Ibn Majid gives Mankaron Big Dipper six fingers high, that is to say at the same latitude as Bandar Siban on the west coast. Khoury places Mankar at Andevoranto, while Tibbetts suggests either the mouth of the Mangoro River, below Mahanoro, or Manakara or Mananjary. Although the comparison of Mankar and Manakara is tempting, we hesitate to superimpose the two toponyms because that would suppose the first being really very southern, and bandar Siban which is its counterpart to the west would, in fact, be placed at the surroundings of Cap Saint Vincent, which seems impossible. Whatever the latitude of Mankar, the heading is on Achernar (S1/4SE = 168° 45) is still too far west to touch one of the Mascarenes.

The site Ambodisiny, 10km south of Tamatave, near the Ivondro River mouth on the mid-east coast,  has been preliminarily dated through association with pottery and regional affinities to the twelfth century and, dated to the same period, imports such as Persian Gulf sgraffiato ceramics dated to the twelfth century, as well as Islamic monochrome ware from the fourteenth century, and Chinese celadon dated to the fifteenth century, glass fragments, and glass beads as well as porcelain of the blue-and-white type, and beads made of rock crystal, perhaps destined for export (Radimilahy 2011b).

The features of the local pottery are similar to the ones found on some Swahili sites, along the east African coast, Comoros, the eastern, western and southern coasts of Madagascar. This is a red pottery characterized by decorative patterns observed especially on the pottery lip. The ochre red coating and the decoration on the lips are the indicators from 12th century sites. (Radimilahy)

Near Ambodisiny, according to the story collected by Dandouau, one can see traces of Darafify’s feet and the imprints made by the hooves of the zebu he killed for his father-in-law’s funeral.

According to Arabico-Malagasy manuscript MP 26 (National Library, Paris), which relates a Zafiraminia tradition written during the nineteenth century, Raminia, the legendary ancestor from Arabia (a man, according to this tradition) “went into exile in Mahory [Mayotte], accompanied by the Mofia, the Masihanaky, the Tevandriky, the Ivalalañampy oxen, and the Itatakorovy oxen”; Raminia arrived at Harana (either at Vohemar, or a place located near Foulpointe, south of the Bay of Antongil), and moved southward to the mouth of the Ivondro River, where he left a large jar at a place called Ambodisiny (“At the foot of the jar”) (Dez and Viré 1982). From there, Raminia continued southward to Lalamanofy (15 miles away from the Mangoro River, according to Flacourt).

At the site of Ambodisiny, a large chlorite schist jar of Vohemar, which became an object of devotion of the muslims, was discovered there. Written documentations from the 19th century mention the presence of a big chlorite schist jar in this site, which is considered as a sacred object by the local population. But between 1940 and 1947, a soldier voluntarily broke it into pieces.