Attendant to the shrine house priestess, Besease, Ghana

"Similar to a typical traditional Asante courtyard house, a shrine house or 'Obosomfie' is made up of 4 buildings enclosing a central courtyard or 'gyase'. Three of the buildings are open to the courtyard with raised floors. One of these is reserved for the drummers; another room is used by the singers; the third open room is used as a cooking area where ceremonial meals were regularly prepared to be partaken of by the gods. The fourth building, housing the shrine, is closed by decorated walls or intricate open-work screen walls. The entry to this room is usually strictly restricted to the priest and his attendants known as 'nsumankwaafo." [Asante Traditional Buildings. World Heritage. A Ghana Museums and Monuments Publication]. This photograph was taken when Eliot Elisofon was on assignment for Westinghouse Film and traveled to Africa from October 26, 1970 to end of March 1971.