# The prominence of the Nagô-Keto nation, prestige, and religious legitimation  
The growing visibility of the Keto nation may be explained as the result of the politics of prestige operating within Candomblé. In religious circles and in Bahian society at large it is assumed that the Ilê Iyá Nassô (also known as Engenho Velho or Casa Branca) was the first Candomblé of the Nagô-Keto nation in Bahia. From this original house two others were born: the Gantois (Ilê Iyá Omin Axé Iyamassé) in the mid-nineteenth century and the Ilê Axé Opô Afonjá in 1910. A fourth one, the Alaketu (Ilê Maroiá Laji) is said to be as old as the Casa Branca and also claims a Keto origin for its founders. In the last three decades these four temples have been officially recognized by the Brazilian State as part of the national historical heritage, reinforcing and crystallizing an already existing hierarchy within Candomblé.