10th century – 13th century
Great Zimbabwe and the wider Limpopo-Zambezi region
The Gumanye tradition was a later Iron Age archaeological tradition identified most clearly at Great Zimbabwe. Its communities occupied the site before the construction of the great stone walls and shared some features with Leopard's Kopje, although the tradition remains poorly defined because few comparable settlements have been excavated. By the twelfth century, Gumanye material culture showed improved pottery, figurines, more substantial buildings, expanded imports, and increased use of metal ornaments and stone walling.
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The Story
Gumanye is known principally from the settlement at Great Zimbabwe, where its communities occupied the site before the great stone walls were built. The tradition's pottery differs sharply from Early Iron Age ware and has been compared with Leopard's Kopje vessels, though important differences remain. Because few other settlements have been discovered and excavated, Gumanye still possesses only a partial archaeological identity.
The evidence becomes richer by the twelfth century, when the culture underwent significant change. Pottery was better finished, clay human figurines were made, and glass beads and other imports became more numerous. More solid mud-and-pole buildings replaced simpler structures, while copper, bronze, and gold ornaments proliferated and stone walling began to be used extensively at Great Zimbabwe.
These developments paralleled changes visible at Leopard's Kopje sites such as Mapela. Gumanye therefore appears to belong to the later Iron Age cultural environment from which the Great Zimbabwe state emerged. Its exact definition, geographical range, and relationship to other traditions remain provisional until additional settlements are found and investigated.
10th century – 13th century
Great Zimbabwe and the wider Limpopo-Zambezi region
The Gumanye tradition was a later Iron Age archaeological tradition identified most clearly at Great Zimbabwe. Its communities occupied the site before the construction of the great stone walls and shared some features with Leopard's Kopje, although the tradition remains poorly defined because few comparable settlements have been excavated. By the twelfth century, Gumanye material culture showed improved pottery, figurines, more substantial buildings, expanded imports, and increased use of metal ornaments and stone walling.
Continue exploring
The Story
Gumanye is known principally from the settlement at Great Zimbabwe, where its communities occupied the site before the great stone walls were built. The tradition's pottery differs sharply from Early Iron Age ware and has been compared with Leopard's Kopje vessels, though important differences remain. Because few other settlements have been discovered and excavated, Gumanye still possesses only a partial archaeological identity.
The evidence becomes richer by the twelfth century, when the culture underwent significant change. Pottery was better finished, clay human figurines were made, and glass beads and other imports became more numerous. More solid mud-and-pole buildings replaced simpler structures, while copper, bronze, and gold ornaments proliferated and stone walling began to be used extensively at Great Zimbabwe.
These developments paralleled changes visible at Leopard's Kopje sites such as Mapela. Gumanye therefore appears to belong to the later Iron Age cultural environment from which the Great Zimbabwe state emerged. Its exact definition, geographical range, and relationship to other traditions remain provisional until additional settlements are found and investigated.
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