Historical Archaeology of the 19Th - Century Caravan Trade in North-Eastern Tanzania: a Zooarchaeological Perspective

HISTORICAL ARCHAEOLOGY OF THE 19TH - CENTURY CARAVAN TRADE IN NORTH-EASTERN TANZANIA: A ZOOARCHAEOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVE THOMAS JOHN BIGINAGWA PhD UNIVERSITY OF YORK DEPARTMENT OF ARCHAEOLOGY JANUARY 2012 1 ABSTRACT his zooarchaeological study examined animal economies practiced by local communities T against the context of the expansion of the caravan trade in eastern Africa during the nineteenth century. Specific objectives were to establish whether: a) animal economies in areas crossed by caravan trade routes were transformed as a result of expanding trade and the demand for supplies; b) new herd management strategies were adopted by local communities to ensure production of surpluses for exchange; and c) the expansion of this trade caused subsistence stress for local communities. The study area is the Lower Pangani River Basin, north-eastern Tanzania. The three studied riparian island settlements of Ngombezi, Old Korogwe and Kwa Sigi are mentioned in the nineteenth-century European accounts as caravan halts in the Lower Pangani. These were identified through archaeological survey and oral interviews - using the nineteenth-century accounts as a guide to their likely locations. Excavation exposed evidence for human settlements dating to the late seventeenth or early eighteenth centuries AD, and materials recovered include over 30,000 pieces of animal bone, 39,000 potsherds, 4,020 local and imported beads, metal objects, worked bones, remains of flintlock muskets and coins. The analysis of the faunal remains indicates that domestic livestock, a wide range of wild animals, and locally caught fish, were all being consumed at these settlements. The proportion of wild fauna in the assemblage suggests their significant contribution to the diet. At Ngombezi where the longest dated sequence was revealed, such a consumption pattern of mixing domestic and wild resources is not significantly different from that of the pre- nineteenth-century levels, suggesting that the integration of these settlements into the caravan trade network had limited effects on food procurement strategies and consumption patterns. There is a general lack of evidence that young animals were slaughtered, which would be indicative of consumption pressure on domestic stock, as the majority of domestic stock was slaughtered after reaching maturity age - over 3 years for cattle and over 2 years for sheep and goat. These major findings contradict arguments made by historians that the caravan trade had a transformative effect on communities lying along the main trade routes in the region, though additional research at other sites is needed to strengthen this argument. 2 TABLE OF CONTENTS CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION 21 1.1 Research Background 21 1.2 Statement of the Problem 24 1.3 Research Objectives 25 1.4 Research Approach 25 1.5 Theoretical Framework of the Study 26 1.5.1 Historical Ecology: concepts and relevance 26 1.5.2 Zooarchaeological Indicators of Subsistence Strategies 30 1.6 Expectations of the Study and Test Implications 32 1.7 Selection of the Study Area 34 1.8 Dissertation Organisation 35 CHAPTER 2: CONCEPTUAL AND SUBSTANTIVE 38 FRAMEWORKS 2.1 Introduction 38 2.2 Historical Archaeology: definitions and contrasting approaches 39 2.2.1 Conceptual Issues 39 2.2.2 Research Trends in Historical Archaeology 42 2.3 East African Trade Contacts with the Outside World 51 2.4 Nineteenth-century East African Slave and Ivory Trade 57 2.4.1 Consequences of the 19th c. Caravan Trade 66 2.5 Zooarchaeology and Historical Ecology 75 2.6 Chapter Summary 80 CHAPTER 3: PROFILE OF THE STUDY AREA 82 3.1 Introduction 82 3.2 The Pangani River Basin: Physical Characteristics 82 3.3 Present Demography and Ethnic Groups 88 3.4 Nineteenth-century Accounts about the Lower Pangani 91 3 3.4.1 Definition of Zigualand 91 3.4.2 Traditional Zigua Settlement and House Forms 92 3.4.3 Nineteenth-century Subsistence Strategies 94 3.5 Documentary Records Relating to the Study Sites 102 3.6 The Nineteenth-century Town of Pangani 107 3.7 Previous Archaeological Research in the Lower Pangani 109 3.8 Chapter Summary 118 CHAPTER 4: FIELDWORK RESULTS 121 4.1 Introduction 121 4.2 Fieldwork Schedule and Data Recovery Methods 121 4.3 Excavation Results 124 4.3.1 Ngombezi Test Pit 124 4.3.2 Ngombezi Main Trench 129 4.3.3 Old Korogwe 145 4.3.4 Kwa Sigi 149 4.4 Oral Historical Evidence 156 4.4.1 Ethnic Communities Inhabited the Studied Islands 156 4.4.2 Subsistence Strategies of the Studied Communities 158 4.5 Chapter Summary 161 CHAPTER 5: THE ARTEFACTUAL EVIDENCE 163 5.1 Introduction 163 5.2 The Ceramic Assemblage 163 5.2.1 Analysis Results of Local Pottery 166 5.2.2 Imported Pottery 182 5.3 The Bead Assemblage 184 5.3.1 Shell Beads 185 5.3.2 Glass