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

(For the battering of the Conical Towers, see descriptions of those structures.)

MONOLITHS

In most of the ruins of both major and minor importance at Zimbabwe, numerous beams of slate and granite, varying from 4 ft. to 14 ft. in length, have been found, some of the slate beams showing signs of having been treated with tools. It has been the custom of many writers to call these beams “monoliths.” In the greater number of instances these beams can be shown never to have been employed as monoliths. So far, at Zimbabwe, authenticated monoliths have been discovered only at the Elliptical Temple, and the Eastern and Western Temples of the Acropolis and Philips Ruins. Many of the beams found in these buildings are not and never were employed as monoliths, and the greatest possible care has to be taken in discriminating between monoliths and ordinary beams.

Monoliths have their bases marked and worn by the stones in the sides of the holes on the summits of the walls in which they now stand or once stood, as if they had later become loose and had moved or even oscillated constantly while still in a fairly upright position. The marking of such as have fallen shows that they were made by rubbing against the edges of the enclosing blocks when the monoliths were in a perpendicular position, while some of the jagged notches on the bases must have been made when the monoliths were in a slanting position. The stumps of beams left in the side walls of entrances and passages which were once covered by slate and granite lintels, and across which the upper portions of the walls were carried, do not show the same markings; in fact, such ends of slate and granite lintels are not found to be worn by the friction caused by contact with the edges of blocks, and besides, these lack all evidence of having occupied a perpendicular position, or of having been exposed to the weather. Monoliths are decomposed and weather-worn on all faces, but there is generally more lichen on their south faces.

Further, the bases of monoliths, plain or carved, especially those of soapstone and slate, are found to have their lowest extremities water-worn into smooth faces or grooves at such points round their faces where the bases did not come in contact with the enclosing blocks, and this smoothing has obviously been caused by rain-water running down the faces of the monoliths to the lowest part of their bases, till at last, especially those of slate, the bases which were once of greater circumference have become worn and tapered. The thickness of the wall and the depth to which the bases of the monoliths were built into them would prevent the sun’s heat drying the damp bases, and would so keep them moist for a long time after every shower. This constant moisture has caused the bases to splinter while the exposed portions of the monoliths remained practically intact. This water-wearing and the splintering on account of damp are absent in beams employed for any purpose in a horizontal position, and these usually show unmistakable signs of having been very well preserved from the effects of the weather, and the extremities of such beams do not taper, neither have they become splintered, and are usually as wide as the main portion of the beam.

Undoubted monoliths of granite and slate have been found used by Makalanga as building material for their walls, and also as posts for cattle kraals. Also, in many cases, as posts for graves, and for decoration of Makalanga walls.

SOAPSTONE MONOLITHS AND BEAMS

Monoliths of soapstone have only been found in the three temples, but in greater profusion in the Eastern Temple on the Acropolis, and at Philips Ruins. Here they were found by their sections to have been of various diameters, but every one had been shaped with tools, some being artistically, others only crudely, decorated, but the majority were plain. Chevron pattern was evidently the favourite design employed. The Makalanga are believed to have used some of the broken sections of soapstone monoliths and beams for carving their I-daha pipe-bowls, in making which they are known to have excelled. This would save them the necessity of transporting the material to Zimbabwe from the soapstone formation, the nearest point of which is twelve miles in a north-western direction. Natives to-day have been seen taking away very small splinters of soapstone found in the débris heaps. These they cut with a knife into any crude shape that may be suggested to their passing fancy. The number of bases of soapstone monoliths is far greater than the number of splintered or broken sections found in the wall-débris heaps along the foot of the walls.

Several sections of rounded soapstone beams were also found among the blocks on the summit of the main wall of the Elliptical Temple, and other sections were also discovered here in the débris at the foot of either side of the main wall. These sections, though plain, are beautifully finished, but being the lower portions above the bases, are without pattern. Probably the higher portions were decorated, as the decoration in several instances of soapstone beams discovered does not extend low down on the monoliths. The radii of the sections found in the Elliptical Temple varied considerably, while some had flat-worked faces with narrow ends artificially rounded.

The discovery in all three temples of so many bases and sections of different sized soapstone monoliths suggests the question: Have the present standing slate and granite monoliths been, at any rate in some instances, erected at a later period to replace fallen or fractured soapstone monoliths?