Trans-Saharan trade
caravan network · 750 AD–1599 AD
Camel caravans across the Sahara between North Africa and the Sahel, carrying West African gold north and Saharan salt south. The trade made Ghana, Mali and Songhay rich, and declined after Morocco's invasion of Songhay in 1591 and the rise of Atlantic shipping.
View Trans-Saharan trade on the map →
At a glance
- Goods
- gold, salt, copper, enslaved people, ivory, textiles
- Carried by
- land, river
- Hubs
- Sijilmasa → Fez → Koumbi Saleh → Taghaza → Timbuktu → Gao → Agadez → Ghadames → Bilma → Murzuk → Tripoli
Recorded boundaries
| Period | Control | Confidence | Evidence | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 750 AD–756 AD | — | low confidence | no observation date recorded | Trading through Koumbi Saleh, Ghadames, Bilma, Murzuk and Tripoli. |
| 757 AD–799 AD | — | low confidence | no observation date recorded | Trading through Sijilmasa, Koumbi Saleh, Ghadames, Bilma, Murzuk and Tripoli. |
| 800 AD–999 AD | — | low confidence | no observation date recorded | Trading through Sijilmasa, Fez, Koumbi Saleh, Ghadames, Bilma, Murzuk and Tripoli. |
| 1000 AD–1099 AD | — | low confidence | no observation date recorded | Trading through Sijilmasa, Fez, Koumbi Saleh, Gao, Ghadames, Bilma, Murzuk and Tripoli. |
| 1100 AD–1449 AD | — | low confidence | no observation date recorded | Trading through Sijilmasa, Fez, Taghaza, Timbuktu, Gao, Ghadames, Bilma, Murzuk and Tripoli. |
| 1450 AD–1584 AD | — | low confidence | no observation date recorded | Trading through Sijilmasa, Fez, Taghaza, Timbuktu, Gao, Agadez, Ghadames, Bilma, Murzuk and Tripoli. |
| 1585 AD–1599 AD | — | low confidence | no observation date recorded | Trading through Sijilmasa, Fez, Timbuktu, Gao, Agadez, Ghadames, Bilma, Murzuk and Tripoli. |
Each row is a snapshot the source recorded, not a continuous history. The period between two observations is an inference this atlas shows rather than hides.
Sources
- E. W. Bovill, The Golden Trade of the Moors, (1968)