The state of Takrur to the west had already adopted Islam as its official religion and evolved ever closer trading ties with North Africa. He drew on the book-keeping and literary skills of Muslim scholars to help run the administration of the territory. But, the king retained his traditional beliefs. Initially, the Islamic community at Kumbi Saleh remained a separate community some distance away from the king's palace. Inevitably traders brought Islam with them.

Then it curved round to the south east through Awdaghust, finally ending up in Kumbi Saleh - the royal town of Ghana. From there the trail went south and inland, roughly running parallel with the coast. The route taken by traders of the Maghreb to Ghana would have started in North Africa in Tahert, sweeping down through Sijilimasa in Southern Morocco. But after that only the tougher, more drought resistant goats were common. A terrible drought took hold of Ghana and gold mining fell into decline.ДЄrchaeologists have found evidence that confirms elements of the story, showing that until the 12th century, sheep and cows, as well goats, were abundant in the region. Cheated of his sacrifice, Bida took his revenge on the region. Every year a virgin was offered up, until one year, the fiancГ© of the intended victim, (his name was Mamadou Sarolle) rescued her. This snake demanded an annual sacrifice in return for guaranteeing prosperity in the kingdom. The wealth of Ghana is also explained mythically through the story of Bida, the black snake. Round their necks they wear collars of gold and silver, studded with a number of balls of the same metals.'ДЎ0th century geographer Al-Bakri, quoted in Corpus of Early Arabic Sources for West African History.Д¬lick here to listen to Al-Bakri describing the opulence surrounding the King of Ghana He holds an audience in a domed pavilion around which stand ten horses covered with gold-embroidered materialsвЂ¦and on his right, are the sons of the vassal kings of his country, wearing splendid garments and their hair plaited with gold.ДЄt the door of the pavilion are dogs of excellent pedigree.

'The King adorns himself like a woman wearing necklaces round his neck and bracelets on his forearms and he puts on a high cap decorated with gold and wrapped in a turban of fine cotton. Later Audaghust was another commercial centre.

The capital of Kumbi Saleh became the focus of all trade, with a systematic form of taxation. The Soninke also sold slaves, salt and copper, in exchange for textiles, beads and finished goods. These were situated at Bambuk, on the upper Senegal River. Al-Hamdani, for example, describes Ghana as having the richest gold mines on earth. Most of our knowledge of Ghana comes from Arab writers. And the introduction of the camel in the Trans-Saharan trade boosted the amount of goods that could be transported. What is clear, is that the Empire derived power and wealth from gold. It was linked to the north via a coastal route leading to Morocco via Sjilmasa. Further west was the state of Takrur in the Senegal valley. It is likely that this federation of Soninke was formed possibly in response to the attacks of nomadic raiders, who were in turn, suffering from drought, and seeking new territory.

There are different accounts of who he was, but all reports emphasise that he was an outsider who came from afar. But some time at the beginning of the first millennium AD, it is thought that a number of clans of the Soninke people, (in modern Senegal) came together under a leader with semi-divine status, called Dinga Cisse. Nobody is sure when Ghana came into being. Ghana encompassed what is now modern Northern Senegal and Southern Mauritania. It lies about four hundred miles north west of modern Ghana. Is not geographically, ethnically, or in any other way, related to modern Despite its name, the old Empire of Ghana

Ancient cities of africa