ghanaian flag, usually tucked into a corner of asafo flags, is a prominent compositional element. It is balanced on the left by a man in traditional dress and at the bottom by the bold lettering of the word "freedom." The flag was made during the period of Ghana's independence.

A flag from the UCLA Fowler Museum shows a pot with two men standing beside it (Fig. 13). One of the men, we are told, is testing the water, saying "Ohuru gyan na [??]nhye," or "It boils but does not burn." The interpretation is that the enemy makes a good show of strength but proves harmless when challenged. The same proverb is expressed in a Kormantse Bentsir flag (Fig. 14), but its meaning is different because it derives from a particular historical context. In that centralized composition, two men face each other, a pot of boiling water between them. The man on the left, identifiable as a safohin by the whip, a symbol of that office, has his hand in the pot. The other man covers his mouth in apparent puzzlement. The image recalls the Bentsir oral tradition about the reaction of the Asante army when they first arrived on the Fante coast from the forested interior. Upon seeing the ocean waves, they thought the sea was boiling. The Fante teasingly refer to the Asante as "bush people." The taunt implicit in this flag is that like the sea, Asante, or any other rival, appears to boil but does not burn.

Kormantse Nkum No. 2 Company

The Bentsir asafo creates an impression of Nkum as a small, weak, and unworthy company. Nkum has responded with flags expressing themes of resistance, self-defense, and warning. At the same time the company recognizes the need for peace. In the flag in Figure 15, three men are dragging a whale on a line while two sharks follow. At the top is the name of the company and the proverb "Paakor miny[??]d[??]n," or "One person, what should I do?" According to Nkum's flag dancer, (13) the whale represents his asafo; the men in the boat are Abandze, and the two sharks behind are Bentsir. Abandze has caught Nkum, which at the same time is being attacked from behind by Bentsir. Nkum claims that the two other companies are always giving it trouble and wishes to know what they expect of it.

Nkum believes it is capable of fighting both on land and in the air. Figure 16 pictures a three-headed reptilian bird chasing a hunter who is armed with a gun. The creature, with its wing outspread and tail raised, shoots an arrow-like-tongue at the man's neck. According to oral tradition, when the hunter encountered this animal, it asked him, "Ibotu anaa eb[??]hera": "Will you fly or will you vanish?" The question implied that there was no escape for the hunter, who could be attacked on the ground as well as in the air. Through this flag Nkum is warning Bentsir and Abandze that whatever they do, Nkum will overpower them.

"Will you fly or will you vanish?" is a common proverb that is expressed in still another Fowler Museum flag (Fig. 17). In that example, an additional image of a bottle, on the left side, signifies that the white man can conquer everything except the bottle. Apam Tuafo Supi offered this variation: "Mf[??]tse botum awe ndz[??]mba nyina a nna nnye b[??]damb[??] bia," or "The termite can chew all things, but it cannot chew the bottle" (interview, 1997).

Members of Nkum continue to pride themselves as warriors who are not simply fighters but skillful strategists, essential to the success of any military action. This idea is expressed in a flag showing a man holding the head of a goat over a pot (Fig. 18). The gun he grasps in the other hand identifies him as the Safohin of Nkum. I was told that no one cooking tasty soup can ignore the head of a goat. Even if it is overcooked, it will not disintegrate in the broth. Similarly the Nkum company is indispensable in a conflict, and it will honor any invitation to fight.

In other flags Kormantse Nkum challenges Bentsir to a fight. A lion and a leopard face each other in Figure 19 in a pose of confrontation or dialogue. Both animals' heads are lowered, backs and tails are raised, limbs seem to move forward, and eyes are opened wide. A container balanced on the head of the lion suggests the central theme. The interpretation provided by the flag dancer is that if a devil (lion) sells palm wine (or anything else), it is only another devil (leopard) that buys it. If Nkum's neighbors Bentsir (leopard) believe they are good fighters, they should attempt to fight only equally good fighters (lion)--in other words, Nkum.

