This file set consists of cross sections of 3D models of the structure Pillar Tomb at the archaeological site Kua ruins.
A plan showing cross section locations is included. The sections were generated from 3D models created using laser scanning and
photogrammetric techniques.
The Kua ruins are all that remains of a medieval Swahili town
located on Juani Island in the Mafia Archipelago. The ruins offer
insights into an island civilization that saw Portuguese and Omani
control as well as independence, enslavement, and eventual abandonment.
Indicators of early settlement and trade—including Islamic and Chinese
ceramics dating to the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries and currency
from mainland Tanzania—have been found in the ruins, while Portuguese
accounts from the sixteenth century note the great wealth of the Kua
people. The Zamani Project spatially documented some of the Kua ruins in
2018.
The Zamani Project seeks to increase awareness and
knowledge of tangible cultural heritage in Africa and internationally by
creating metrically accurate digital representations of historical
sites. Digital spatial data of cultural heritage sites can be used for
research and education, for restoration and conservation and as a record
for future generations. The Zamani Project operates as a non-profit
organisation within the University of Cape Town.
This text has been adapted from the World Monuments Fund website (https://www.wmf.org/project/kua-ruins).
All work was carried out as part of the Kua Conservation Project: Co-Directors: Stephane Pradines (ISMC-AKU) and Pierre Blanchard (WMF). Partner institutions: Aga Khan University (AKU); Tanzanian Antiquities; World Monument Fund (WMF), Zamani Project (University of Cape Town)
Then Zamani Project contributed accurate 3D models and maps of the site and structures to the Kua Conservation Program.