Taken from:  Northwards from Sofala: Archaeological Reconnaissance in Cabo Delgado Province, Northern Mozambique by Nathan Anderson.

 

Ibo Island

The collection of artifacts from excavations on Ibo detailed in Stephens 2006; Torres, et al. 2016: 59 was found in the corner of a dark room in Fortaleza Sao Joao Baptista. The bags and information tags had almost completely deteriorated leaving a context-less jumble. The artifacts within the fort were those recovered during Stephens’ excavations near Fortaleza Sao Joao Baptista and the Ibo chapel in 2006 and 2007. Only the identification of the decorated sherds of both 13^th -15th centuries and 17th-19th centuries typologies, as they are described in Sinclair 1985, were identified within the jumbled assemblage.

 

Taken from: The Quirimbas Islands Project (Cabo Delgado, Mozambique): Report of the 2015 Campaign by Jorge de Torres Rodriguez.

 

The first archaeological research in Ibo took place in 1978, when Tereza Cruz and Paul Sinclair surveyed the island and excavated at three different sites, documenting two different occupation periods of 1150-1300 and 17^th to 19^th according to the archaeological materials (Sinclair 1987: 24). All of the sites were documented in the central area of the village of Ibo.

 

Around the hole (of a removed tree in the village square on Ibo) a high number of pottery—both local and imported wares—and glass fragments and beads were collected, with some examples with decorations similar to those of the so-called 13th to 15^th centuries AD and 17th to 19th centuries AD traditions, which represent the Swahili culture in the region (Madiquida 2007: 63). The imported wares include some examples from China, dated to the Ming dynasty (15th to 17th centuries AD).

 

Taken from: Quirimbas islands (Northern Mozambique) and the Swahili gold trade by Marisa Ruiz-Galvez et al. 2021

 

(The same village square as above) yielded a remarkable amount of archaeological materials, most of them handmade pottery shards but also bones, shells, glass and different types of glass and shell beads and bead polishers, in addition to a carnelian and a gold bead. Imported materials, other than beads, were scarce but significant. Another test pit was opened some 150 m away from Ibo square, opposite to the Portuguese fort of Sao Jose and near to a previous trial trench opened by Stephens in 2015 (Stephens, 2006). Where we came across a Swahili dwelling area with Middle Eastern imported ware, imported glass beads and three bronze coins, dating between mid-11th and mid-13th centuries CE (Ruiz-Galvez et al., 2017; Ruiz-Galvez, 2020).

 

The central area of the square, lower levels only delivered local impressed ware, excepting one Middle East imported wheel-made shard dated between the 11th and 13th centuries CE Two dating samples from these levels around 1072–1227 CE confirmed the dating: (Ruiz- Galvez, 2020; García-Heras et al., 2021)

 

There is remarkable similarity between our bead and a common type of gold bead found at the cemetery of Mapungubwe Hill, the site south of the Limpopo River, where the ruling class was buried during the Iron Age (Oddy, 1984; Grigorova et al., 1998). Together with other gold items found as grave goods, they are considered the oldest gold work in southern Africa. Traditionally it was thought that the beads were not manufactured at the site but traded from Great Zimbabwe or Dhlodhlo (Oddy, 1984: 78). Mapungubwe and Great Zimbabwe were important trading towns in contact with North Africa, the Middle East, India and China via the Indian Ocean.

Quirimba island

 

One of the earliest documents of the Portuguese that referred to the archipelago, a punishment expedition which was carried out in 1523 against this Swahili settlement (Castro 1969: 175). This document describes a big village with hundreds of inhabitants and a factory house where there were kept several small cannons, gunpowder and many muskets, as well as ivory and other goods.

 

A Swahili site was located on the southwest part of the island. Although the dense vegetation prevented a systematic survey of the area, at least one squared building was documented. Near this building two other stone structures were located: a small (1.10m in diameter), circular structure that is difficult to interpret and a rectangular tomb.

End of the Middle-Ages View  of the Quirimba Islands by the Portuguese.

Note the following words:

Nao/ naos: vessel

Leagues: 5.5km

Zambuk: Sambuk; is a type of dhow, a traditional wooden sailing vessel.

