WHO BUILT THE RIIODESIAN RUINS? 497 



material from authentic sources. 1 quote from Chap. CXXII. of 

 his " Decada Composta " : 



Besides all these there is also a larger and principal kingdom which 

 is that of Makaranga, where the Monomotapa resides with his court 

 (corte). . . . There is also another kingdom adjoining this Makaranga, 

 which is the kingdom of Beza, where there is a palace of the ancient 

 Monomotapas (onde estas uns paqos dos Manamotapas antigos) which 

 the Kaffirs hold to be a supreme piece of work (consa supriina). All the 

 Monomotapas are buried there, and it serves them as a cemetery. 



The dwelling in which the Monomotapa resides is very large, and is 

 composed of many houses, surrounded by a great wooden fence, within 

 which are three dwellings, one for his own person, one for the queen, and 

 another for his servants, who wait upon him within doors. There are 

 three doors opening into a great courtyard, one for the service of the 

 queens, beyond which no man may pass, but only women ; one for his 

 kitchen, only entered by his cooks. , , , The third door leads to the 

 king's apartments, which none may enter but young nobles, who serve 

 him within doors. . . . 



The Monomotapas are generally of the Makaranga nation, who are a 

 feeble folk, and have no weapons of defence, fortresses, or walled cities. 

 Their weapons of offence are bows, arrows, and assegais.* 



Our next witness, like Father Monclaro, is a padre, but of 

 the Dominican Order. Fr. Joao dos Santos, one of a large party 

 of Dominican friars who left Lisbon in 1^86, arrived at Sofala in 

 December of that year. Father dos Santos remained there until 

 June, 1590. In August, 1590, he visited Sena, and from thence 

 he went to Tete. In July, 1591, he went to Mozambique, and was 

 stationed at Qummba for six years. So that, as Dt. -Theal 

 observes, he was an eye-witness of the condition of afifairs at the 

 Portuguese stations south of the Zambesi at their very best period. 

 He left Mozambique for India, in 1597. 



Extracts from his " Ethiopia Oriental," Book I., Chaps. 

 VIII., XVII:— 



Every year, in the month of September, when the new moon appears, 

 Quiteve ascends a very high mountain situated near the city (cidade). 

 called Zimbaoe, on which he dwells, on the summit of which he performs 

 grand obsequies of the kings his predecessors, who are all buried there. . 

 . . . When the king has feasted eight days he begins his lamentation 

 for the dead who are buried there, and all join in continual lamentation 

 for two or three days, until the devil enters one of the Kafhrs of the 

 assembly, saying that he is the soul of the dead king.f 



The Kaffirs have three methods of extracting and collecting gold. 

 The first and most usual method is to make deep holes and mines, from 

 which they dig into the earth along the veins which are known to them, 

 and bring out the gold, washing it with water in bowls, and thus freeing 

 it from the earth with which it is mixed. They do this at the great peril 

 of their lives, for very often the mines collapse, and many are killed 



in this employment The second method of collecting the 



gold is practised when it rains, for then the Kaffirs seek it in all the 

 springs of the mountains and plains, when it is laid bare by the 

 torrents and currents of water in which many nuggets and pieces of gold 

 arc found. . . . Thirdly the gold is extracted from certain stones 

 which are found in particular mines. These stones contain many veins 

 of gold, in order to extract which they break and grind them to powder, 



* Records S.E. Africa, 3, 356-8. 

 \Ihid.. 7, 196-8. 



