SocietySub-Saharan Africa

The gold road from Zimbabwe to the sea

Jan 1100 – Jan 1500

Interior and coast bound together by one metal

In depth

The trade explains why Great Zimbabwe stood where it did — between the goldfields and the route to the coast. When the Portuguese took Sofala in 1505 they cut the link and the whole system withered. It is an early and clear case of how European intervention could break down trade networks without conquering the land they served.

For children

Gold from the Zimbabwe highlands was carried to the coastal town of Sofala and from there to Kilwa, India and China. That is why Chinese porcelain turns up in African ruins, and African gold in Indian jewellery.

Connects to

Great ZimbabweJan 1100 – Jan 1450
The Swahili coastJan 800 – Jan 1500
The Indian Ocean tradeJan 1000 – Jan 1500
Vasco da Gama reaches IndiaMay 27, 1498

Part of Terra Saga — the story of Earth on a timeline. terrasaga.org