How to make a living with the dead?

DW (English)

Have you already thought about your afterlife? No? Well, in Ghana, there are specialists who will make your last path even more colorful.

Transcript

00:00 [MUSIC PLAYING]

00:02 Is it worth passing on a tradition

00:04 of passing away in style?

00:07 In Ghana, the art of coffin making is a big deal.

00:11 Now let's find out how it is to make a living with the dead.

00:14 [MUSIC PLAYING]

00:18 For all the orders I receive, about 95%

00:22 are all fancy coffins.

00:23 I think technology has a role to play in this business

00:27 because I'm toying with this idea of even putting

00:31 a motorized device in some of the coffins I will make

00:34 so that these coffins can move on their own

00:38 during the burial.

00:40 And this is a concept that I am feverishly working towards.

00:44 For me, I'm excited because this is

00:46 going to be something that will revolutionize the space.

00:50 [NON-ENGLISH SPEECH]

00:53 Before we find out why Douglas Stegall decided

00:56 to make a living from coffins, let's find out how

00:59 they are made in the first place.

01:00 [NON-ENGLISH SPEECH]

01:03 Making a fantasy coffin can take up to two weeks.

01:06 Other complex designs can take up to a month.

01:09 I often approach my work by starting with a freehand sketch

01:12 of the design.

01:13 Also, I surf the internet to get designs.

01:17 Then I begin to fabricate my wood one after the other

01:20 to follow the intended design layout.

01:23 Finally, I ensure that no nails show

01:26 on the surface of the coffin.

01:28 Then I get a sign writer to complete the work

01:31 with the appropriate inscriptions if necessary.

01:34 [NON-ENGLISH SPEECH]

01:37 In Ghana, the death rate is 7.63 deaths per 1,000 inhabitants.

01:43 For funeral celebrations, their scale

01:45 is determined by the social rank of the deceased,

01:48 sometimes costing a year's salary.

01:51 The expense extends to coffins priced between 100 and 3,000

01:56 euros, exceeding the country's annual per capita income

02:00 of 2,034 euros.

02:04 [NON-ENGLISH SPEECH]

02:06 Here in Ghana, we do these fancy coffins for family reasons

02:11 and also for aesthetic reasons.

02:13 So we often look at the industry or the area that you worked.

02:18 Then we design the coffin to suit you.

02:20 So these coffins become a testimony of who a person was

02:24 when they were alive.

02:25 [NON-ENGLISH SPEECH]

02:29 The tradition of fantasy coffin crafting in Ghana,

02:32 initiated by Ata Okwu and Seth Kanikwe in the mid-1940s,

02:38 has evolved with artists like Kujo Afutu and Hans Zenijare.

02:42 How do they carry on the legacy?

02:45 [NON-ENGLISH SPEECH]

02:48 Mainly, there are about three types of fantasy coffin--

02:52 one that represent a family.

02:55 And in this case, they do this to honor

02:57 a family member or a relative.

03:01 The second one is that which speaks

03:04 about the person's profession.

03:08 Then the third is one that people do just for beauty's sake.

03:12 [NON-ENGLISH SPEECH]

03:16 Just a few corners from Hans Zen's coffin house,

03:19 Kujo Afutu makes his artistic coffins too.

03:22 What makes him a key figure in passing on this tradition?

03:26 [MUSIC PLAYING]

03:29 First, in times past, our work could

03:32 delay because of the paint.

03:34 It takes days to dry up.

03:36 But now, we actually use auto base and other paints

03:39 that are used for cars.

03:41 Just in a couple of hours, it dries up.

03:43 Then you can quickly put your finishing touches

03:45 to your coffin.

03:47 It's interesting how I got into this fancy coffin making.

03:51 So one day, I was walking around Teshi, a suburb of Accra.

03:55 And I saw a design of a fish.

03:58 I had to go close to it to realize it was a coffin.

04:02 And I was really fascinated.

04:04 So it drove a strong desire in me

04:06 to start learning how to make these coffins.

04:09 It wasn't really for the money.

04:11 It was just to do something fancy that

04:13 will let people get talking.

04:18 Douglas Tego was clear he wanted to learn

04:20 the magic crafts from Kujo.

04:22 After being an apprentice and serving under him for a year,

04:25 he now established his own workshop.

04:28 How does the young coffin maker contribute

04:31 to the ongoing continuity of this unique art form?

04:35 [NON-ENGLISH SPEECH]

04:36 I started working in building construction.

04:38 But my mother didn't like my job,

04:41 encouraged me to rather learn carpentry

04:44 and specialize in coffin making.

04:45 So I did.

04:46 Later, when my mother died, my brothers

04:48 suggested that I should display my mother's coffin outside.

04:52 To them, this could serve as a form of advertisement

04:54 that will attract customers to me.

04:56 My mother was a cook.

04:57 So I created a coffin that resembled

05:00 banku, which was the food most people like.

05:03 My mother's food was known as affordable.

05:05 So I made an inscription of that on the coffin.

05:08 Lots of people started placing orders for me.

05:10 I decided to stay in this town, Bojiase, to ply my trade.

05:14 [NON-ENGLISH SPEECH]

05:16 I brought my little brother close to my business.

05:21 And we've been working together for years.

05:23 I also have one apprentice.

05:25 But he is in school.

05:27 And so when he closes, he comes to help us.

05:30 Once he finishes schooling, he just needs a little polish up.

05:34 And he'll be ready to start work.

05:35 [NON-ENGLISH SPEECH]

05:38 Daniel and his team won't be running out of work

05:40 anytime soon.

05:42 Celebrating the deceased with fantasy coffins

05:45 is a skill and tradition that is worth passing on.

05:48 [MUSIC PLAYING]

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