 

Taken from: Documentos Sobre Os Portugueses Em Mocambique E Na Africa Central 1497-1840 Vol VI

 

LETTER FROM D. PEDRO DE CASTRO TO THE KING; Mozambique, 1523 July 8

 

Lack of coir for cables and the difficulty in obtaining it,

……………………. I asked Diogo de Sepullvuda to send a foist he had here out among the islands to fetch coir to make cables, which he sent forthwith; and, as soon as he gathered as much as could be found, he sent it in a Moorish zambuk in which came a Christian, and it brought coir of which four cables were made, two of which were given to the Vytoria and two to the Nazare, which is nothing for her; and, as the zambuk was bringing the coir, it came to an island that they call Querymba, fifty leagues from here, where there was much coir, but they would not sell any. The natives of the island said that what they did not sell to the Christians, the Moors who are here with the merchandise they trade between the island and the whole of the mainland, who are from cities and places that are at war with Your Highness, which is Mombasa and Brava and other places along this coast, said that they did not want them to sell it as, in fact, they did not sell it, and they had more to say wherefore, as soon as the zambuk arrived here, we spoke in the factory with Your Highness officials and those gentlemen and wards of Your Highness and I agreed that, when we had finished making the cables so that the nao was moored and the men better, we would go there; wherefore I made ready with eighty men in two longboats and two zambuks, which men were the forty gentlemen and wards of Your Highness, and set out on my way there on the twentieth of February. I was five days on the way and, whilst on an island three leagues away which is not inhabited where I put into from one day to another, I was seen, before dawn, by some Moorish fishermen who straightaway went to give the alarm and forthwith they began to send off into the bush their women and children, and some to the mainland in almadias (dug-out), and, as soon as I saw this I plied sail and oars and fell upon the place, the sun being about to set, but I could not arrive in time; there must have been some four hundred fighting men there, the main part natives of the island who did not show fight. They took shelter in the bush with their sheik saying that they did not want to fight the Franks. There were some one hundred and fifty, more or less, from the places I mentioned above, who fought well against us into the night, and there they wounded Christovam de Sousa and Luis Machado and Nuno Freyre and five or six men, all of whom were left hale and unmaimed, save Christovam de Sousa who was maimed in the finger of his right hand. Nearly sixty Moors were killed and some eight captured. We entered the place and emptied it so that not a man or woman was left who did not take shelter in the bush. We were left in possession of their houses and merchandise and there we found a factory house that those who fought had there and, in it we found beds with their chambers and much gunpowder and many muskets, all of which I ordered to be gathered together, and we also found quantities of ivory and much other merchandise that has value in the land and, while we were at this by night, the sheik sent a message saying that he would give three or four thousand miticals (4.25gr) for us to go. I sent reply that I wanted nothing from him or from his men of the island nor the property of the outsiders, but their persons, and that this was the way that the Franks repaid those who would not sell them coir and rose against the King of Kilwa, who was Your Highness’s vassal; when they saw the message they sent forth with to the mainland, where to they cross on foot at low tide, to call on the Kaffirs for help. When the next day came, at about eight o’clock, there were, between them, something over two thousand men and, when they came, we had already loaded one of their naos and two large zambuks and a caravel that came by there with Pero de Montarroyo as captain and, as soon as they arrived at where I was with the men on the edge of the place, which adjoins the water, I ordered fire to be set to the place which was burned out without a house remaining, I also gave orders to burn thirty-five of their sail that were lying alongside the beach and which they call zambuks. When they saw this, they came very close to where I was near the longboats, I ordered that no shot be fired until they were very near. …………………….

Taken from: Friar João dos Santos (1622) Ethiopia Oriental (Vária historia de cousas notaveis do Oriente), Lisbon, 1891-2

 

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Chapter V

(In 1592) The Quirimba Islands and its inhabitants. The island of Quirimba is sixty leagues of Mozambique along the coast to go to India. It is an island of more than one and a half leagues (1) long, very flat land without any hills, almost entirely sown with corn and other vegetables that are very fertile on the island. There is a fenced fortress in which the lord of the island lives and the owner of the same fortress who is Portuguese. Along the beach of this island in the northern part there is a beautiful church ………

