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  • Located in Western Sudan, present day Mali.
  • Earliest deposits at Jenne- Jeno were
  • domesticated rice, millet grain, and wild swamp grasses.
  • Perfect for early agriculture
  • Good for trading
  • Domesticated animals such as cattle, sheep, and goats.

Niger River Valley: Jenne-Jeno

Bibliography

"Ancient African Civilization of Jenne Jeno Lasted Longer than Rome." Brian Holihan RSS. N.p., 14 Nov. 2011. Web. 17 Sept. 2014.

"Ancient World History to 1500." : Remembering Jenne-Jeno. N.p., 2009. Web. 15 Sept. 2014.

MacDonald, K.C. "Wonders: Ruins of Jenne-jeno." PBS. PBS, n.d. Web. 17 Sept. 2014.

"Muzeion." Old-Jenne/Djenne-Jeno Terracota Pillar with Man Siting on Top. -. N.p., n.d. Web. 20 Sept. 2014.

Page, Willie F., and R. Hunt, Davis, eds. "Jenne-Jeno." Encyclopedia of African History and Culture: African Kingdoms (500 to 1500), vol. 2. New York: Facts On File, Inc., 2005. Ancient and Medieval History Online. Facts On File, Inc. http://www.fofweb.com/activelink2.asp?

"Rice University Anthropology." Rice University Anthropology. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Sept. 2014.

"Seated Figure | Djenné Peoples | The Metropolitan Museum of Art." Seated Figure | Djenné Peoples | The Metropolitan Museum of Art. N.p., n.d. Web. 19 Sept. 2014.

200 BCE - 1400 AD

Decline

  • Jenne- Jeno began to decline around mid-1200 C.E
  • Dry climate could not sustain crops or animals
  • By 1400 C.E it became a ghost town after 200 years of Islamic influences

Religion

  • Urns with human skeletons in fetal position have been found in homes which suggests early religious beliefs.
  • Many statuettes of kneeling people have been found in walls and under floors,
  • Statuettes may have been used to worship families ancestors.
  • Settlers may have converted to Islam in the 13th century
  • Urn burials continued until its decline

Terracotta sculptures

(in Metropolitan Museum of Art in NY)

  • Interpreted praying position
  • Expresses grief
  • Suggests the idea of ancestor worship
  • Created over 700 years ago
  • Statues and valuables were made of materials such as bronze and copper.

Geography

  • Iron working was present at Jenne Jeno since the beginning of the settlement
  • Early Examples of Jenne-Jeno iron work
  • Earliest urbanized centers of Ancient Africa
  • Settlement became possible in third century B.C.E
  • The land flooded often before settlement
  • Land was dry however the settlers had already developed stone tools

Culture: Art, Music, Writing

  • Copper and semi-precious stones were made into jewelry and ornaments

Economy

  • Traded: gold, copper, pottery, brass, salt and slave workers
  • Initially within their community, neighboring civilizations
  • 450-850 BCE expanded along the Savanna border
  • 13th century became center of trade between Central and Western Sudan as well as some regions of Guinea

Language

  • There is limited evidence to draw on as to how they spoke to one another or if they recorded anything in any way
  • It is believed they most likely thrived on oral tradition

Social Structure

  • Evidence of some possible hierarchal structure found- Central mound in Jenne-Jeno.
  • Suggested that Jenne-Jeno rose on the basis of trade and expanded into neighboring settlements, but without without an established government.
  • Jenne-Jeno is a possible example of early urbanization without a strong centralized government
  • It is believed that the husband-father lived in one large central hut and one of his wives occupied each of the surrounding huts.

Major Accomplishments

  • Best known for welding iron which appeared during 250 BCE
  • Their iron industry is one of the earliest known in the Sahara Desert
  • Became the center of trade
  • Soon after trade developed the city became the center of an unofficially established government for neighboring towns
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