Canquelifá
Introduction
 
 **Canquelifá**, sometimes spelled **Kankelefa**, is a village in the [Gabú Region](/wiki/Gab%C3%BA_Region "Gabú Region") of north\-eastern [Guinea\-Bissau](/wiki/Guinea-Bissau "Guinea-Bissau"). It lies to the northwest of [Buruntuma](/wiki/Buruntuma "Buruntuma").
[left\|thumb\|A drawing of the tata of Kankelefa in 1849](/wiki/File:Kankelefa_1849.png "Kankelefa 1849.png")
Kankelefa was the site of a large [tata](/wiki/Tata_%28fortification%29 "Tata (fortification)"), the home and power center of the ruler of Paquesi, one of the constituent kingdoms of the [Kaabu Empire](/wiki/Kaabu_Empire "Kaabu Empire"). It consisted of a series of concentric 12m tall zig\-zag walls built of rammed earth, complete with towers.


What was the purpose of the towers on the walls?