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The construction of the Tomb of Askia is attributed to Mohamed Abubakar Sylla, nephew of Sunni Ali Ber (or Ali the Great), who reigned from 1464 to 1492 and extended the boundaries of the Songhai Empire through a number of battles. On the death of Sunni Ali Ber, his nephew Mohamed Abubakar Sylla, known as Askia Mohamed, ushered in the Askia dynasty.
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Under the reign of Askia Mohamed, the Songhai Empire became, alongside Timbuktu, the intellectual and religious center of West Africa, forging strong cultural and trading links with North Africa, Europe, and the Middle East.
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Historical tradition has it that, when crossing Egypt on his pilgrimage to Mecca, Emperor Askia Mohamed was profoundly struck by the pyramids and decided to build a pyramid tomb on his return home. However, the tomb is also thought to be in keeping with the ancestral Saharan tradition of tumuli or burial mounds erected on tombs since the first millennium BCE.
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A real masterpiece of mud architecture, the tomb is the most imposing tangible remains of the rich and powerful Songhai Empire and is the result of creative exchanges between Songhai and Arab-Berber cultures.
It is located in the heart of the city of Gao and consists of a pyramidal tower, two mosques, a large cemetery, and a space for open-air gatherings.
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The monumental pyramidal tower is 17 meters high. It is one of the most significant examples of the greatness of the empire and testifies to the presence of Islam in Songhai.
The pyramidal tower was built in 1495 following Askia Mohamed’s pilgrimage to Mecca. It has withstood both inclement weather and the struggles that characterized the empire period: the Tuareg domination, the Moroccan invasion of 1591, the difficulties of the early days of independence in the region, etc.
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The tower provides an illustration of historical facts, the most glorious episodes in the history of Sub-Saharan West Africa: the expansion of Islam in the 15th century, the cultural and commercial links between black Sub-Saharan Africa and North Africa, and the contribution of ancient Egypt to Sudano-Sahelian architecture, expressed in the construction of the pyramidal tower, itself inspired by the pyramids of Egypt.
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In 1854, the German explorer Heinrich Barth described this architectural gem of the Sudan style as one of the finest creations of the Songhai Empire.
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The Tomb of Askia was listed by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site in 2004 during the 28th session of the World Heritage Committee held in Suzhou, China.
Dr. Ali Ould Sidi, Technical Advisor at the Malian Ministry of Culture