Slave Chambers
Ngome Kongwe, The Old Fort
Mtoni Palace Ruins and the Old Fort
Forts and Ruins
A trip to the many ruins and old buildings of Zanzibar is a voyage of discovery through time. The journey can take one from Stone Town’s narrow streets and coral-rag walls - clad with rank lichens and sun-faded plaster, to tended gardens and lily-ponds overlooked by towering pillars guarding hidden tombs. Sites worth visiting include the following:-
Maruhubi Palace Ruins
The Maruhubi Palace is located about 4 km from Zanzibar Town. Surrounded by undulating lawns, Maruhubi consists of remains of palace buildings, massive stone pillars which once supported a large overhead balcony still stands tall and proud. On one side a low stone basin containing water lilies and pond life evokes remnants of a magnificent garden where princes and princes once laughed and romped in play.
Dunga Ruins
Located halfway across the Island, on the road to Chwaka, lies the Dunga Palace ruins where the last and most feared line of rulers of the Islands lived. The ruins date back to the 15th Century, when settlements on the coast flourished.
Mtoni Palace Ruins
Lying next to Maruhubi, the Mtoni Palace Ruins were built by Sultan Said bin Said from 1828 and 1834 as a first port of call after he left Muscat and made his seat in Zanzibar. Time-worn, all that remains of this Persian built structure are its fine arches.
The Slave Chambers & Coral Caves
Just north of Mangapwani Beach, lies a labyrinth of caves that were used by illegal traders to hide their slaves following the abolition of the slave trade in the second half of the 19th Century. The caves provided an invaluable route for the nefarious traders to hide and spirit way their victims to awaiting pirate ships. A visit to the caves provides a means of reliving history and understanding the depth of suffering that slaves were subjected to.
Bungi Palace Ruins
Built by Sultan Barghash, the Bungi Palace lies on an artificial terrace behind a creek. Its east facing windows provided subjects with a rare view of the Sultans wife, Bi. Khole, whose amazing beauty was said to have enthralled many people.
Kizimkazi Ruins
Located at the southern most tip of the Island, Kizimkazi is the site of a Shiraz Mosque dating from the early 12th Century that is considered one of the oldest Islamic buildings on the East African Coast.
Msuka Mjini
Msuka Mjini Ruins are located on the Kigomasha Peninsular in Pemba and consists of mosque ruins dating back to the 15th Century. The inside of the circular mirhab (praying compass showing direction of Mecca) is engraved the date 816AH (1414AD).
Chakechake
The oldest town on Pemba Island, Chake Chake not only has the oldest families on the Island but is also home to the well conserved ruins of the 18th Century fort.
Ras Mkumbuu
New archaeological research shows that there were human settlements dating back to 6th Century at Mkumbuu in Pemba. Some 12th Century ruins in this area shows that there were human settlements before the arrival of Omani Arabs and the Shiraz in Zanzibar.
Chwaka
There are two sites of historical interest here. One is the 18th Century remains of the Mazrui Governor’s Headquarters that includes a mosque, six family tombs and other graves. The other site is that of Harumi where the Nabahani rulers are said to have had their headquarters in the 15th Century.
Mkia wa Ng’ombe
At this village stand the ruins of a big mosque, its size evidence of the large Muslim population that once lived there. Tomb, pillars and wells similar to those at Ras Mkumbuu are also in evidence. Exotically named, ‘Mkia wa Ngo’mbe’ translates into a cow’s tail in English.
Pujini
At Pujini, one will get to see the 13th Century ruins of a fortified town. Located 10 km southeast of Chake Chake, Pemba, Pujini was the official seat of the infamous Mohammed bin Abdul Rahman who ruled Pemba around the 15th Century prior to the arrival of the Portuguese on the East Coast. Locally, Rahman was known as Mkame Ndume or “milker of men” because of his cruelty and the harsh punishment meted out to his people.
Stone Town
The historically, culturally and architecturally important capital town of Zanzibar Island, Stone Town is a World Heritage Site. Within its welcoming bosom, one can spend many idle hours wandering through narrow labyrinthine streets and alleyways where mosses and lichens cling to damp crumbling coral-rag walls and pools of sunlight wash the small squares and street- front cafes in a warm glow.
The narrow lanes snake between over 2,000 buildings where shops, Internet-cafes, market stalls and restaurants vie for space with various monuments and structures of cultural pride. The prayer call of a ‘muezzin’ calling devotees to prayer, the clink of cooking utensils and the wafting smell of exotic spices, the soft swish of the silky ‘buibui’ of the women and the colourful scarves that cover their heads, the lilting voices of Swahili, Arabic and English make for a unique and surprising soothing sound that is unforgettable.
