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VILLAGERS in Ziwa area still vividly remember the year the late Vice-President Dr Joshua Nkomo descended on their village to officially open Ziwa Ruins as a national heritage. Some still remember the scorching sun of that October 29, 1992 day.
Subsequently, tourists flocked to the museum until the turn of the new millennium when the turn-up began to gradually decline.
All the same, the Ziwa Ruins have not lost its gleam, its historical originality and complexity which made it a hit in the 1990s.
For tourists seeking to uncover the by-gone generations’ cultural, economical and social history at a glance, Ziwa Ruins is the place to be.
The ruins derived its name from the nearby Ziwa Mountain which means ‘‘to know’’ and spans over an extensive area of 3 337 hectares covered by terraces, stone enclosures and pit structures.
Among the remarkable structures is a hilltop enclosure.
This free-standing dry stone walled structure, because of its commanding inner enclosure, probably housed a person of some stature in the community. His wives, children and other relatives would have been accommodated in the outer section. The enclosure may also have offered sanctuary during times of trouble.
The hilltop enclosure has a parapet walling, unique to Ziwa.
The inner enclosure has a ‘‘balcony’’ version where one would relax while having a view of the surrounding panorama from the summit.
The terracing, hoes, arrowheads and spears found at the site are evidence of agriculture and hunting activities. These would have been forged by skilled iron workers at the furnaces discovered in the area.
Iron smelting was laborious, taking up to three days to produce workable iron. Some furnaces had decorations showing women.
Particularly noticeable are breasts that are shown on these structures probably to symbolise the arduous job to a woman giving birth.
Also equally intriguing is the stone bell found at the site. The bell was used for communication purposes either to summon people or as an alarm depending on the sound produced at a given time. Its sound is audible some 500 metres away!
Beads, cowrie shells and other fragments found at the site bear out the theory that the people had trade links with the Portuguese explorers on the East coast at Sofala, exchanging gold, ivory and grain for these items.
The gallery at the ruins is stocked with pottery made by specialised craftsmen, remains of barbed arrowheads for fishing, spears, arrows, nhekwe (snuff box), beads, ornaments, a life size model of a kitchen hut and bedroom hut both respectively stocked with respective utensils amongst a whole host of remains collected and preserved at the site.
The eventual abandonment of the Ziwa community estimated at 1800AD seems to have been due to a general ecological deterioration of the natural environs.
Online Reporter