Maritime archaeology of East Africa

Last updated September 16, 2023

Maritime archaeology in East Africa spans the range from the horn of Somalia south to Mozambique, and includes the various islands and island chains dotting the map off the coast of Somalia, Mozambique, Tanzania and Kenya. Primary areas along this coast include the Zanzibar (including the Mafia islands), Lamu, and Kilwa Archipelagos. Although East African societies developed nautical capabilities for themselves, most of the maritime artifacts point to external merchants from Mediterranean cultures like Egypt and Greece, Indian and Chinese from South and East Asia in the early stages, to the great European powers during the Ages of Colonization and Imperialism.

Sea movement

While the use of ocean marine resources dates back to as early as 60 kya in South African sites such as Blombos Cave, and later along the east coast, the record for the use of nautical technologies is less known. Based on dating of LSA sites in Zanzibar Cave on the island of Zanzibar, the use of nautical technology would date at least to the 7th or 8th century AD for the Tanzanian coastal cultures that moved from the mainland to inhabit the island. That date can be pushed back even further by sites discovered in the Mafia Archipelago, sites which suggest colonization during the Early Iron Age, which has been dated to between the 1st and 6th century AD.^[1] The exact time of settlement is up for debate though, as studies performed in Kuumbi Cave show. Kuumbi Cave is located near the southeast coast of Zanzibar, based on artifacts dated from the site there is an argument presented that the residents of Zanzibar crossed over a land bridge that existed in the late Pliocene, before the sea level rose around 8000 BC.^[2] Archaeologists believe that as coastal areas were easier to reach than inland areas along Eastern Africa, most interactions between cultural groups were longitudinal in nature. This trade started long before the implementation of boats, but was made easier after the fact.

African vessels

When outside cultures like Rome, India and China encountered the East African coast, they did not come to people foreign to the concept of boat usage, though the scale was much different. While both came in large trading vessels the local Africans relied more on vessels that kept close to the coast which were used more for local trading and fishing than long expeditions. East Africans to this day use a ship style called a dhow which was introduced by the Arabic merchants who came into the region. The dhow is not one particular ship design, but more of a class of ships, with sizes and schematics ranging from the smaller fishing dhow to the much larger dhows used for transporting goods and passengers.

Outside contact

East Africa has had a long history of connections to the global marketplace, having been a direct part of the Silk Road and Maritime Indian Cotton and Spice Route as early as the 1st century AD.^[3] It has become home to people of many ethnicities, including Arabic merchants and settlers, Indian and Chinese sailors, European merchants and remnants of the European colonial families, and the culture groups that are descended from those who were there to begin with.

Contact with Rome

Roman trade vessels would make the 3,000 nautical mile journey south from the important trade ports of Myos Hormos and Berenice in Egypt to the African trade port of Zanzibar.^[4] There exists to this day, what has been classified as a sea journal of a Roman pilot or merchant from the 1st century AD, this journal is called the Periplus Maris Erythraei, and it records the voyage of a Roman trade ship that sailed from the Red Sea south along the African coast to India.^[4]

Contact with China and East Asia

In the 1400s AD the East African coast encountered the trading fleets of China, led by Zheng He, the Chinese trader and servant of the Emperor. From geophysical surveying of the coast around Lamu Kenya, archaeologists have discovered what appear to be Chinese porcelain artifacts dating to the 14th century AD, local legend and heritage has it that one or more Chinese vessels were lost in the area.^[5]

Contact with Arabia

Today, the East African coast has become almost synonymous with the term "Swahili coast", the Swahili coast being denoted by peoples of the Swahili culture which is a combination of Arabic language and culture and the language and culture of the native peoples of Africa. Much of the land range is the same, but the Swahili culture extends into the northern coast of Madagascar and into northern Somalia, Djibouti and Eritrea.

Contact with Europe

While European powers were familiar with the goods of Africa's east coast, it was not until their ships were able to get around the southern cape of Africa that their connections to the coast became direct. With the rush for land, resources and power beginning in the late 15th century AD by Europe, encountering the rich coast of East Africa was a goldmine, both figuratively and literally as cities like Mogadishu in Somalia and Sofala in Mozambique being hubs for gold obtained from the interior of the continent.

