Located in the South Central African nation of Zimbabwe are the ruins of monuments and cities built of stone. These ruins extend a radius of 100 to 200 miles, a diameter almost as great as the entire nation of France. Believed to have been built by Southern Africans about 600-1,000 years ago, they are evidence of a thriving culture in the heart of Africa.

It is now generally accepted that the ruins of Great Zimbabwe reflect the culture of the Shona peoples, a Bantu speaking ethnic group, who reside in the region today. The name Zimbabwe comes from the Shona. Roughly translated it can mean “Houses of Stone” and are associated with rulership. Upon independence in 1980, the newly formed state of Zimbabwe took this name for itself.

Sited on an open wooded plain surrounded by hills, the ruins comprise the vast Great Enclosure complex, and on a nearby kopje the Hill Complex, a veritable castle of interlocking walls and granite boulders, while all around in the valley lie a myriad other walls. The ruins feature an array of chevron, herringbone and many other intricate patterns in its walls, and the astonishing fact is that despite the dry-stone technique used in Great Zimbabwe’s construction (no mortar binds the stone blocks), the complex has endured for seven centuries.

Author resting on the steep and narrow staircase leading up to the Hill Complex that rises 260 feet above the surrounding ground.

The Great Enclosure viewed from the Hill Complex.

The Great Enclosure is the largest single ancient structure south of the Sahara. The perimeter wall is 820 feet in circumference and 36 feet high, and it is estimated that nearly a million granite blocks were used in its construction. Interestingly, it is tapered so that it is narrowest at the top, suggesting fairly sophisticated architecture.

A side view of the Great Enclosure. Do you see my friends Douglas and Philip waving in the foreground?

An aerial view of the Great Enclosure. The Conical Tower is hidden from view by the trees.

The Conical Tower, is 33 feet high and 16 feet in diameter at the base, tapering to 6.5 feet at the top. It is solid, built of granite blocks throughout, and rests directly on the ground. It was used for religious purposes.

Philip (right) and myself in front of the Conical Tower.

The stonewalls, up to 20 feet thick and 36 feet high, are built of granite blocks without the use of mortar. Two high walls form the narrow parallel passage, 180 feet long that allows direct access to the Conical Tower.

Philip at the narrow passage that allows access to the Conical Tower.

It is possible that Great Zimbabwe was a result of surplus wealth from the East African gold trade. External trade existed between Great Zimbabwe and Sofala on the southern coast of what is now Mozambique. Sofala was an important port where goods from India, China and the Islamic world were imported and then sent into the interior, which in turn exported products from inner Africa. Gold was the most sought after export, but other exports such as copper played a role also. Imports were primarily cloth, glass beads and ceramics.

Items found at Great Zimbabwe include a glazed Persian bowl from the 13th or 14th century, Chinese celedon dishes, sherds from a Chinese stoneware vessel, and fragments of engraved and painted Near Eastern glass. Around the 14th century, Great Zimbabwe was probably in direct contact with the trading cities of the East African Coast. There was a sudden increase in building activity there at that time, as there was in the cities on the East African Coast.

Animal figurines, mostly of birds found at the site give a glimpse of the cultural beliefs of ancient Zimbabwe. The use of animals in religious symbology has remained a continuous theme in African spiritual belief systems. Some archaeologists believe that Great Zimbabwe rose as a religious center with Shona religion making a most significant contribution. It is probable that it served as a religious center where Mwari, the supreme Shona god, was reverenced and where cults of the mhondoro (spirits of the ruling dynasty) flourished.

Some believe the decline of Great Zimbabwe during the 15th century was in direct relationship with the decline of coastal cities. Great Zimbabwe declined probably due to a number of factors including environmental degradation and a decline in the gold trade. The legacy of the region however attests to the ingenuity and political strength of its African ancestors, the Shona, and of Africans everywhere.

- Information courtesy of ‘The Shona and Zimbabwe’ by D.N.Beach