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Periodical article | Leiden University catalogue | WorldCat |
Title: | Archaeological Investigations at Pate |
Authors: | Wilson, Thomas H. Omar, Athman Lali |
Year: | 1997 |
Periodical: | Azania: Archaeological Research in Africa (ISSN 1945-5534) |
Volume: | 32 |
Pages: | 31-76 |
Language: | English |
Notes: | biblio. refs., ills., maps |
Geographic terms: | Kenya East Africa |
Subjects: | archaeology Anthropology and Archaeology Anthropology, Folklore, Culture Archaeological sites Pate (Kenya) history |
External link: | https://doi.org/10.1080/00672709709511587 |
Abstract: | Situated on the southwest side of Pate Island in the Lamu Archipelago on the north Kenya coast, Pate is one of the most visually dramatic, historically complex, culturally contentious and archaeologically significant places on the coast of eastern Africa. In 1981, the authors undertook excavations at Pate as part of the larger efforts of the National Museums of Kenya to preserve and protect the site and conserve some of the structures. The research strategy was to locate by excavation areas of early occupation, to understand site topography, to secure a ceramic sequence, and to discover other evidence, particularly inscriptions, relevant to the history of Pate. The research was successful in each of these goals. Archaeologically, Pate is significant because, as these excavations demonstrate, it was among the earliest sites founded on the East African coast. Swahili culture began to coalesce along the coast by the ninth century, and the research indicates that Pate participated fully in the efflorescence of Swahili culture from these beginnings, and grew to be one of the most politically influential and economically prosperous communities on the coast. Bibliogr. |