The old mosque
Thirteenth century.
Vero.Lova — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Chen Hualin — CC BY-SA 3.0 · Mangapwani — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Mangapwani — CC BY-SA 4.0
The ruins of an old Swahili town on the Indian Ocean coast near Bagamoyo, with coral-stone buildings dating from the thirteenth to the sixteenth century, among the oldest evidence of Islam and Swahili civilisation on the Tanzanian mainland. The ruins include two mosques, one from the thirteenth century and counted among the oldest in East Africa, and about thirty coral-stone tombs, some topped with the tall stone pillars typical of Swahili coastal graves. Local tradition holds that some are the graves of local rulers known as Diwanis, descendants of Sheikh Ali Muhammad al-Hatim al-Barawi. The best known is the tomb of Sharifa, which some locals still visit to pray. A small museum shows pottery and objects found on the site, including ceramics imported from China and Persia that bear witness to the coast's ancient trade. Kaole is visited on a day trip from Dar es Salaam with the nearby historic town of Bagamoyo, the caravan port of the nineteenth century. The modest entry fee is paid on site.
Thirteenth century.
Swahili coastal style.
Chinese and Persian ceramics.
About 5 km from Bagamoyo and 70 km north of Dar es Salaam
They include a thirteenth-century mosque, among the oldest in East Africa, and Swahili tombs with distinctive stone pillars.