Maritime archaeology of East Africa

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, and Chinese from 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 seventh or eighth 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 first and sixth 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.

Outside contact

When outside cultures like Rome 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.

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.^[3] 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.^[3]

References

Further reading