Great Zimbabwe, a ruined city near Masvingo in central Zimbabwe, stands as a testament to the rich history and culture of the region. Inhabited from approximately 1100 to 1550, with its peak between 1300 and 1450, this city served as the capital of the Kingdom of Zimbabwe. The kingdom was established by the Shona people, who spoke Bantu and left an indelible mark on Southern Africa's pre-colonial history.
The name "dzimbabwe" is Shona for "great house of stone", from the nouns 'dzimba-' meaning "great house" and 'ibwe' meaning "-stone".
Great Zimbabwe: A Journey Through Time and Civilization || AFRICA WONDERS
The Kingdom of Great Zimbabwe
The Kingdom of Great Zimbabwe derives its name from its capital, Great Zimbabwe. The Kingdom of Great Zimbabwe was a Shona kingdom located in modern-day Zimbabwe. The exact confines of the kingdom are not known except that its heartland was in central Mashonaland (northern Zimbabwe). The city was the capital of the Kingdom of Zimbabwe, which was a Shona (Bantu) trading empire.
Rise to Prominence
From the 12th century, Great Zimbabwe wrestled with other settlements, such as Chivowa, for economic and political dominance in the Southern Zambezi Escarpment. By 1250 Great Zimbabwe had become an important trade centre. Around 1300, Great Zimbabwe replaced Mapungubwe as the most important trading centre in the interior, exporting gold via Swahili city-states into the Indian Ocean trade.
Agriculture and cattle played a key role in developing a vital social network, and served to "enfranchise management of goods and services distributed as benefits within traditional political and social institutions", while long distance trade was crucial for the transformation of localised organisations into regional ones. This process rapidly advanced during the 13th century, which saw large dry masonry stone walls raised.
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At its peak Great Zimbabwe covered 7.22 km2 (2.79 sq mi) and became a centre for industry and political power. Great Zimbabwe's wealth was derived from cattle rearing, agriculture, and the domination of trade routes from the goldfields of the Zimbabwean Plateau to the Swahili coast.
The Ruling Elite
Spread over an area of 1700 acres (700 hectares) and with such monumental structures, there was surely a ruling elite and perhaps a centralised authority which ruled over a total population of around 18,000 people. Zimbabwe society, as in other parts of southern Africa, was dominated by male family heads who competed with their peers for power and influence. Royalty initially lived at the Eastern and Western enclosures, with archaeological research uncovering ritual spears, gongs, and soapstone bird effigies. The public surrounded them until the space became too limited for the growing population and the royalty moved to the Great Enclosure, constructed throughout the 13th and 14th centuries.
The construction of elaborate stone buildings and walls reached its apex in the kingdom. The rulers of Zimbabwe (called Mambo) brought artistic and stone masonry traditions found across the Zambezi and Limpopo basins, including at Mapungubwe. The social institution had a mambo as its sacred leader, aided by a designated brother or sister, along with an increasingly rigid three-tiered class structure. There was a mystical relationship between leaders and the land, and a link between leaders, their ancestors, and God.
The mambo's first wife held authority over his other wives. The Kingdom of Great Zimbabwe had a mosaic political economy which embedded production and circulation to address needs at individual, household, village, district, capital, and state levels within a multidimensional environment dependent on local qualities.
Great Zimbabwe was likely a centre for crafts and a place of great religious significance, however, unlike at Mapungubwe, rainmaking centres and cults were kept distant from the centre of power, and it was often entrusted to native members of particular regions. At Great Zimbabwe's centre was the Great Enclosure which housed royalty and had demarcated spaces for rituals, while commoners surrounded them within the second perimeter wall. At Great Zimbabwe's centre was the Great Enclosure which is thought to have housed royalty and had demarcated spaces for rituals.
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Social Structure and Daily Life
One of the main methods of acquiring such power was the ownership of cattle. The number of a man's wives was another indicator of success because this corresponded to the labour at his disposal. Women were expected to sow, tend crops, and harvest them, prepare food, and fetch water. Unmarried males hunted, herded animals, and made clothing. Men who had no property of their own might become a dependent of a man with property, who allowed them to assist in herding duties in return for food and shelter.
