Mauritania - Archaeological Site of Kumbi Saleh

The site of Kumbi Saleh, capital of the Empire of Ghana was discovered in 1914 by Bonnel de Mezière, but it was not excavated that from 1939 when Thomassey, Mauny and Lazartigues cleared several concessions of an architecture exceptional and extraordinarily rich in archaeological material. From 1960, Serge Robert and Sophie Berthier began digging new concessions and in particular the mosque which is currently considered the oldest and largest mosque in West Africa remarkably restored by archeology. Among the archaeological objects unearthed are very original epigraphy plates, an astonishing rib stitch and rare metal objects. The oldest date of the site dates back to the 4th century, but its abandonment is attested only around the middle of the 13th century. The site is an extraordinary architectural ensemble whose perimeter exceeds 10 km. The concessions revealed show the very particular use of shale slabs in an exceptional architectural art, from which will be inspired, later the cities of Oualata and Nema. The most striking religious buildings in the site are the animist monument with columns and the great mosque remarkably restored by archeology. The Empire of Ghana, according to the ancient writers, was the most important political organization in the region, during this period and, he had under his authority a large number of kingdoms, which allowed him the control of the famous trade of Sudanese gold and this until the advent of the Almoravid conquest that changed the way of life in Kumbi Saleh considerably; and the scientific influence of the historic cities of Tichitt and Oualata and later Toumbouctou, in addition to the change of the axis of the trans-Saharan trade in favor of these cities accelerated the abandonment of the city.