Page 24 - Msingi Afrika Magazine Issue 20

History

Cairo bringing the sultan unusual teenth century visitor to southern pass through the kingdoms, wher-
gifts including an elephant, a hyena, African empire of Monomotapa, ever they come food and drinks
a zebra, and a giraffe. that ruled over this vast region, are given to them at the public cost
wrote that: “The people dress in as long as they remain there, and
73. In Southern Africa, there are various ways: at court of the Kings when they leave that place to go to
at least 600 stone built ruins in the their grandees wear cloths of rich another they are provided with what
regions of Zimbabwe, Mozambique silk, damask, satin, gold and silk is necessary for their journey, and a
and South Africa. These ruins are cloth; these are three widths of sat- guide, and some one to carry their
called Mazimbabwe in Shona, the in, each width four covados [2.64m], wallet to the next village. In every
Bantu language of the builders, each sewn to the next, sometimes place where they come there is the
and means great revered house and with gold lace in between, trimmed same obligation.”
“signifies court”. on two sides, like a carpet, with a
gold and silk fringe, sewn in place 81. Many southern Africans have in-
74. The Great Zimbabwe was the with a two fingers’ wide ribbon, digenous and pre-colonial words for
largest of these ruins. It consists of woven with gold roses on silk.” ‘gun’. Scholars have generally been
12 clusters of buildings, spread over reluctant to investigate or explain
3 square miles. Its outer walls were 78. Southern Africans mined gold this fact.
made from 100,000 tons of granite on an epic scale. One modern writer
bricks. In the fourteenth century, the tells us that: “The estimated amount 82. Evidence discovered in 1978
city housed 18,000 people, compara- of gold ore mined from the entire showed that East Africans were
ble in size to that of London of the region by the ancients was stagger- making steel for more than 1,500
same period. ing, exceeding 43 million tons. The years: “Assistant Professor of An-
ore yielded nearly 700 tons of pure thropology Peter Schmidt and Pro-
75. Bling culture existed in this gold which today would be valued at fessor of Engineering Donald H.
region. At the time of our last over $7.5 billion.” Avery have found as long as 2,000
visit, the Horniman Museum in years ago Africans living on the
London had exhibits of headrests 79. Apparently the Monomotapan western shores of Lake Victoria had
with the caption: “Headrests have royal palace at Mount Fura had produced carbon steel in preheated
been used in Africa since the time chandeliers hanging from the ceiling. forced draft furnaces, a method that
of the Egyptian pharaohs. Remains An eighteenth century geography was technologically more sophisti-
of some headrests, once covered book provided the following data: cated than any developed in Europe
in gold foil, have been found in the “The inside consists of a great until the mid-nineteenth century.”
ruins of Great Zimbabwe and burial variety of sumptuous apartments,
sites like Mapungubwe dating to the spacious and lofty halls, all adorned 83. Ruins of a 300 BC astronomical
twelfth century after Christ.” with a magnificent cotton tapestry, observatory was found at Namora-
the manufacture of the country. The tunga in Kenya. Africans were map-
76. Dr Albert Churchward, author floors, cielings [sic], beams and raf- ping the movements of stars such
of Signs and Symbols of Primor- ters are all either gilt or plated with as Triangulum, Aldebaran, Bellatrix,
dial Man, pointed out that writing gold curiously wrought, as are also Central Orion, etcetera, as well as
was found in one of the stone built the chairs of state, tables, benches the moon, in order to create a lunar
ruins: “Lt.-Col. E. L. de Cordes &c. The candle-sticks and branches calendar of 354 days.
. . . who was in South Africa for are made of ivory inlaid with gold,
three years, informed the writer and hang from the cieling by chains 84. Autopsies and caesarean opera-
that in one of the ‘Ruins’ there is a of the same metal, or of silver gilt.” tions were routinely and effectively
‘stone-chamber,’ with a vast quantity carried out by surgeons in pre-colo-
of Papyri, covered with old Egyp- 80. Monomotapa had a social nial Uganda. The surgeons routinely
tian hieroglyphics. A Boer hunter welfare system. Antonio Bocarro, a used antiseptics, anaesthetics and
discovered this, and a large quantity Portuguese contemporary, informs cautery iron. Commenting on a
was used to light a fire with, and yet us that the Emperor: “shows great Ugandan caesarean operation that
still a larger quantity remained there charity to the blind and maimed, appeared in the Edinburgh Med-
now.” for these are called the king’s poor, ical Journal in 1884, one author
and have land and revenues for their wrote: “The whole conduct of the
77. On bling culture, one seven- subsistence, and when they wish to operation . . . suggests a skilled

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