Like an example in the Fowler Museum (Fig. 20), the flag in Figure 21 cautions that one fights only a person of equal size and strength. This imagery represents the proverb "Se abofra nyim agoro dzi anna enye moko tsetsew": "If the child knows how to play, it does not include picking peppers." A man on the left points to a pepper plant at the center of the flag; a boy lies beneath the plant, while two other men on the fight look on. The flag encodes a warning to the Abandze asafo, which was becoming overly proud: it is the younger of the companies, and if its members do not behave accordingly, they will face unpleasant consequences from Nkum.

Nkum believes that its fighting capabilities are so superior that it is unthinkable for Bentsir to even dream of an attack. A flag commissioned by Safohin Kwatia communicates this idea through two sets of images (Fig. 22). On the left, a goat appears to be falling, having attempted to climb the two-story house. On the fight, the seated man--probably a safohin as indicated by the whip in his hand--speaks to a man standing with his hands on his waist, apparently a defiant posture. The safohin is challenging him to climb the house wall, a task whose impossibility is signaled by the goat's failure. Nkum members interpreted the flag for me: "The goat believes it knows how to jump over walls, but it cannot jump over a two-story building." In other words, Bentsir (the goat) believes it can fight, but it should not attempt to fight with Nkum.

Finally, after a history of a provocative and competitive discourse between the flags of the Kormantse and Abandze asafo, Kormantse Nkum has recognized the importance of peace with rival Abandze. This realization is written in English on the flag in Figure 23. The two men shaking hands represent the peaceful settlement of a conflict over the lagoon that forms a common boundary between the two asafo. Nkum had been found guilty of obstructing Abandze's use of the lagoon, and it was agreed that both companies should have access to this source of fresh water. Furthermore, Nkum came to believe that those in Abandze Company are not only their neighbors but their "children," so the two asafo should unite and support one another. This incident is recounted in a flag made of woven plant fiber usually used to weave sleeping mats or door blinds.

The flags from Abandze and Kormantse Bentsir No. 1 and Nkum No. 2 propagate each company's values or record particular historical incidents involving a rival asafo. The Abandze flags mainly contain themes which insult the other two companies, referring to past conflicts in which Abandze was the victor. Kormantse Bentsir disregards Abandze's posturing and makes only general reference to that asafo as one of those they will fight if provoked. Bentsir is more concerned about its relationship with Nkum, regarded as an unworthy local rival. On the other hand, Nkum claims to be the oldest most mature of the companies; it is therefore willing to aid other asafo in times of need, and it recognizes the importance of peaceful coexistence with its neighbors.

Since 1803, when "flags of defiance" were raised on the Cape Coast, asafo flags have incorporated depictions of animals, plants, and other symbols to project their company's image and to convey specific messages to competing companies. The flags of Abandze and Kormantse companies are examples of a lively visual dialogue between Fante asafo. As such they are valuable historical and social documents as well as engaging works of art.

[This article was accepted for publication in July 2002.]

(1.) Later writers such as Ellis (1.887), Brown (1929), and Annobil and Ekuban (1952) support these early observations and argue that asafo is an ancient tradition among the Fante. Arhin (1966), however, argues that it can be traced to the rise of armed retainers during the era of the slave trade; Watemberg (in Datta & Porter 1971) traces its origin to the Fante-Asante wars, which started in 1727 when the Dutch helped the Fante organize an army. Despite evidence to the contrary, Arhin presupposes that intertown or interstate wars were alien to the Fante before the advent of the Europeans.

(2.) The asafo contrast with and stand in opposition to the matrilineal groups (abusua) on which inheritance and chieftaincy are based among the Akan as a whole.

(3.) Sometimes, however, marital and social relationships and modern developments such as building a new infrastructure (e.g., public schools, hospitals, banks, government district offices) make it difficult to enforce this exclusivity.

(4.) Case No. 35/1929, "Union Jack Presentation to Head Chiefs on the Celebration of Peace." Public Records and Archives Administration Department, Accra.

(5.) As religious works used to venerate deceased leaders, flags may not be sewn or used by women.

(6.) Adler and Barnard's book, Asafo Flags of the Fante Asafo (1993), repeats most of the historical accounts as well as some arguments already published by Cole and Ross (1977) and Ross (1979). Their work is largely a classification of the different thematic works made by the asafo. They identify the names of several flags either purchased from the asafo or ordered from flag makers, but they do not explain the names or the meanings of the imagery.

