Great Zimbabwe, Mashonaland, Rhodesia / An account of two years' examination work in 1902-4 on behalf of the government of Rhodesia

by R. N. Hall

NO. 6 ENCLOSURE

This adjoins No. 5 Enclosure, which forms its western boundary. The south side is formed by the south main wall of the temple from (100 ft.) to (179 ft. 3 in.). The north and north-east side is formed by the south wall of No. 7 Enclosure. This wall is from 5 ft. to 11 ft. high. The eastern side is formed by the west wall of the Sacred Enclosure, which is from 8 ft. to 11 ft. high.

The measurements of this area are: south side, 79 ft.; north side, 58 ft.; east side, 22 ft.; and west side, 31 ft.

This enclosure has two entrances. Probably another entrance may be discovered on the western side on the removal of débris.

The northern entrance is at 35 ft. to 37 ft., measuring from the eastern end of the north wall. This leads into No. 7 Enclosure. It has rounded walls, and the floor forms part of the foundation. There are no portcullis grooves.

The eastern entrance is at 13 ft. to 15 ft., measuring from the north end of the east wall. This leads into the Sacred Enclosure. Its walls are rounded, and there are portcullis grooves. The steps are built into the wall. On either side of the entrance there are traces of rounded buttresses.

Monkey-rope roots have done serious injury to the eastern end of the north wall, and have caused a depression of 5 ft. from the average height of the reduced wall.

This enclosure is interesting because it showed three floors below the soil surface. On removing the mould which form the top surface for a depth of 1 ft. to 2 ft., was found the common red clay foundation of a Makalanga hut, about which lay iron hoes, assegai-heads, and also pottery of no great age. Below this, for a further depth of 1 ft. to 1 ft. 6 in., was a promiscuous filling-in of blocks and soil, and below this again was a very hard soil, probably of decomposed cement, and on this hard surface was a pile of about 20 lbs. weight of portions of pottery scorifiers and small crucibles, all of which showed gold richly on the flux. These had evidently been piled up as rubbish, for they were all found within an area of 2 sq. ft., and no other portions of scorifiers or crucibles were found elsewhere in this enclosure. A pair of iron pincers made of two pieces of iron welded together at one end, an iron gong, and a soapstone amulet were discovered together, while on the lowest floor was a portion of a large soapstone bowl carved with herring-bone on cord pattern, and the fractured bases of what are believed to be true phalli. This lowest floor is 9 in. deeper than the one on which the gold crucibles were found, and is made of whitish cement, and has been exposed for about 4 sq. ft. in the north-east corner of the enclosure at 11 ft. below the summit of the east wall.

The reconstruction of the north wall at its eastern end is very conspicuous. This reconstruction is referred to in the description of No. 7 Enclosure.

In the soil débris pile, which had been removed from No. 7 Enclosure into this enclosure in 1891 by Bent, was (in August, 1902) found a piece of glass, being the lip portion of a bowl. This had bosses on its surface, with gold rims round each boss, indicating that the upper part of the neck of this bowl was once covered with gold enamel. This glass is believed to be identical with that found by Sir John Willoughby, and pronounced by authorities at the British Museum to belong to the thirteenth century.