Beads 185 5.4 Miscellaneous Artefacts 193 4 5.5 General Discussion 195 5.5.1 Pottery 195 5.5.2 Beads 204 5.5.3 Miscellaneous Artefacts 213 5.6 Chapter Summary 214 CHAPTER 6: FAUNAL ANALYSIS 216 6.1 Introduction 216 6.2 Analysis Procedures and Methods 216 6.2.1 Sorting and Identification 219 6.2.2 Methods of Estimating Taxonomic Abundance 221 6.2.3 Methods of Age Estimation for Domestic Stock 221 6.2.4 Methods of Analysing Fish Fauna 223 6.2.5 Methods of Recording Taphonomic Aspects 224 6.3 Analysis Results for Ngombezi Main Trench 225 6.3.1 General Composition 225 6.3.2 Taxonomic Composition 226 6.3.3 Taphonomic Aspects of the Assemblage 244 6.4 Analysis Results for Ngombezi Test Pit 245 6.4.1 Taxonomic Composition 249 6.4.2 Bone Surface Modification 251 6.5 Analysis Results for Old Korogwe 252 6.5.1 Taxonomic Composition 252 6.5.2 Bone Surface Modifications 256 6.6 Analysis Results for the Kwa Sigi Assemblage 258 6.6.1 Taxonomic Representation 258 6.6.2 Bone Surface Modifications 259 5 6.7 Chapter Summary 261 CHAPTER 7: DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS 265 7.1 Introduction 265 7.2 Historical Archaeology of the Lower Pangani: A Revisit 265 7.3 Evidence for Settlements and Involvement in Caravan Trade 267 7.4 Animal Economy Practiced at the Caravan Halt Settlements 274 7.4.1 Species Consumed: composition and comparison 274 7.4.2 Domestic Stock 277 7.4.2.1 Herd Management and Culling Practices 278 7.4.3 Wild Animals Consumed and Hunting Techniques 283 7.4.3.1 Dietary Contribution of Small Mammals 284 7.4.3.2 Medium and Large Sized Wild Animals 288 7.4.4 Patterns of Consumption and Butchery Practices 291 7.5 Summary and Conclusions 294 7.6 Limitations of the Study and Future Research Direction 298 BIBLIOGRAPHY 300 APPENDICES 318 6 LIST OF FIGURES Figure 2.1 Khoikhoi family on the move, southern Cape, late 47 17th c. or early 18th c. Figure 2.2 Map of eastern Africa showing the routes of earlier slave 54 trade in Eastern Africa Figure 2.3 An early Portuguese depiction of the island of Kilwa in 55 the 15th c. Figure 2.4 Nyamwezi porters resting in coconut palm grove, near 59 Bagamoyo Figure 2.5 Nyamwezi „pagazi’ or ivory porter 60 Figure 2.6 A forest devastated by herds of elephants in Uganda 62 Figure 2.7 19th c. Venetian trade beads in white, single colours and 65 variegated glass Figure 2.8 Location of the main 19th c. caravan route in East Africa 67 Figure 2.9 Market scene in Ujiji, c. 1878 69 Figure 2.10 British Naval Officers and men crossing the bar to rescue 72 abandoned slaves from a sinking boat Figure 3.1 Location of Pangani River Basin in its wider geographical 84 contexts Figure 3.2 A view of Usambara Mountains from Ngombezi 85 Figure 3.3 Pangani River near Old Korogwe 86 Figure 3.4 Contemporary „traditional‟ foot bridge at Kwa Mgumi 93 Figure 3.5 A map by Burton and Speke showing series of burnt 101 villages between Pangani town and Chogwe Figure 3.6 A 19th c. sketch map by Burton and Speke showing island 103 settlements on the Pangani River Figure 3.7 Keith Johnston‟s (1978) map showing island settlements 103 on the Pangani River Figure 3.8 The Island of Old Korogwe from bank 105 Figure 3.9 The Island of Old Korogwe by Meyer, H 105 7 Figure 3.10 A 19th c. building at Bweni, popularly known as 109 Gosi la Tembo‟s dwelling Figure 3.11 Tongwe Fort 116 Figure 3.12 Indian Street in Pangani town 117 Figure 3.13 Excavation Unit at Pangani showing early structure 118 predating the standing building at Pangani Town Figure 4.1 Faunal remains from Ngombezi after washing 123 Figure 4.2 A plan of Ngombezi island showing locations of the 125 main trench and a test pit Figure 4.3 Excavation in progress of a 1x1m test pit at 127 Ngombezi main site Figure 4.4 The stratigraphy of Ngombezi test pit, 128 East facing wall Figure 4.5 Ngombezi main trench during excavation-showing 132 subdivision into squares Figure 4.6 The stratigraphy of Ngombezi main trench, 133 South facing wall Figure 4.7 The matrix for Ngombezi main trench 135 Figure 4.8 Burial encountered in Layer 4, Square 1, 137 Ngombezi main trench Figure 4.9 Dense layer of house daub, Layer 6 (a), and daub 138 showing impressions of wattle/wooden frame (b) Figure 4.10 Postholes in Layer 9, Ngombezi main trench 139 Figure 4.11 Dense layer of house daub, Layer 12 140 Figure 4.12 Postholes and a hearth, Layer 13 – 141 Ngombezi main trench Figure 4.13 Radiocarbon calibrated graph for sample11I (a); and for 144 sample 1A (b) Figure 4.14 Excavation work at Old Korogwe 147 Figure 4.15 The stratigraphy of Old Korogwe trench, 148 West facing wall 8 Figure 4.16 The matrix for Old Korogwe trench 148 Figure 4.17 A plan of the Kwa Sigi island showing distribution of test 151 pits and other features Figure 4.18 Excavation work in progress at Kwa Sigi 154 Figure 4.19 Some finds encountered at Kwa Sigi 155 Figure 4.20 The author interviewing Mr.

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