Trans-Saharan Trade

Timeline

1. 1520–1525Volta and Upper Senegal River · SahelGold output from regions such as Ashanti and Borgu was gathered overland to the middle Niger, then taxed and escorted north by the Songhai Empire. Caravans used camels and cattle for transport, with rest stations and water points along the way; in the 1520s, gold exports remained the core driving force of trans-Saharan trade.
2. 1524–1528Timbuktu · MaliTimbuktu gathered northern and southern caravans, with markets trading in everyday salt bricks, cloth, slaves, and luxury goods. Local merchants (such as the al-Aqit family) conducted long-distance trade and credit operations; Islamic scholars and merchant networks overlapped, and the city in the 1520s maintained one of the most active trans-Saharan relay positions.
3. 1525–1530Fez · MoroccoNorth African cities such as Fez and Tunis received West African gold and ivory, then forwarded it to the Mediterranean world. Morocco's Wattasid dynasty controlled some northern terminals of trans-Saharan trade routes and maintained contact with the Songhai Empire through envoys and merchants; by the late 1520s the trade network was still open, but political changes were already faintly visible.