Slave Chambers, Zanzibar, Tanzania
The Slave Chamber in Mangapwani is about 20 km north of Stone Town and 2 km north at the coast from the Mangapwani Coral Cavern. The chamber was originally built by Mohammed bin Nassor Al-Alwi, a prosperous slave trader, to store his slaves. The Chamber is a underground cell that was cut out of the coralline rock, with a roof on top. Boats from Tanzania would unload their human cargo on a secluded beach, separated from the main Mangapwani Beach by coral-rock outcrops.
The slaves were kept here until it was time to take them into Zanzibar Town for sale at the Slave Market. Many historians believe that even after the slave trade was abolished in 1873 by a signed treaty, the coral cavern was still used as a place to hide slaves and the slave trade continued illegally for many years.
Epic Tanzania Culture & Adventure Route © Monika Newbound
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