(7.) My field research began in 1996, when I visited some Fante towns to study their art. In 1998 1 spent about seven months studying and examining flags, other artworks, and asafo activities; my most recent fieldwork took place in 2001.

(8.) The open o symbol is pronounced like the o in orange. Other Akan quotations below include the epsilon symbol, which is pronounced like the e in elephant.

(9.) Hence the quality of photographs taken in Abandze and Kormantse. These flags had been unfolded to allow me to take a quick snapshot before they were returned to storage.

(10.) Adm 11/1/ 1753, Register of Riots 1884-1924, Disturbance at Kormantin, Case No. 95/1907. Public Records and Archives Administration Department, Accra.

(11.) Interview with Supi Abaka Kuntu, Safohin Atta Payin, and the flag dancer in the presence of other leaders; Abandze, May 2001.

(12.) Interview granted by Supi Samuel Kobina Wobil of Bentsir No. 1 in the presence of another elder who keeps the company flags; Kormantse, May 2001.

(13.) This information was provided by Egya Amissah, the flag dancer of Nkum No. 2, in the presence of other asafo members, including an elder who keeps the flags; Kormantse, May 2001.

References cited

Adler, P. and N. Barnard. 1993. Asafo: African Flags of the Fante. London: Thames & Hudson.

Annobil, J. A., and J. E. Ekuban. 1952. Mfantse Amambu Mu Bi. Cape Coast. 5th ed.

Arhin, Kwame. 1966. "Diffuse Authority among the Coastal Fanti," Ghana Notes and Queries 9.

Barbot. John. 1732. "A Description of the Coasts of North and South Guinea." Paris.

Bosman, William. 1967. A New and Accurate Description of the Coast of Guinea. Orig. pub. 1705. London: Frank Cass & Co.

Brown, E. P.J. 1929. Gold Coast and Ashanti Reader Book 1. London: Brown & Sons, Hull.

Cole, Herbert M. and Doran H. Ross. 1977. The Arts of Ghana. Los Angeles: Museum of Cultural History, University of California, Los Angeles.

Cruickshank, Brodie 1853. Eighteen Years on the Gold Coast. London: Hurst & Blackett.

Datta, Ansu K. and R. Porter. 1972. "The Asafo System in Historical Perspective," Journal of African History 12, 2: 279-98.

de Marees, Pieter. 1987. Description and Historical Account of the Gold Kingdom of Guinea. Trans. and eds. Albert van Dantzig and Adam Jones. Orig. pub. 1602. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Ellis, Alfred Burdon. 1887. The Tshi-Speaking Peoples of the Gold Coast of West Africa. London: Chapman & Hall.

Hair, P. E. H., Adam Jones, and Robin Law (eds.). 1992. Barbot on the Guinea, The Writings of Jean Barbot on West Africa 1678-1712, vol. 2. London: The Hakluyt Society.

Jones, Adam. 1983. "Wilhelm Johann Muller's Description of the Fetu Country, 1662-69," in German Sources for West African History 1599-1699, pp. 134-259. Stuttgart: Franz Steiner.

Labi, Kwame A. 1998. "Fights, Riots and Disturbances with Objectionable and Provocative Art among the Fanti Asafo Companies," Transactions of the Historical Society of Ghana n. s. 2:101-16. Legon: University of Ghana.

Ogilby, John. 1670. Africa: Being an accurate description of the regions of Aegypt, Barbary, Lybia, and Billendulgerid, the land of the Negroes, Guinee, Aethiopia, and the Abyssines.... London: T. Johnson.

Porter, R. 1970. "The Cape Coast Conflict of 1803," Transactions of the Historical Society of Ghana 11. Legon.

Ross, Doran, H. 1979. Fighting with Flags, Appliqued Flags of the Fante Asafo. Los Angeles: UCLA Museum of Cultural History Pamphlet Series 1, 5.

Sarbah Mensah, John. 1897. Fanti Customary Laws. London: William Clowes & Sons.

KWAME A. LABI is a research fellow in art history at the University of Ghana, Legon. He is also curator of the ethnographic museum at the Institute of African Studies, University of Legon, and teaches African museum professionals in a postgraduate course in collection management at the Programme for Museum Development in Africa (PMDA) Mombasa, Kenya.