Fante textile artists have been creating Asafo flags for at least three hundred years. Asafo were originally military organizations, but today they perform more civic duties. The flag is embroidered with the Elmina forts, established by the Portuguese in 1482. The two forts, St. George and St. Jago, were linked by a telegraph wire in 1885, connecting the United Kingdom to its West African colonies; the British Union Jack appears in the corner of this flag. In Fante communities of coastal Ghana today, Asafo flags are danced in elaborate displays at annual festivals.