Off Ras Ngomeni, Kenya, archaeologists discovered 16th century AD shipwreck which, along with certain artifacts found with the ship suggest European origins and Portuguese ownership. The artifacts in question are copper ingots marked with a seal of ownership, the seal being of a trident.^[5]

Important ports

Kilwa Kisiwani - Tanzania
Stone Town (Mje Mkongwe) - Zanzibar, Tanzania
Rhapta - Unknown
Fort Jesus - Mombasa Island, Kenya
Lamu - Lamu Island, Kenya
Shanga - Pate Island, Kenya
Mogadishu - Somalia
Sofala - Mozambique

Underwater sites

While some underwater sites have been identified and are under analysis, little is known about the overall quantity and diversity of the wrecks to be found along the coast. In some cities along the coast, like Kilwa in Tanzania, and Lamu in Kenya, archaeologists have found images of Arabic ships carved into the walls of mosques, which are interpreted as being requests of protection for the ships carved.^[5] The most common finds are anchor weights, left at mooring points by ships or the port for the anchorage of vessels.

As mentioned above, Chinese goods were identified by geophysical surveys in the Pate Bay, near Lamu.^[5]

The best cataloged sunken ships by Edward Pollard of the British Institute in Eastern Africa are the three that sunk in the Rufiji Delta during World War 1, the German cruiser SMS Königsberg and accompanying coal transport Somali, and the British ship the Newbridge, a turret ship which was scuttled to block the SMS Königsberg from leaving the Delta.^[5]

Near Fort Jesus on Mombasa Island there lays the wreck of the Santo António de Tanná, a Portuguese frigate, sunk in 1697 while fighting the Omani fleet who was attempting capture of the fort.^[6]

Related Research Articles

Swahili, also known by its local name Kiswahili, is a Bantu language spoken by the Swahili people, who are found primarily in Tanzania, Kenya and Mozambique.

Dhow is the generic name of a number of traditional sailing vessels with one or more masts with settee or sometimes lateen sails, used in the Red Sea and Indian Ocean region. Typically sporting long thin hulls, dhows are trading vessels primarily used to carry heavy items, such as fruit, fresh water, or other heavy merchandise, along the coasts of Eastern Arabia, East Africa, Yemen and coastal South Asia. Larger dhows have crews of approximately thirty, smaller ones typically around twelve.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">East Africa</span> Eastern region of the African continent

East Africa, Eastern Africa, or East of Africa, is the eastern subregion of the African continent. In the United Nations Statistics Division scheme of geographic regions, 10-11-(16*) territories make up Eastern Africa:

The ruins of Gedi are a historical and archaeological site near the Indian Ocean coast of eastern Kenya. The site is adjacent to the town of Gedi in the Kilifi District and within the Arabuko-Sokoke Forest.

Kilwa Kisiwani is an island, national historic site, and hamlet community located in the township of Kilwa Masoko, the district seat of Kilwa District in the Tanzanian region of Lindi Region in southern Tanzania. Kilwa Kisiwani is the largest of the nine hamlets in the town Kilwa Masoko and is also the least populated hamlet in the township with fewer than 1,000 residents.

The Swahili people comprise mainly Bantu, Afro-Arab and Comorian ethnic groups inhabiting the Swahili coast, an area encompassing the Zanzibar archipelago and mainland Tanzania's seaboard, littoral Kenya, northern Mozambique, the Comoros Islands, southwestern Somalia and Northwest Madagascar.

Lamu or Lamu Town is a small town on Lamu Island, which in turn is a part of the Lamu Archipelago in Kenya. Situated 341 kilometres (212 mi) by road northeast of Mombasa that ends at Mokowe Jetty, from where the sea channel has to be crossed to reach Lamu Island. It is the headquarters of Lamu County and a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Zanj was a name used by medieval Muslim geographers to refer to both a certain portion of Southeast Africa and to its Bantu inhabitants. This word is also the origin of the place-names Zanzibar and the Sea of Zanj.

Lamu Island is a port, city, and island just off the shore of Kenya in the Indian Ocean approximately 150 miles from Mombasa. It is a part of the East African country of Kenya. Lamu was founded in the 12th century. Lamu is one of the longest-established and best-preserved remaining settlements of the Swahili tradition in east Africa that remains today. The island has continually been inhabited for over seven hundred years, and continues to be an important center in eastern Africa.

