A-Level Notes History - Early Communities Of Zimbabwe - Mapungubwe 1000 - 1300AD

Mapungubwe is also known to be the real first Late Iron Age State of the Shona, which preceded Great Zimbabwe. The other state forms were not as elaborate and stately as Mapungubwe. The settlement lies just south of the Limpopo River valley in Venda land today,  in today's modern South Africa.   Research on the site and around by archaeologists, anthropologists  and ethnographists is often collaborated by oral tradition and, very scant Arab reports of the centuries that the state existed. This early Zimbabwean cultural metropolis was established around 1200 AD into a lucrative,  bastion and prosperous farming and trading state.

Mapungubwe was a stone, strongly walled, fortified state ruled by African  Shona Kings, only to decline during the beginning of the 14th century. The identity of its inhabitants are known through oral tradition,  ethnography and anthropological evidence in and around the settlement site. 

The people of Mapungubwe were Shona,  and the forefathers of today's Zimbabwe and much of its neighbours. Written evidence from the Arab writers offer very little in terms of trading links and were mere written  by exploration teams.  However, what history has left of Mapungubwe brings a nostalgic aura of the Shona heritage. The legendary Mapungubwe Kings managed to harness massive cheap labour to terrace and fortify the hilly and valley complex settlement. The hill-slopes are buttressed by very strong standing stone boulders, and mottaless walls.  Even homesteads down the vast valley are fortified  by the stone walls. 

The state of Mapungubwe is a bedrock of the Zimbabwean states. The stone work was an iron  curtain against the vagaries of nature,  mankind and wild animals. The complex fundamentals  of a state are featured in the hierarchical  disposition of the settlements site. The arrangements of the forts is easy to understand and follow the bureaucratic and hierarchical  narrative.  From the top of the Mapungubwe hill where thicker and taller elaborate stone walled structures and homes stand are located, there is an eye catching bird's view from a vantage peak which could enjoy the climax of power down into the valley of commoners. The valley dwellings are also stone wall fortified dwellings with much leaner and shorter walls.  It's less assertive on defence and beauty. The basic characteristics of a state are evident on the valley, where various economic activities were undertaken from subsistence farming,  mining of various minerals, smelting and black smithing and also trading,  cattle rearing and hunting.

Mapungubwe settlement site is rich in various economic activities. Archaeological excavations and scavenging,  unearthed cattle enclosures,  bones,  cereal fossils and stone wooden and ivory figurines. There is pure demonstration of the importance of pastoral wealth and culture. The vast valleys provided foliage and grass for large heads of cattle, goats, sheep and goats. The cattle enclosures often found on the valley are right in the middle of the homesteads, which explain the value of the importance of cattle in political, spiritual,  social and economic terms. The Mapungubwe site is also surrounded by terraced valley for crop cultivation. These terraces down the small  hills have elaborate ridges to hold running water for the crops. They also minimised fertility and soil erosion. This demonstrates  a prosperous agricultural economy. Archaeologists  discovered remains of millet,  sorghum,  rapoko,  cowpeas,  melons,  gourds,  pumpkins, ground nuts, and some fibres. There was a variety of crop production which made the state stable and secure on food.

Before the valley, were also discoveries of livestock bones, hidden in every large pit suggesting domestication of livestock, to supplement the cereal diet. Meat from the domesticated animals was more secure than game meat.

The Mapungubwe site unearthed a plethora of foreign materials.  Persian bowls,  Chinese pocelyn,  ceramic glass and glassy beads,  Indian  pots and bear bottles attest to an appetite for luxuries from the Asian market. Local,  regional and international trade thrived at the settlements.  Local  copper bangles, gold beads and ear rings were produced for the trading market. The main trading items though were ivory,  gold,  copper and tin in their raw forms. The kings of Mapungubwe became more powerful with the control of trade,  mining and hunting for ivory. The state became more aggressive and expansive.

The people at Mapungubwe had a real diversified economic base. Archaeological  evidence of the local spinning spindles and weaving industry, discovered that it was mainly for the elite,  because it was manually done at a lower scale.  Skirts, shorts and tops were made from a locally grown cotton,  lint common in the Limpopo valley. The cotton clothes were supplemented  by imports for the ruling elite, and other rich  members of the societies. The majority of the generality of the Mapungubweans  produced loin  leather and clothes from bark fibre. Vassal chiefs began to pay tribute in  both local and foreign gods.  People also continued to hunt and fish to supplement food and diet. 

The Mapungubwe culture was a stratified society. Their way of life revolved around a stable family unit and kingship ties. They worshipped God but through ancestral spirits. They had special  places for social occasions, for rituals and ceremony. They celebrated the onset of a season and the new moon. A tradition that is collaborated by ethnography and anthropology together with oral tradition especially the coming of the new rains which was received by pomp,  song and dance during the nights. These were also places of initiation schools and worship.  Figurines of female and male organs were unearthed in these schools together with tools and weapons for lessons on various trades and subjects like, sexual gymnastics, mining,  smelting,  blacksmithing,  hunting,  cooking,  and gathering.  Graves were sacred and made so by endowment with various expensive religious ornaments placed   on or inside the grave. The people lived  in villages which were socially productive economic units.

