Mankessim

Mankessim was a religious and political centre of the Fante people, a few miles inland from the Gold Coast. Fante traditions tell of a southward migration led by Oburumankoma, Odapagyan and Oson. Their burial place at Mankessim became the sacred grove of Nananom Mpow, a focus of ancestral authority for communities that spread from the town along the coast.

The grove's importance reached beyond its immediate neighbourhood. During the eighteenth century, as larger states expanded and Fante communities grew in influence, Mankessim became an increasingly important centre of worship. The brafo, once a war leader, came to be associated with the priesthood of Nananom Mpow. The grove linked the memory of the founders to a wider Fante world of towns and rulers.