Botiala ( so, Butiyaalo), also known as Bottiala or Bandar Kor, is an archaeological site in the northeastern
Bari region of
Puntland
Puntland ( so, Puntland, ar, أرض البنط, it, Terra di Punt or ''Paese di Punt''), officially the Puntland State of Somalia ( so, Dowlad Goboleedka Puntland ee Soomaaliya, ar, ولاية أرض البنط الصومالية), is a F ...
.
History
Botiala is located in a valley to the east of the ancient port city of
Qandala, between
Cape Guardafui
Cape Guardafui ( so, Gees Gardafuul, or Raas Caseyr, or Ras Asir, it, Capo Guardafui) is a headland in the autonomous Puntland region in Somalia. Coextensive with Puntland's Gardafuul administrative province, it forms the geographical apex of th ...
and
Bosaso
Bosaso ( so, Boosaaso, ar, بوصاصو), historically known as Bender Cassim is a city in the northeastern Bari province ('' gobol'') of Somalia. It is the seat of the Bosaso District. Located on the southern coast of the Gulf of Aden, the mun ...
. The area is abundant in
frankincense of the highest quality.
Nearby are around 200 stone monuments (''taalos''), most of which consist of cairns. The bigger cairns are covered in shingles and tend to be more sturdily constructed. There are a number of rows of standing stones (menhirs) on the eastern side of the structures, which are similar to those at
Salweyn, a great cairn-held situated close to
Heis. Besides cairns, the Botiala area also features a few other drystone monuments. These include disc monuments with circular, ground-level features, as well as low, rectangular platform monuments.
A couple of hundred meters away are extensive shell
middens. These stretch along the shoreline for a distance of around a kilometer. The site also contains the remains of what was apparently a dam that was built from boulders. This structure is located in an area near a shallow drainage line, which passes through mounds.
Additionally, some pottery sherds have been found in Botiala. The fragments are gritty and coarse, and resemble the ware at
Hafun
Hafun ( so, Xaafuun; ar, حافون; grc, Οπώνη, Opṓnē, it, Dante) is a town in the northeastern Bari province of Somalia. Situated in Ras Hafun on the coast of the Guardafui Channel, it is the centre of the Hafun District, and the ea ...
.
See also
*
Damo
*
Mosylon
Mosylon ( grc, Μοσυλλόν and Μόσυλον), also known as Mosullon, was an ancient proto-Somali trading center on or near the site that later became the city of Bosaso.
History
Mosylon was the most prominent emporium on the Red Sea coast ...
*
Somali aristocratic and court titles
This is a list of Somali aristocratic and court titles that were historically used by the Somali people's various sultanates, kingdoms and empires. Also included are the honorifics reserved for Islamic notables as well as traditional leaders and of ...
Notes
References
*The Promontory of Cape Guardafui Giulio Baldacci Journal of the Royal African Society, Vol. 9, No. 33 1909
*Karte der Somali-Kuste und des Golf's von Aden" From Mittheilungen aus Justus Perthes' Geographischer Anstalt uber Wichtige Neue Erforschungen auf dem Gesammtgebiete der Geographie von Dr. A. Petermann. Volume 6, 1860.
External links
{{coord, 11.4731, N, 49.9494, E, source:wikidata, display=title
Archaeological sites in Somalia
Former populated places in Somalia
Ancient Somalia
Archaeological sites of Eastern Africa