Sankofa Museum Pavilion
Hwidiem, Ghana
The pavilion complex will consist of three buildings, linked by bridges in the shape of the Akan / Asante “stool,” the seat of the king and queen.
The central building will house the registration, offices and exhibit areas. The building on the left will house a café on the ground floor and partially open-air entertainment area on the top floor. The building on the right will house the auditorium on the top level and storage area on the ground floor.
Launch August 12, 2023
See Video Below
Design
The Ohene Kra Komuade
(see www.odwirafo.com)
The circular exhibit area of the Sankofa Museum is designed in the shape of the Adinkra Symbol (Cosmo gram) called the Ohene Kra Komuade. This answers the Ancestral call to “build purpose and culture into the structure.
The Ohene Kra Komuade represents the totality of life, from conception, birth, maturity, death and rebirth. The four areas of the circle represent the movements of the Sun through the four pivotal changes of the seasons.
The Ohene Kra Konmuade is worn around the neck of the Akan ohene (king) as a protection for his Kra (Ka/soul). It is a tool of self (spiritual) governance.
As the head of the aban (government) of the oman (nation) and the sum total of the spirit of the people, the ohene must maintain spiritual balance. The ohene embodies the oman. His spiritual sustenance is paramount, for imbalance in the head leads to imbalance in the body (community). He is a representative of the people to the Ancestresses and Ancestors. On balance, the ohemma/queenmother is a representative of the Ancestresses and Ancestors to the people. The four-fold nature of the Ohene Kra Konmuade delineates the life-cycle of the ohene and the oman. It is a template ritually utilized to align and realign the spirit with its essential nature through its protective function. The Ohene Kra Konmuade is conceptually and functionally a Nut.
Exhibits
Area II
WINTER
The Middle Passage
Enslavement, etc.
Resistance & Reconnection
Area IV
SUMMER
Global Sankofa
Area III
SPRING
The Return: Birth of the Asante Nkonim Kurom in North America
Area I
(Akan New Year: AUTUMN)
Ancient African Splendor
The Fall into Slavery on the Continent
Permanent and changing exhibits at Sankofa Museum Pavilion will demonstrate how we reach back to recover the generative energy of our history, spiritual grounding and family bloodlines.
Since we were taken away as family members from families, we must return as family back to families. This is the closing of the circle that was physically (not spiritually) broken as a result of the Trans-Atlantic enslavement process.
Due to the pollution and displacement of our cultures as a result of colonialism across the
African continent, once the circle has been reconnected, the way forward for us all is to Sankofa, by re-institutionalizing a static / dynamic / purified return process. The counter clockwise placement of the exhibit areas follows the movement of the Ohene Kra Komuade, beginning with the Akan New Year at the autumn equinox in September, when seeds are planted. The movement continues through winter, when there is apparently no growth, while seeds are germinating deep within the Earth. Seeds sprout in the spring, and plants are in full glory during the summer. This is represented by the historical movement of Africans in America from ancient times to current reclaiming of our culture as a way of life.