The chief of a tribe was likely the wealthiest male, although the post was usually hereditary amongst the Shona. A chief had no army to support his authority and so it is probable that most chiefs sought to accommodate the views of their community's senior males and subordinate chiefs under their nominal control. Archaeological evidence of fire destruction at some sites suggests there were occasional conflicts between competing groups.
The male children of the tribe's herd-owning males were educated with their peers for a number of months in isolation from the community. The boys were taught hunting skills, had to endure physical hardship and endurance tests, and were taught the traditions and customs of the tribe. At the end of the training period, they were circumcised and given a new name, which meant the boys had become men. Girls were also given group education where they were prepared for their future role as wives and mothers.
Trade and Economy
That Great Zimbabwe had trade links with other states further afield is evidenced by finds of even non-African goods which came via merchants of the East African coast 400 km (250 miles) away. Kilwa and its outpost of Sofala - located in modern Mozambique - became the most prosperous of all the Swahili trading posts thanks to the gold that came in from the kingdom of Zimbabwe.
This gold was easily acquired from surface deposits across the Zimbabwean plateau and in the tributaries of the Zambezi River. When these sources were exhausted open mines were dug to a depth of 30 metres (100 ft). Gold, ivory, and copper (often cast in x-shaped ingots) was exchanged for such exotic luxury goods as Chinese Ming porcelain and carved faience from Persia. There were no markets, and this trade was done by barter for the benefit of the ruling elite.
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Decline and Abandonment
It is unknown what caused Great Zimbabwe's demise and its eventual abandonment. It is unclear to what extent climate change played a role, however Great Zimbabwe's location in a favourable rainfall zone makes this unlikely to have been a primary cause. From the early 15th century, international trade began to decline amid a global economic downturn, reducing demand for gold, which adversely affected Great Zimbabwe.
In response to this, elites possibly expanded regional trading networks, resulting in greater prosperity for other settlements in the region. By the late 15th century, the consequences of this decision would have begun to manifest, as offshoots from Great Zimbabwe's royal family formed new dynasties, possibly as a result of losing succession disputes. According to oral tradition, Nyatsimba Mutota, a member of Great Zimbabwe's royal family, led part of the population north in search for salt to found the Mutapa Empire.
It was believed that only their most recent ancestors would follow them, with older ancestors staying at Great Zimbabwe and providing protection there. Angoche traders opened a new route along the Zambezi via Mutapa and Ingombe Ilede to reach the goldfields west of Great Zimbabwe, precipitating its decline and the rise of Khami, the capital of the Kingdom of Butua. By the 16th century, political and economic power had shifted away from Great Zimbabwe to the north and west.
The precise causes of Great Zimbabwe's decline are not known but competition from rival states and the working out of gold deposits are the most likely explanations. There may have been problems caused by overpopulation, too, such as overworking of the land and deforestation, a situation perhaps brought to crisis point by a series of droughts. Certainly, by the 15th century, any links with coastal trade have ceased. By the second half of that century, the Shona peoples had migrated a few hundred kilometres northwards and formed a new state, the Kingdom of Mutapa. The city of Great Zimbabwe was, thus, largely abandoned, not to be 'rediscovered' until the Europeans arrived in the late 19th century.
Structure of Great Zimbabwe
The city was the capital of the Kingdom of Zimbabwe, which was a Shona (Bantu) trading empire. Zimbabwe means âstone housesâ in Shona. Great Zimbabwe was part of a large and wealthy global trading network.
The archaeological site at Great Zimbabwe consists of several sections:
- The Hill Complex: a series of structural ruins that sit atop the steepest hill of the site. This is generally believed to have been the religious center of the site. The Hill Complex is the oldest part of Great Zimbabwe, and shows signs of construction that date to around 900 C.E.
- The Great Enclosure: a walled, circular area below the Hill Complex dating to the 14th century. The walls are over 9.7 meters (32 feet) high in places, and the enclosureâs circumference is 250 meters (820 feet). The walls were built without mortar, relying on carefully shaped rocks to hold the wallâs shape on their own. Inside the enclosure is a second set of walls, following the same curve as the outside walls, which end in a stone tower 10 meters (33 feet) high. While the function of this enclosure is unknown, archeologists suggest it could have been a royal residence or a symbolic grain storage facility. It is one of the largest existing structures from ancient sub-Saharan Africa.
- The Valley Ruins: consist of a significant number of houses made mostly of mud-brick (daga) near the Great Enclosure. The distribution and number of houses suggests that Great Zimbabwe boasted a large population, between 10,000â20,000 people.
