The ‘Mysterious’ Ruins of Great Zimbabwe

Abstract

There are still well informed people who are unaware that archaeologists have dispelled the so called ‘mystery’ of the stone ruins of Great Zimbabwe; the speculations of non-archaeologists have for so long been promoted for political reasons. The imposing dry stone walls whose ruins nowadays so impress the visitor were constructed by the indigenous inhabitants of the area some 600–700 years ago. However, this was no sudden or entirely unique development (for there are hundreds of stone ruins on the Zimbabwean plateau) but one that came in the course of the evolution over several centuries of a farming society; wealth in cattle made possible the emergence of an elite, and from the 10th century onwards the local exchange network became caught up in the demands for ivory and gold of the Indian Ocean traders on the East African coast, accounting for the exotic imports found at Great Zimbabwe. With the growth of Great Zimbabwe to an urban centre of some 15 000 inhabitants, overexploitation of the environment was probably the cause of its decline and ultimate abandonment in the 15th century. The original functions of the various buildings cannot be stated with certainty, but analysis of the finds from the different quarters, together with ethnographic evidence, help to provide reasonable explanations.