Factors which Led to the Rise of Mapungubwe

A number of factors stand to account for the rise of the Mapungubwe state. The people were attracted by the high rainfall  received by the Limpopo-Shashe area which promoted crop cultivation. The availability of water from the Limpopo and Shashe rivers, for domestic use and irrigation  purposes during drought, was also a source of attraction to people. The area also had good grazing pastures for the people's herds of cattle. The availability of some gold deposits in the area also lured the people as this provided certainty that items needed for trade were available. The need to control  long  distance trade with the Portuguese and Arabs was also a key factor that lured the people to settle in the area. People amassed around the area in an effort to participate in trade with the Portuguese and Arabs. The existence of a hilltop which eventually became the site for royal  residence was seen as crucial for defense. The area had abundant elephants for ivory which was badly needed in trade with foreigners. Availability of game for meat, guaranteed a balanced diet to the people. The state was even named Mapungubwe after it had been discovered that there were many jackals in the area. The area was blessed with  plenty of timber for fuel and construction of houses. All these factors in one way or the other lured  people to come and settle around the area resulting  in the rise of the Mapungubwe state.

Political  Organisation

The king was the head of the kingdom.  He was the chief judge,  rain maker, economic overload and land distributor.  Kingship was hereditary in the sense that after the death of a king, the eldest son was mandated to automatically succeed his father as king.The king was always male.  Political status was based on kinship relations to the reigning chief and length of time in the chiefdom. The king's capital was built on the hilltop. The capital  needed five components to function:  a palace,  court,  compound for leader's wives,  place for followers and places for guards. The guards protected the kingdom and the palace from physical  danger. Judging by the extent of the distribution of the Mapungubwe pottery, the kingdom's hegemony might have covered 30 000 square kilometres. At its peak, Mapungubwe had a population of 3 000 to 5 000 people.

Economic  Organisation

Crop Cultivation:  With improved climatic conditions, the people at Mapungubwe practiced crop cultivation.  However, due to the fact that the area was prone to drought,  crops grown included  millet and sorghum. They also grew beans in the Limpopo flood  plain.

Trade:  Externally, they traded with the Swahili and indirectly with states on the far side of Indian  Ocean (China,  Persia and Arabia). They exported gold,  ivory and animal skins.  In return, they received especially glass beads and Far East ceramics. About 6500 glass beads were recovered at Mapungubwe. Archaeologists  discovered gold and copper objects as well as blue, green and yellow glass beads in the graves around Mapungubwe. This suggests that long distance trade was very pivotal to the state. Trade also brought fish, metals, cowrie shells,  copper,  iron,  silk, and cotton cloth from India and Persia.The area was blessed with  plenty of elephants and rhinos which guaranteed the availability of ivory which was needed for trade.  Cattle could be exchanged for both local and foreign goods. There was also the export of wild animal skins and dried  meat and the importation of silk and fine cotton cloth.

Hunting: They especially hunted for elephants and rhinos to get the precious ivory which was needed for trade. They also hunted for meat to supplement their diet and animal skins for their clothing and trade.

Cattle Rearing:  They reared cattle in the adjacent Mopane Woodlands in the plateau higher up the floodplain.  Cattle were a symbol of wealth and as such were not slaughtered frequently especially by subject people.  Bones found by archaeologists  (of young cattle on hilltop and old cattle in the valley) shows that cattle were a preserve for the diet of 'the first family' and ordinary citizens in the valley actually longed for beef. Cattle served many purposes; provision of meat, milk, manure, skins for making drums, clothing, blankets and shields.

Mining: The area was blessed with several  minerals like gold and diamonds but alluvial gold mining was the most important activity. To the North and North West, was the gold bearing of the Tati of the Zimbabwe plateau and to the cost settlement of Sofa la (Mozambique). Some gold was processed in the state as evidenced by the small golden rhino and gold beads excavated at Mapungubwe.

Craftwork and Blacksmithing:  Mapungubwe had skilled craft workers. Archaeological evidence in the form of carved ivory bracelets and bone tools shows that the state had specialised  craft workers.  Bones were used as needles for sewing clothing products. Indigenous wild cotton was used for weaving.  Spinning spindles found at Mapungubwe suggest that the inhabitants of Mapungubwe also wove cloth from local cotton and other materials.  Iron and copper working at Mapungubwe indicate thriving  metallurgy. Archaeologists found many objects made of iron,  bones and ivory.

Pottery Making and division of labour:  Classic Mapungubwe pottery was practiced. Archaeologists found remains of a unique pottery at the hill top which was different from that which was found in the valley,  in terms of decorations. This suggest that the Mapungubwe kings had specialist potters.