Fort São Sebastião de Xama

Fort São Sebastião (Portuguese: Forte São Sebastião de Xama) located in Shama, Ghana, is the third oldest fortification in Ghana.[1] Along with several other castles in Ghana, it was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1979 because of its testimony to the history of European trade, colonization, and exploitation in the region.[2]

For the fort in Mozambique, see Fort São Sebastião.
Fort São Sebastião
Part of Dutch Gold Coast
Fort San Sebastian in 1890.
Fort São Sebastião is located in Ghana
Fort São Sebastião
Fort São Sebastião
Coordinates5.010825°N 1.629199°W / 5.010825; -1.629199
Site history
Built1523 (1523)
Garrison information
OccupantsPortugal (1523-1642)
Netherlands (1642-1872)

History

It was built by the Portuguese from 1520 to 1526 as a trading post in and captured by the Dutch West India Company in 1642. The original purpose of the fort was to serve as a deterrent to English sailors interfering in Shama trade.[1] The first black European university professor, Anton Wilhelm Amo, lies interred in the fort's graveyard. The fort was ceded with the entire Dutch Gold Coast to Britain in 1872.

During the time of the African Slave Trade, kidnapped Africans were imprisoned here while awaiting transport to North America.[3]

3D documentation with terrestrial laser scanning

The Zamani Project documented Fort San Sebastian in 2013, with terrestrial 3D laser scanning.[4] The data generated by the non-profit research group creates a permanent record that can be used for research, education, restoration, and conservation.[5][6][7]

A 3D model and a panorama tour, of Fort San Sebastian are available on www.zamaniproject.org. An animation of the 3D model is available here.

  • Fort St Sebastian - close up
    Fort St Sebastian - close up
  • View of the fort from a boat
    View of the fort from a boat
  • View from the gate to the front part of the fort, in the back the main gate with stairs to Shama
    View from the gate to the front part of the fort, in the back the main gate with stairs to Shama
  • View of Shama from the fort
    View of Shama from the fort
  • The front part of the fort
    The front part of the fort
  • Fort St Sebastian - Shama, Ghana
    Fort St Sebastian - Shama, Ghana

References
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Fort San Sebastian (Ghana).
  1. "Fort San Sebastian, Shama (1526)". Ghana Museums and Monuments Board. Retrieved 10 April 2014.
  2. "Forts and Castles, Volta, Greater Accra, Central and Western Regions". UNESCO World Heritage Convention. Retrieved 9 Oct 2022.
  3. Harrold, Darlene Clark Hine, William C. Hine, Stanley C (2014). The African-American odyssey : the combined volume (6th edition, combined volume. ed.). ISBN 0205940455.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  4. "Site - Fort Saint Sebastian - Shama". zamaniproject.org. Retrieved 2019-10-07.
  5. Rüther, Heinz. "An African heritage database, the virtual preservation of Africa's past" (PDF). www.isprs.org.
  6. Rajan, Rahim S.; Rüther, Heinz (2007-05-30). "Building a Digital Library of Scholarly Resources from the Developing World: An Introduction to Aluka". African Arts. 40 (2): 1–7. doi:10.1162/afar.2007.40.2.1. ISSN 0001-9933.
  7. Rüther, Heinz; Rajan, Rahim S. (December 2007). "Documenting African Sites: The Aluka Project". Journal of the Society of Architectural Historians. University of California Press. 66 (4): 437–443. doi:10.1525/jsah.2007.66.4.437. JSTOR 10.1525/jsah.2007.66.4.437.

5.010825°N 1.629199°W / 5.010825; -1.629199


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