Keepers of history: Fatma’s Fort Jesus curating exploits

“The Arabic inscriptions up there,” she says and points, “were believed to ward off evil spirits!” She further explains that the spikes on the fading gray (once black) Omani doors she stands in front of were not just for aesthetics but meant to deter a person from ramming through the door at the more than 400-year-old former military installation.

Fatma Twahir knows Fort Jesus better than almost anyone and as she walks the BDLife through one of the most significant buildings in Kenya’s history, she seems familiar with every nook and cranny in this ancient building which holds a torrid and bloody past.