Takwa
Lamu County, Kenya
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Takwa is an abandoned settlement on the south side of Manda Island in Lamu County, Kenya, comprising Islamic ruins dating from around 1500 to approximately 1700. Founded as a modest town, possibly serving as a retreat for religious scholars, Takwa was excavated first by James Kirkman in 1951 and later cleared in 1972 under James de Vere Allen's supervision. The site's most significant structures include a relatively well-preserved Great Mosque and a Pillar Tomb inscribed with the date 1681–1682. When Takwa was abandoned, its inhabitants reportedly relocated across the bay to Shela on Lamu Island; residents of Shela continue to visit the Pillar Tomb twice yearly to pray for rain. The ruins were designated a Kenyan National Monument in 1982.
Movement
- Built
- Type
- ruins, abandoned village
- Place
- Lamu County, Kenya
This building on
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