tamberma homestead...


The Tamberma homestead achieves that fine aesthetic appeal where the refinement of function meets purity of form. The structures are multi-level and multi-purpose, used for habitation, cooking, grain storage, and self-defense.

The thick earthen walls provide comfort and cooling insulation from the intense African sun. Upon the rooftops, thatched-roof turrets provide granaries and food storage. The dwellings are also constructed with defensive features to resist enemy attack. Within the doorway, an unsuspecting intruder will be bombarded with spears hurled from a hatch in the roof overhead.

In front of the doorway stand the conical forms of fetishes that provide for the spiritual protection of the compound. They are decorated with small shells, and are often pressed with symbolic offerings of blood and chicken feathers.

Togo, November 2007.

Rolleiflex 3.5E2 Xenotar, Neopan 400.