Prosperity of the Ghana Empire

Timeline

1. 1020–1029Koumbi Saleh · SahelArchaeology shows the capital had large mud-brick buildings, a mosque district, and a royal residential area; population scale and building density indicate the empire's political-religious center was still highly prosperous in the early 11th century.
2. 1020–1029Southern goldfield belt of the Ghana Empire · West AfricaThe empire levied taxes by controlling gold exports from regions such as Wangara and collecting duties at trans-Saharan caravan checkpoints, exchanging gold for North African salt, copper goods, and textiles, forming the economic lifeline of the Sahel.
3. 1020–1029Awdaghust · SaharaArab geographers recorded that the king of Ghana allowed Muslim merchants to establish a separate commercial quarter in the capital; North African caravans transported gold, ivory, and slaves along the Sahara routes, through which the empire accumulated wealth and introduced Islamic influence.