Hidden Places by Sarah Baxter

Author:Sarah Baxter
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: White Lion Publishing
Published: 2020-03-15T00:00:00+00:00

It was only in 1980, when the troubled colony achieved fully recognised independence, that the story changed. And that these great archaeological remains not only became properly acknowledged but gave their name to this new country: Zimbabwe – the word originates from the Shona dzimba-hwe (venerated houses). The ruins were solid proof that Africans had, and could, run their own complex societies. Zimbabwe’s cultural history was ready to be rewritten.

The site has three main areas. The Hill Complex, an extensive system of ruins atop a commanding 300-metre (985-foot) mound, is the oldest, and is believed to have been inhabited continuously until the site was abandoned in around 1450, for reasons unknown. It was the spiritual centre, where sacrifices were made; a large bird-shaped boulder is where the king would preside over important matters. The soapstone bird carvings here – which depict birds with human lips and five-fingered feet – now appear on Zimbabwe’s flag.

The Valley Complex, a scatter of ruined dry-stone and mud-brick houses, spreads from the base of the hill, but most impressive is the Great Enclosure. This vast, double-walled elliptical compound, dating to the 14th century, is the largest ancient structure in sub-Saharan Africa. Its outer walls, in places as wide as a car and extending 250 metres (820 feet), are constructed from hundreds of thousands of expertly cut granite blocks, stacked without mortar. Between them is a 10-metre (33-foot) high Conical Tower, perhaps a grain store, maybe a symbol of power.

These days monkeys scamper across the fallen rocks and scrub scruffs up the walls. Colonial plundering and ill-managed attempts at reconstruction have taken their toll. But while the structure of Great Zimbabwe has fallen to ruin, at least its history is now intact.

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