Mikindani is a historic coastal town located in Mtwara-Mikindani District of Mtwara Region in Tanzania. The name comes from the Swahili word mikinda which means "young coconut trees". Therefore the term "Mikindani', literally means "the place where there are young coconut trees" in old Swahili language. Mikindani is part of the city of Mtwara and is governed by the Mtwara Mikindani Municipal Council. The site is a registered National Historic Site.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Swahili architecture</span> Building traditions of the eastern and southeastern coasts of Africa

Swahili architecture is a term used to designate a whole range of diverse building traditions practiced or once practiced along the eastern and southeastern coasts of Africa. Rather than simple derivatives of Islamic architecture from the Arabic world, Swahili stone architecture is a distinct local product as a result of evolving social and religious traditions, environmental changes, and urban development.

Swahili culture is the culture of the Swahili people inhabiting the Swahili coast. This littoral area encompasses Tanzania, Kenya, and Mozambique, as well as the adjacent islands of Zanzibar and Comoros along with some parts of Malawi and the eastern part of Democratic Republic of Congo. They speak Swahili as their native language, which belongs to the Bantu language family. Graham Connah described Swahili culture as at least partially urban, mercantile,and literate.

Adriaan Hendrik Johan Prins, generally known as A. H. J. Prins was a Dutch Africanist and maritime anthropologist.

The Swahili coast is a coastal area of the Indian Ocean in East Africa inhabited by the Swahili people. It includes Dar es Salaam; Sofala ; Mombasa, Gede, Pate Island, Lamu, and Malindi ; and Kilwa. In addition, several coastal islands are included in the Swahili coast such as Zanzibar and Comoros.

The mtepe is a boat associated with the Swahili people. The mtepe's planks are held together by wooden pegs and coir, so it is a sewn boat designed to be flexible in contrast to the rigid vessels of western technique.

The Shirazi people, also known as Mbwera, are a Bantu ethnic group inhabiting the Swahili coast and the nearby Indian ocean islands. They are particularly concentrated on the islands of Zanzibar, Pemba and Comoros.

Pemba Island is a large coral island off the coast of Tanzania. Inhabited by Bantu settlers from the Tanga coast since 600 AD, the island has a rich trading, agricultural, and religious history that has contributed to the studies of the Swahili Coast trade throughout the Indian Ocean.

Stephanie Wynne-Jones is an Africanist archaeologist, whose research focuses on East African material culture, society and urbanism. She is Professor and Deputy Head of the Department of Archaeology at the University of York. She previously worked as assistant director of the British Institute in Eastern Africa (2005-2008) and remains a Trustee and Member of the BIEA Governing Council. In 2016, Wynne-Jones was elected to Fellowship of the Society of Antiquaries of London. Wynne-Jones is one of the Core Group at the Danish National Research Foundation Centre of Excellence in Urban Network Evolutions (Urbnet), Aarhus University. Between 2015 and 2017 she was a Pro Futura Scientia Fellow at the Swedish Collegium for Advanced Study, Uppsala.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">History of East Africa</span> History of the east African region

The history of East Africa has been divided into its prehistory, the major polities flourishing, the colonial period, and the post-colonial period, in which the current nations were formed. East Africa is the eastern region of Africa, bordered by North Africa, Central Africa, Southern Africa, the Indian Ocean, and the Sahara Desert. Colonial boundaries are reflected in the modern boundaries between contemporary East African states, cutting across ethnic and cultural lines, often dividing single ethnic groups between two or more states.

Tumbe is an early Medieval Swahili historic site next to the village of Tumbe located in Micheweni District of Pemba North Region. Between 600 and 1000 AD, the city of Tumbe served as the island's primary location. There is sufficient evidence that this city served as a major commerce hub for the Indian Ocean. Smaller sites from the eighth to tenth centuries AD were grouped together around the major metropolis.

References

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↑ Breen, Colin; Lane, Paul J. (2003). "Archaeological Approaches to East Africa's Changing Seascapes". World Archaeology. 35 (3): 469–489. ISSN 0043-8243.
1 2 Casson, Lionel (1980). "Rome's Trade with the East: The Sea Voyage to Africa and India". Transactions of the American Philological Association. 110: 21–36. doi:10.2307/284208. JSTOR 284208.
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↑ Lane, Paul J. (2012-09-12). "Maritime and Shipwreck Archaeology in the Western Indian Ocean and Southern Red Sea: An Overview of Past and Current Research". Journal of Maritime Archaeology. 7 (1): 9–41. Bibcode:2012JMarA...7....9L. doi:10.1007/s11457-012-9102-0. ISSN 1557-2285.