Bonwire Kente Village

About

Bonwire is a town in the Ashanti region of Ghana, where the most popular cloth in Africa, popularly known as "Kente", originated. The Kente is worn by the king of the Ashanti Kingdom in Ghana. Bonwire is part of Ejisu-Juaben Municipal district within Ghana's Ashanti Region.

How kente came into existence

Two friends went to farm and came across a spider making a web. They decided to watch the spider as it weaves its web. They came back home and try to do exactly what the spider did and they started to weave a cloth. They then told the chief about what they have done. The chief and the people saw how beautiful it is and decided to make the cloth a national cloth for special occasions like funerals, festivals, naming ceremonies and marriage ceremonies.The production of this cloth and then improved and was named Kente.

They have been making kente cloth since the 17th century in Adanwomase, the royal weaving village for the Asante king. Around half the population of Adanwomase is involved in the making of kente, with weavers showing great pride in their work and often creating personal designs. Visitors are welcome in Adanwomase, which offers guided tours and a chance to buy your very own piece of kente cloth.

The weaving tour includes a visit to the community kente workshop, where guests can try their hand at thread spinning, warping, and weaving, as well as a trip to the village shops to buy kente products and other crafts. The tour continues to the chief’s palace, the traditional healer’s shrine, the oldest house in the area (over 300 years old) and a cocoa farm and finishes up at a forest shrine. Visitors can also choose to go on a culinary tour of local farms, take part in palm wine tapping or learn to cook traditional Ghanaian dishes. An evening of dancing, drumming, and storytelling by a cultural troupe can also be arranged.