African Architecture just like our music is unique. As a young woman I had no Idea that Africans had a long history of beautiful architecture until I went to Mombasa and saw the Ruins at Gedi/ Malindi. The swahili states were a number of major cities that flourished on the east African coast between the ninth and sixteenth centuries. (What we had cities before colonization by the british?) Of course. The swahili states started in Mogadishu and went all the way down to Mozambique.


    I also came to learn about the Ruins in Zimbabwe, huge walled buildings right in the heart of Zimbabwe, the word Mazimbabwe actually means place of large stone buildings.

 Even where Africans weren't building stone fortresses we were building Unique huts, mounds,pyramids, granaries or whatever we needed.

This building is from Mali...

This is like a 3 story hut, what you know about that?

This is the Niger city of Agades..painted by a European traveler.

    My point is this, we can't compare ourselves to any other culture, nor should we feel outdone by any other culture because we did it first and we did it best. The grass isn't always greener on the other side. Find the beauty in your own uniqueness.

Blessings
Wambui