The location of Great Zimbabwe on a natural rise 80 metres (262 ft) high provided both a prominent site for rituals and a place easy to defend. Sometime in the mid-13th century, the Hill Complex was surrounded by a dry stone wall of granite, a stone which occurs locally and can be easily and naturally split (using fire and then cooling water) into relatively uniform slabs measuring 50-100 cm (19-39 inches) in thickness.
Dominating it is a 13-14th century large elliptical stone wall 5.5 metres (18 ft) thick in places and 9.7 metres (32 ft) high. The wall inclines slightly inwards for added stability and regular channels run through the base to drain the level interior space. Inside is a second wall which in places forms a narrow corridor as it follows the contours of the outer wall and which leads to a tall stone monument or tower. The tower is conical in shape, 5 metres (16 ft) across at its widest part, and reaches a height of 10 metres.
The purpose of the structure, which has a total circumference of 250 metres (820 ft), is not known for certain but it may have been a royal residence with the tower used as a granary (grain being a common form of tribute and used by Shona rulers to present as a gift). There are, too, many other individual stone buildings also surrounded by high walls in the vicinity, as well as the remains of many large circular mud and pole houses (which pre-date the stone ones). This third area is known as the Valley Ruins.
Artefacts
Archaeological research has unearthed several soapstone bird sculptures in the ruins. These birds are thought to have served a religious function, and may have been displayed on pedestals. These birds appear on the modern Zimbabwean flag and are national symbols of Zimbabwe.
A number of finely carved soapstone figures have been found which include eight representations of birds perched on monoliths over one metre (39 inches) in height. The bird is known as the Zimbabwe Bird and does not resemble any bird in nature; it appears on the flag of the country today. Such artefacts as the soapstone figures hint at the ritual nature of the Great Zimbabwe site. Other sculptures include cattle and nude highly-stylised female figures.
Simple unglazed pottery of very good quality was produced - very often given a graphite covering and then polished. Chinese pottery shards, coins from Arabia, glass beads and other non-local items have been excavated at Zimbabwe.
The most important artefacts recovered from the Monument are the eight Zimbabwe Birds. These were carved from a micaceous schist (soapstone) on the tops of monoliths the height of a person. Glass beads and porcelain from China and Persia among other foreign artefacts were also found, attesting the international trade linkages of the Kingdom.
Table of Key Artefacts Found at Great Zimbabwe
| Artefact | Material | Significance |
|---|---|---|
| Zimbabwe Birds | Soapstone | Likely emblems of royal authority, now national symbols |
| Pottery | Unglazed clay | Evidence of local craftsmanship and daily life |
| Glass Beads | Glass | Evidence of trade with distant lands |
| Chinese Porcelain | Ceramic | Evidence of trade with China |
| Arabian Coins | Metal | Evidence of trade with Arabian regions |
European Rediscovery and Misconceptions
Blinded by their racism, they could not bring themselves to believe that such a place could have been built by black Africans. This prejudice continued right through to the late 20th century and led to all manner of outlandish explanations for the large stone structures such as wandering Phoenicians setting up a city thousands of miles from their homeland and as far from the sea as physically possible. Archaeological evidence, however, has proved that Great Zimbabwe was built by indigenous black Africans.
Unfortunately for posterity, the site of Great Zimbabwe was systematically looted of anything of value during the European colonialists' activities in the area in the 1890s. European antiquarians looted and pillaged Great Zimbabwe and similar structures from the 1890s to 1920s, greatly inhibiting the work of future archaeologists.
When white colonialists like Cecil Rhodes first saw the ruins, they saw them as a sign of the great riches that the area would yield to its new masters. Pikirayi and Kaarsholm suggest that this presentation of Great Zimbabwe was partly intended to encourage settlement and investment in the area.
Modern Zimbabwe
The ruins of Great Zimbabwe were designated a United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) World Heritage Site in 1986. The territory once held by the Kingdom of Zimbabwe was still populated but conquered by the Ndebele people in the 19th century when the Kingdom of Matabeleland was formed. By the early 20th century the region was under control of the British South Africa Company, and two new states were formed in 1911: Northern and Southern Rhodesia. The latter state would become the modern country of Zimbabwe in 1980.
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