The royal origins of the fancy coffin
Although Kane Kwei is sometimes considered to be the inventor of the fancy coffin in the 1950s, recent studies by European ethnologists suggest that he was the one who popularized this art form. It would appear that the manufacture of these coffins was directly inspired by that of palanquins, the famous chairs carried by hand used by the Ga kings (an ethnic group present in the Greater Accra region) during important ceremonies and festivals, and more specifically figurative palanquins. These figurative palanquins were adorned with attributes representing the totem of specific clans. Indeed, to distinguish themselves from their Akan neighbors, who used only boat- or chair-shaped palanquins, the Ga began to build palanquins of all kinds at the beginning of the last century: in the shape of a lion or an elephant (like that of the king of Accra, the Ga mantse, in 1925), but also of plants or objects. The elements chosen are always associated with the clan's history. In addition to being a mark of clan distinction, the figurative palanquin, with its totemic symbols and royal insignia, not only ensures protection by the spirits and ancestors, but also confers on the chief the magical powers associated with the totem.
Although these figurative palanquins are still used today, they are very rarely shown to the public, unlike fantasy coffins. It's usually the same craftsmen who carve palanquins and coffins. In fact, the two objects are intimately linked. It would appear that the first figurative coffins were created to accompany chiefs on their final journey. In the Ga tradition, a chief's initiation, reign and funeral must complement each other. The palanquin bearing the clan insignia cannot, however, be buried with the one he wore. In the 1930s, this led to the idea of a substitute: a figurative coffin that would resemble the palanquin. A copy to be sacrificed and buried. As the chiefs were buried secretly, often in the middle of the night, no one in the audience was a priori able to distinguish between the original palanquin and its substitute. This is how the first figurative coffins came into being.
Passing into the afterlife with panache
In Ghana, the funeral ceremony is one of the most important moments in a man's life. Indeed, a funeral is an important social gathering that often takes the form of a big party. For the occasion, the family of the deceased generally spends astronomical sums, sometimes even more than for a wedding, not hesitating to go into debt to make the funeral an unforgettable moment. The pomp of the ceremony is an indicator of the social status of the deceased's family, but it's also an opportunity to put their generosity to the test of the community. In Ghana, when invited to a funeral, people don't hesitate to travel long distances. Death is celebrated with joy, and the party often lasts several days!
As for the mystical aspect, beliefs differ from one ethnic group to another. Among the Ga, physical death is not considered the end of a person's life, but rather a passage to the afterlife, where life continues in another form. Moreover, the dead and their ancestors are thought to have far greater power than the living. Their actions can have a real impact, a concrete influence on the course of existence of the living to whom they are linked. This is why the family of the deceased does everything in its power to attract the sympathies of the departed.
The social and metaphysical aspects of death intersect in the practical design of fantasy coffins. The first coffins of this type not linked to the clan chieftaincy (i.e. devoid of totemic symbols) are thought to have been carved by Ataa Oko (1919-2012) around 1945, closely followed by Kane Kwei in the early 1950s. The latter built an airplane-shaped coffin for his grandmother. The reason? Partly because his grandmother had always dreamed of seeing the country, but had never been able to do so, but also because of the symbolic power of the vehicle: the airplane, which takes its passenger to the afterlife. The story goes that some time later, a fisherman came to Kane Kwei and asked him to make a coffin in the shape of a boat for his recently deceased mother. And thus was born the Ghanaian tradition of the personalized coffin.
A coffin for everyone
Freed from its royal symbolism, the figurative coffin became accessible to all, at least to those who could afford it (a rather sophisticated piece worth several thousand euros and requiring several weeks of work). If on the sarcophagus intended for people with a high social status, royal or priestly symbols with magical or spiritual functions are present, they are not allowed for the rest of the population. Thus, the first makers of fantasy coffins, Ataa Oko and Kane Kwei, rid their secular creations of strong symbols such as the lion, the rooster or the crab (clan totems) and deep meanings in favor of more prosaic elements, objects related to daily life. Thus, like the airplane or boat coffin, the most eccentric orders began to follow one another from the 1950s-1960s in the workshops of these fancy funeral homes. In general, the casket takes the form of an object symbolizing the profession or occupation of the deceased during his or her life. But it can also reflect his tastes, his aspirations, his passions. Thus, the shoemaker will be buried in a giant shoe, the musician in the trunk of a piano, the mechanic in a gigantic key of 12, the driver in a car... In short, everything is possible: the telephone or gun coffin, in the shape of a bottle or a camera... Animals are also requested again, and with many colors! Note that shapes evoking proverbs are also very appreciated (hence the expression abebuu adeka : "proverbial coffins"), as well as means of transport and shoes, for their strong symbolic charge linked to the notion of travel. The last one!
