book chapter
Brilliance beneath the trees: the West African forest and its fringes
African civilizations : precolonial cities and states in tropical Africa : an archaeological perspective • Cambridge [Cambridgeshire] • Published In 1987 • Pages: 121-149
By: Connah, Graham.
Abstract
This overview of the West African Regional Development makes use of historical accounts and data from archaeological sites in Ghana and southern Nigeria (Akan states, Old Oyo, Ife City, Benin City, and Igbo-Ukwu) to extrapolate what likely was happening in the rest of West Africa. The discussion of state development and urbanization in the West African forest stresses how they pre-date European contact. The author also covers geography, environmental setting, subsistence, specialized technology (e.g. iron smelting), bronze work, terracotta sculpture, gold mining, increasing social stratification in many areas, population growth, religious beliefs and their role in the rise of some states, and long-distance trade (including throughout Africa and with Europe).
- Region
- Africa
- Sub Region
- Western Africa
- Document Type
- book chapter
- Evaluation
- Creator Type
- Archaeologist
- Document Rating
- 4: Excellent Secondary Data
- 5: Excellent Primary Data
- Analyst
- Sarah Berry; 2022
- Field Date
- 1960s
- Coverage Date
- 800-1507 AD
- Coverage Place
- West Africa
- Notes
- Graham Connah ; drawings by Douglas Hobbs
- LCCN
- 86032745
- LCSH
- West African Regional Development