Great Zimbabwe National Monument is approximately 30 km from Masvingo
and located in the lowveld at an altitude of some 1100 m in a sparsely
populated region of the Bantu/Shona people. The property, built between
1100 and 1450 AD, extends over almost 800 ha and is divided into three
groups: the Hill Ruins, the Great Enclosure and the Valley Ruins.
The Hill Ruins, forming a huge granite mass atop a spur facing
north-east/south-west, were continuously inhabited from the 11th to 15th
centuries, and there are numerous layers of traces of human
settlements. Rough granite rubble-stone blocks form distinct enclosures,
accessed by narrow, partly covered, passageways. This acropolis is
generally considered a 'royal city'; the west enclosure is thought to
have been the residence of successive chiefs and the east enclosure,
where six steatite upright posts topped with birds were found,
considered to serve a ritual purpose.
The Valley Ruins are a series of living ensembles scattered throughout
the valley which date to the 19th century. Each ensemble has similar
characteristics: many constructions are in brick (huts, indoor flooring
and benches, holders for recipients, basins, etc.) and dry stone masonry
walls provide insulation for each ensemble. Resembling later
developments of the Stone Age, the building work was carried out to a
high standard of craftsmanship, incorporating an impressive display of
chevron and chequered wall decorations.
Scientific research has proved that Great Zimbabwe was founded in the
11th century on a site which had been sparsely inhabited in the
prehistoric period, by a Bantu population of the Iron Age, the Shona. In
the 14th century, it was the principal city of a major state extending
over the gold-rich plateaux; its population exceeded 10,000 inhabitants.
About 1450, the capital was abandoned because the hinterland could no
longer furnish food for the overpopulated city and because of
deforestation. The resulting migration benefited Khami, which became the
most influential city in the region, but signaled waning political
power. When in 1505 the Portuguese settled in Sofala, the region was
divided between the rival powers of the kingdoms of Torwa and
Mwene-Mutapa.
Archaeological excavations have revealed glass beads and porcelain from
China and Persia, and gold and Arab coins from Kilwa which testify to
the extent of long-standing trade with the outer world. Other evidence,
including potsherds and ironware, gives a further insight to the
property’s socio-economic complexity and about farming and pastoral
activities. A monumental granite cross, located at a traditionally
revered and sacred spiritual site, also illustrates community contact
with missionaries.
The ruins of Great Zimbabwe bear a unique testimony to the lost
civilization of the Shona between the 11th and 15th centuries. A unique
artistic achievement, this great city has struck the imagination of
African and European travellers since the Middle Ages, as evidenced by
the persistent legends which attribute to it a biblical origin. The
entire Zimbabwe nation has identified with this historically symbolic
ensemble and has adopted as its emblem the steatite bird, which may have
been a royal totem.
The pioneering works of David Randall-MacIver in 1905-6, corroborated
since by numerous finds of dated archaeological artefacts and by
radiocarbon analysis, have proved that Great Zimbabwe was founded in the
11th century on a site which had been sparsely inhabited in the
prehistoric period, by a Bantu population of the Iron Age, the Shona. In
the 14th century, it was the principal city of a major state extending
over the gold-rich plateaux; its population exceeded 10,000 inhabitants.
In about 1450, this capital was abandoned, not as a result of war, but
because the hinterland could no longer furnish food for the
overpopulated city, and deforestation made it necessary to go farther
and farther to find firewood. The resulting migration benefited Khami,
which became the most influential city in the region, but signalled
waning political power.
When in 1505 the Portuguese settled in Sofala, the region was divided
between the rival powers of the kingdoms of Torwa and Mwene-Mutapa. From
the 11th to 15th centuries, the wealth of Great Zimbabwe was associated
with gold trading, controlled by the Arabs, and extensive trade
activities on the east coast of Africa where Kilwa was the main trading
centre. In addition to jewellery that had escaped greedy European gold
hunters at the end of the 19th century, archaeological excavations in
Great Zimbabwe unearthed glass beads and fragments of porcelain and
pottery of Chinese and Persian origin which testify to the extent of
trade within the continent. A 14th-century Arab coin from Kilwa was also
found; it was reissued in 1972.
Origin Unesco Org...
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