SUNGBO'S EREDO
This Eredo is on the Tentative list of the Unesco World Heritage Sites. It is located deep in the rain forest encircling the kingdom of Ijebu-ode, Ogun state, Nigeria.
According to Wikipedia;
Sungbo's Eredo has also been connected with the legend of the Queen of Sheba which is recounted in both the Bible and Quran. In the Hebrew Bible, she is described as having sent a caravan of gold, ivory and other goods from her kingdom to Solomon. In the Quran she is an Ethiopian sun-worshiper involved in the incense trade who converts to Islam; commentators added that her name was "Bilqis". Legends of the contemporary Ijebu clan link the Eredo to this fabled woman, a wealthy, childless widow named Bilikisu Sungbo. According to them, the monument was built as her personal memorial. In addition to this, her grave is believed to be located in Oke-Eiri, a town in a Muslim area just north of the Eredo. Pilgrims of Christian, Muslim and traditional African religions annually trek to this holy site in tribute to her. Recently, archaeology has seemingly proven that the time of reign of the biblical queen is not in tandem with the chronology of the massive earthwork. This notwithstanding, the archaeology of Sungbo's Eredo is a pointer to the presence of a large polity in the area before the opening of the Trans-Atlantic trade.
According to the findings of British Archaeologist Dr Patrick Darling;
“In terms of sheer size it’s
the largest single monument in Africa – larger than any of the Egyptian
pyramids,” he says.The ditch is 160 km (100 miles) long, and in places 20
metres (70 feet) deep.
“Built long before the
mechanical era, it was all hand-built, requiring a large labour force and a
well co-ordinated labour force working to a master plan,” Dr Darling explains.
We make our way through thick
tropical vegetation down to the bottom of the Eredo – its smooth walls tower
above on either side of us, glowing green with moss.
It is cool and dark, with patches of sunlight filtering through the
trees above.
Dr Darling has compiled an
immense amount of data on the Eredo, but even he does not know why it was
built.
Perhaps to keep elephants out,
or as protection against foreign invaders – or perhaps to mark the territorial
extent of the Ijebu-Ode kingdom at a time when the rival city states of the
Yoruba people were frequently at war with each other.
Nobody knows why the walls
were built. The walls were built years before the trans-atlantic slave trade,
so no one can say the colonial masters taught us how to. I wonder why the
government hasn't pushed for it to be declared a world heritage site since
1995. The supposed Queen of Sheba's grave is also in that vicinity and has
turned into a shrine.
The Eredo is not being
maintained and will fall apart. Something that should be treasured and milked,
I forgot, it's not oil. Some tourists visit but not enough.
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