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It was copper, not Gold, that was considered the most important metal in most African societies, according to an authoritative study by Eugenia Herbert.
10 months ago

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More from African History Extra

Stone towns on the Highveld of South Africa: an archaeological history of the Sotho-Tswana capitals (ca. 1450-1850)

The eastern plateau of South Africa, known as the Highveld, is dotted with the ruins of numerous stone towns founded at the end of the Middle Ages.

2 months ago 23 votes
The currencies and monetary systems of pre-colonial Africa

A bewildering variety of currencies circulated freely in the various states and societies of Africa during the pre-colonial period.

2 months ago 22 votes
A forgotten African empire: the history of medieval Kānem (ca. 800-1472)

A century before Mansa Musa’s famous pilgrimage, the political and cultural landscape of medieval West Africa was dominated by the empire of Kānem.

2 months ago 33 votes
Online resources for African history: links to African collections held at 33 Western Museums

Up to 90% of Sub-Saharan Africa’s material cultural legacy is kept outside of the continent, according to a French government-commissioned 2018 report by Senegalese economist Felwine Sarr and French historian Bénédicte Savoy.

3 months ago 32 votes
What did they write about? : An intellectual history of Timbuktu ca. 1450-1900.

No single body of primary sources in the literary heritage of West Africa has attracted as much attention and attained as much celebrity as the fabled manuscripts of Timbuktu.

3 months ago 30 votes

More in history

Collections: Life, Work, Death and the Peasant, Part II: Starting at the End

This is the second part of our series (I) discussing the basic contours of life – birth, marriage, labor, subsistence, death – of pre-modern peasants and their families. As we’ve discussed, pre-modern peasant farmers make up the vast majority of human beings in in the past. Last week we started by looking at the basic … Continue reading Collections: Life, Work, Death and the Peasant, Part II: Starting at the End →

6 hours ago 3 votes
Photographing The Black Panthers: All Power To The People (1967 – 1973)

“I wanted to show the whole picture of the Black Panther Party. Most of the media focused on the rallies and looked for controversy. I wanted to show what it was like behind the scenes and portray a more complete, complicated portrait of the Panthers.” – Stephen Shames photographs The Black Panthers, 1967 – 1973 … Continue reading "Photographing The Black Panthers: All Power To The People (1967 – 1973)" The post Photographing The Black Panthers: All Power To The People (1967 – 1973) appeared first on Flashbak.

16 hours ago 2 votes
The World's First Female Serial Killer?

Ancient Roman True Crime

11 hours ago 2 votes
When Was Homer’s Iliad Written? Unraveling the Controversy

Homer’s Iliad tells the story of the Trojan War. Traditionally, that war has been dated to the late Bronze Age, approximately c. 1200 BCE. However, the Iliad itself was not written that early in history. There is wide agreement that Homer—or whoever the true author of the Iliad was—lived much, much later than this. […]

8 hours ago 1 votes
The Mad Genius Who Gave Us the Elements

Empedocles: The Eccentric Philosopher

2 days ago 3 votes