Death, Life & the Big Questions
Ghana's Extraordinary Fantasy Coffins
Reviewed by Everendium Editorial Team · Last reviewed August 24, 2026
Quick answer
In parts of Ghana, particularly among the Ga people, some families commission elaborately shaped coffins - designed to look like anything from an airplane to a fish to a specific tool - that reflect the deceased's profession, passions, or status in life. Known as fantasy coffins, or abebuu adekai, this tradition treats the coffin itself as a final, personal tribute rather than a simple container.
In much of the world, a casket is chosen from a small set of standard shapes and finishes. Among the Ga people in parts of Ghana, the coffin itself can become a final, deeply personal work of art.
More than a container
Known as abebuu adekai, sometimes translated as “proverb boxes,” these coffins are built specifically to express something meaningful about the person inside — not simply to hold them. This reflects a fundamentally different relationship with the coffin itself: it isn’t a neutral object, it’s part of the tribute.
Shaped by the life it honors
A fantasy coffin’s design typically reflects the deceased’s profession, a defining passion, or their status in life. A fisherman might be honored with a coffin shaped like a fish. A pilot, an airplane. Someone known for a specific trade or tool might be honored with a coffin reflecting exactly that. The goal is a design that would be immediately recognizable to anyone who knew the person, as genuinely reflective of who they were.
Skilled craft, passed down through generations
Fantasy coffins are built by skilled local carpenters and artisans, some of whom specialize specifically in this craft, having learned and refined the tradition within particular workshops over generations. This is a genuine artistic practice, requiring real skill and creativity, not a novelty or curiosity.
Rooted in a specific community
This tradition is particularly associated with the Ga people, concentrated primarily in and around Accra, Ghana’s capital. It isn’t practiced uniformly across every region or ethnic group within Ghana, which is worth understanding rather than assuming it represents a single, nationwide Ghanaian custom.
What this tradition reflects
Fantasy coffins offer a striking example of how differently cultures can approach the same basic need — marking a death and honoring a life — and the genuine creativity and personal meaning some traditions bring to even the most practical element of a funeral.
This tradition is specific to particular communities within Ghana, primarily the Ga people - it does not represent funeral practice across all of Ghana or West Africa broadly.
Frequently asked questions
What does abebuu adekai mean?+
Abebuu adekai translates roughly to 'proverb boxes' or receptacles that carry meaning beyond their function - reflecting the belief that a coffin can express something specific and personal about the life it honors, not simply serve as a container.
What determines the shape of a fantasy coffin?+
The design typically reflects the deceased's profession, a passion, or their status - a fisherman might be honored with a coffin shaped like a fish, a pilot with one shaped like an airplane, reflecting what defined their life to those who knew them.
Who creates these coffins?+
Skilled local carpenters and artisans, some specializing specifically in this craft, build fantasy coffins - a genuine artistic tradition passed down and refined within specific workshops and families over generations.
Is this practiced throughout Ghana, or specific to one region?+
The tradition is particularly associated with the Ga people, primarily in and around Accra, Ghana's capital - it isn't a nationwide practice observed uniformly across every region or ethnic community in the country.
Sources
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