P274

The first island on this coast going from Mozambique to India is the island of Cabras, …… Just ahead of this is the second island called Fumbo, …… The third island is two leagues further. This is the beautiful island of Quirimba, …… The fourth island is a league of Quirimba called Ibo, of which another Portuguese was lord. There is a farm called Matemo where in the past there was a large Moorish settlement whose ruins still show this today because the doors and windows of many houses are decorated with well-carved columns. What the Portuguese destroyed everything when they conquered and took over these lands from Moors having many fights with the residents of these islands in which even at the time I was there were Moors who remembered the first Portuguese who passed through each coast and the cruelty they used towards the natives of the land who did not want peace and friendship with them on whom they executed such a great punishment that they forgave no one death, not even women and children. …… From here four leagues is the sixth island which they call Matocoloe ……

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There is the seventh island called Xanga (Shanga of the Quirimba Islands), …… In addition to this at two leaguas (1) is another called Malinde of which the lord was a Moor called Muinhe Falume. Next to which at one league are two islands almost together that run into the sea, …… These islands in Cabo Delgado are four leagues where the last one called Cabo Delgado is located. …… On each of these islands there is a population of Moors, most of them petty and poor, very subject to the lords of the islands (=Portuguese) where they live, to whom they pay tribute each year, which is from everything they sow and harvest on the island. …… All these islands are very healthy and have very good air, particularly Quirimba and the island of Cabo Delgado and Cabras, although due to the very subtle and penetrating air they die in them a lot; particularly old looking people and boys ……

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CHAPTER VI

Of some remarkable things that exist on these islands of Quirimba.

On all these islands of Quirimba many breeds of very tame cows and the bulls are also very gentle.

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………………… There are many farms of large chickens and gentle doves that are raised in doves. There are many palm trees that produce a lot of wine and coconuts. There are some vegetable gardens and farms with orange pomegranate trees, lime trees and Indian fig trees. In the fields there is a lot of basil like basil which is found in most of the fields on this coast. There are large rice fields which is the main source of all these islands. In these lands that I have named there is a lot of grass from which indigo is made which is born through the field in bushes the height of a measuring stick in color and leaf it is very similar to the tree but it has no smell. This herb is harvested by the Moors of this island to make blue paint ………

P279

………… this is the indigo that the Moors make to dye the cotton and silk threads from which in all these islands they make rich cloths for women to dress, both Portuguese and Moorish, and also the noble Moors. These cloths are woven by the Moors, who on these islands have great weavers whom they call Miluane weavers and the cloths they weave have the same name. And the reason for this is because in the past all these Moors lived on the mainland along a river called Miluane. But after the Muzimbas (cannibals) passed through these destroying the lands and eating what was on them, the Moors fled to these islands where they now live and on them they all work in their trade as they did there, but the pannos (clothes) that they still make today have not lost the name of Miluane pannos, which are also highly esteemed of the Kaffir kings of Sofala and rivers of Cuama ………

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CHAPTER VII

From the island of Cabo Delgado and the precious Manna that is created there and the coral and coconuts from Maldiva that are found in the sea of these islands.

The island of Cabo Delgado is located three or four leagues (1) from the sea in front of the mainland of the same Cabo. It is beautiful and large and the last of all the islands of Quirimba. At the time that I was on the coast, a Portuguese man called Jorge de Barros Botelho was the lord of it. It is populated by Moors and some gentiles like the rest on this coast. It is fertile with food and livestock and of goats. In the bushes of this island there is a lot of manna which is generated and created from the dew from the sky that falls on certain trees that are on this island in which only this dew collects on the trunks and branches and the same leaves and because of the curds it becomes like caked sugar stuck in the bread like resin and hanging from the leaves that look like they are in a basket. From here the residents of the island collect it and fill many

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jars and flasks that they sell to everyone who passes by very cheaply. This manna is sweet as sugar with which they purge themselves in India and along this entire coast……………… In the sea of this coast of Cabo Delgado, black coral is created at the bottom of the sea extended along the shape of a route It does not have knots but it has small, thin roots like beards with which it appears to be stuck to the bottom of the sea. Some sailors have lifted it on the claws (of the anchors) of their boats when they lift them from the sea. A sailor gave me a piece of this coral, almost a cubit long and as thick as a duck's feather. When it comes out of the sea, it comes out so soft that it can bend, but after it breathes out of the water, it becomes hard like a stone …………

(1) leagues: Portuguese Maritime League = 5,555.56 metres.