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The Wassu stone circles are the greatest historic monument in the tiny West African country of The Gambia, famous because from its Atlantic shore the nation pierces Senegal like a dagger, following the course of the 487km River Gambia. The stone circles are on the north bank of the river, in the Niani District of Central River Region. The approach along the north bank entails taking a ferry (they hold one or two large trucks, or four smaller ones, or eight to ten cars, and a vast melee of foot passengers) from the capital, Banjul, to Barra. It is always a colourful crossing! From Barra you proceed east to Farafenni, just 3km from the Senegalese border, then for another hour to Kuntaur, whence it is 2 km inland to Wassu village. Just through the hamlet, immediately on the left, visitors turn at the huge ‘Wassu Stone Circles’ billboard, which is sponsored by TBL (Trust Bank Ltd) and followed a pitted track, for 4x4s only, about 750 metres to the enigmatic monuments.
However, we approached from the south side of the river, travelling west from Basse to Sankulay Kunda, where a small two-vehicle (or one lorry or tractor or fifteen head of cattle) ferry takes you across the 10 metre narrows to the southern side of Janjanbureh island. From there it’s a ten-minute vehicle drive to Janjanbureh town (formerly Georgetown), where a slightly larger ferry (four cars, or one car plus an American-style school bus and a small cart complete with recalcitrant donkey) takes you across to Lamin Koto on the north bank.
As well as the fascinating stone circles (there are eleven of them), the site has an informative small museum, clean and functional restrooms (essential in a country where they are very scarce) and a small reception area selling canned soft drinks (sometimes they are even cold), Wassu & Kerbatch stone circles brochures sponsored by—of course—TBL, and postcards. Part of the stone circles are represented on the back of the Gambian 50 dalasi note—though this is perhaps the only encounter which most Gambian have with their great national monument.
Wassu is part of the wider Senegambian stone circle complex, extending across the two countries. What makes this unique in comparison with other megalithic monuments in Britain (such as Avebury and Stonehenge) or even in Africa (they are found in, for example, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Ethiopia, Mali, and Nigeria) is the prodigious concentration of monuments. Those at Wassu are among the most visited of many hundreds of stone circle sites scattered throughout the region. Nearby is a quarry, and a standing stone measuring 2,59 metres—the tallest in the region. The circles, The Gambia’s most famous and only carbon-dated site, were constructed between AD600 and AD1000. Nobody knows exactly who built them, but across the Senegambian complex as a whole archaeological excavation and carbon dating indicates that stone circles were created over a long period, between about 400BC to AD1400 the West African Iron Age. There are thousands of skilfully-dressed stones placed in circles and other alignments, supplying evidence of a large technical expertise combined with a first-rate understanding of local geology.
The Senegambian complex is composed entirely of laterite, found throughout the region. However, as is shown by the numerous broken monoliths left in situ in the quarries, identification of appropriate lateritic protrusions for carving required great proficiency. This was especially so in locating those outcrops with the minimum of iron deposits (which led to splitting during carving and removal). Furthermore, the transportation and erection of the monoliths implies a social organisation to harness the labour force. Some of the laterite blocks, for example, weigh up to seven tons.
Archaeological investigation indicates that most of the sites were burial places, so the complex seems to be a huge necropolis for a distinct cultural group which is no longer extant in the Senegambian region. Study of the grave-sites reveals a culture with an abundant and intricate set of burial practices. As the information booklet says, the entire complex seems to have resulted ‘from a colossal investment of time [and'>more... energy, reflect[ing'>more... the spiritual life and a distinct perception of death which has no equivalent in West Africa [testifying'>more... to an African religiosity which, carved in [laterite'>more..., has survived until today’. Wassu, easily accessible and well-preserved, is a fascinating showpiece for the 2006 UNESCO World Heritage inscription of the entire Senegambian stone complex.
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