[Zyx]

For my book, beside from Philosophy, I intend to write on African history as I understand it. In my readings, I came across a few incredibly interesting passages that I will here share on POFO so that people can better understand the world.

This first quotes are from Joao Dos Santos.

In his "Ethiopia Oriental" relating to Zimbabwe (more accurately the Mutapa Empire or "Great Zimbabwe") no later than 1597.

It is common among these [people] to live to ninety and a hundred years of age.

Most of these [people] are as black as jet with woolly hair; they are handsome men, especially the Macarangas, who dwell in the lands of Quiteve.

Whereas both quotations are interesting, surely the first is astonishing. That's a very long life expectancy especially compared against today's Zimbabwe.

This next quotation is from Father de Monclaro.

All of them commonly wear loosely woven cotton cloth . . . called machiras . . .. They wear horn-like headgear as an adornment, being made of their own hair turned back in a strange manner; these horns are in general use in [the region], and provide a good shade. In the middle of the head they make one which draws the hair in a most orderly well-arranged fashion, first making the hair long by means of small pieces of copper or tin which they tie at the end of a few hairs brought together, so that the weight gradually makes them long and not crisp, and thus they go about with their heads covered with thtese small pieces. Once the hair has grown long, they bring it together in the middle of the head in a fair amount to make a bigger horn, the hair being tied with a certain grass with which they make a very comely thread of a certain length; the tapering end is left untied. Then in most regular fashion they do make other small horns, being very skilful [sic] in this; and the women wear many copper rings in their arms and legs, being drawn very fine, and the same they make with gold, which is extremely fine and with this thread they make these rings.

Finally Father Gomes

The people dress in various ways: at court at Zimbooe [sic] of the Kings their grandees wear cloths of rich silk, damask, satin, gold and silk cloth; these are three widths of satin, each width four covados [2.64m], each sewn to the next, sometimes with gold lace in between, trimmed on two sides, like a carpet, with a gold and silk fringe, sewn in place with a two fingers' wide ribbon, woven with gold roses on silk - a very well made thing manufactured by the [people] themselves . . .. These cloths are worn fromt he waist down the right side trailing along the floor and the left just down tot he knee. Others dress inc otton cloth with coloured stripes, black being their favorite colour. Of all the women, the Mocranga [sic] are the ones who dress best, the cloth coming down to one palmo above the feet; the part of the leg showing is covered with bright copper bands. At some other places where they do not have so much cloth, the men wear skins, one in front, one at the back, and the women dress in a very short cloth and those who do not have one wear a piece of threshed bark that becomes cinnamon coloured and is as soft as cloth and woven by nature as if it were cloth. In other places the men wear skins and the women a little net made of coloured beads and nothing else . . .. Elephant hunters and their wives dress in the stomachs of the animals they kill, very nice grey cloth which, divided in two, is enough for two people and is so soft that it feels like satin.

The social unit of Great Zimbabwe is also said to be polygynous. Not the best thing to all but something noteworthy no less.

When one compares this opulence and ornateness against how Europeans would prefer Africans to live--can one say that Mugabe is the bad guy?