Munsa
Munsa is an archaeological site in Uganda, located in the south-eastern part of Bunyoro, and is commonly recognized by a rocky hill known by the locals as "Bikegete", which is enclosed within an earthworks system of ancient ditches. The site is approximately north-west of Kakumiro township in Bugangaizi County, Kakumiro District. "Munsa" is a Runyoro name that means "in the trenches". The architects of the earthworks are unknown, although it has been speculated that the site can be linked to the Bachwezi. There is no evidence for this, however, and it seems likely that association of Munsa with the Bachwezi or Chwezi is a recent development.
Excavations of this site have reconstructed the late-Holocene environmental history through evidence of iron-working, human burials, food production, and earthworks. While Bikigete may have been occupied as early as the 9th century AD, radiocarbon and luminescence dates obtained during excavations indicate that the site's ditches were originally dug between the 15th and 16th centuries AD. The age of the outer ditch, Trench C, remains unknown. According to the limited archaeological evidence available, permanent settlement at Munsa was believed to have ceased around the end of the seventeenth century AD. Abandonment of Munsa may have been part of major economic, political, and social upheavals that brought about a shift in settlement patterns from permanent settlements to nomadic homesteads.
Background
History of research
Investigations at Munsa began in the 1950s when Eric Lanning mapped the earthworks, collected surface artifacts, and inquired about oral traditions. Lanning noted the presence of pottery at Munsa similar in form to pottery present at the earthworks site Bigo located approximately to the south. He also recognized that iron artifacts were present at both sites. Based on these findings, Lanning attributed the site to a Bigo Culture. Munsa consists of settlement debris, human burials, rock-shelters, and evidence of iron working, grain storage, and the consumption of cattle. Lanning's objective was to determine the extent of the ditches and to compare them with other known earthworks in the area. Subsequent excavations have since been carried out within the site. Phases of development within Munsa have been recognised by evidence of structural changes at the centre of the earthworks.Excavations
The first official archaeological excavations at Munsa were conducted in 1988 by Peter Robertshaw. During these investigations, units ranging from six to sixteen square metres in size, were excavated. The excavations were placed at the foot of Bikegete, with units yielding potsherds, a possible ceramic brazier fragment, bone mallets, iron artifacts, grindstones, cattle teeth, a green glass bead, and postholes from previous structures.In 1994, Robertshaw conducted additional investigations at Munsa. Five test pits were excavated at Munsa during this field season, with excavations conducted on top of Bikegete and to the south of Bikegete in the cattle enclosure between Trenches A and B. Potsherds, pieces of iron, iron slag, and poorly preserved bone were recovered.
In 1995, Robertshaw returned to Munsa to conduct the first major excavations of the site. Around of the site were excavated. A series of test units was excavated across the site and included excavations within the ancient ditches, Trench A and Trench B. On top of Bikegete, a number of features were identified below the surface. These included postholes, pits, burials, and an iron furnace. Materials recovered during this field season included potsherds; fired clay vessels; glass beads; pipe fragments; iron artifacts such as beads, bracelets, razors, knives, spear butts, a possible hoe, and a bell; and cattle bones and teeth. Radiocarbon dates were acquired from charcoal samples recovered from Trench A and Trench B. Based in part on the results from these samples, the age of these ditches is placed between AD 1400 and 1650.
Environmental settings
The ground level at Munsa are granite intrusions, and quartzites that have become visible on the surface, forming isolated, rocky hills. Rainfall at Munsa is bimodal, with the wet periods determined by cycles over the Indian Ocean and El Niño Southern Oscillation episodes. Sediment cores samples were collected from a small swamp nearest each trench, and a total of 15 radiocarbon dates were obtained. Sediments consisted of darkly colored clays and fine coarse sand deposits. Subfossil pollen and spore counts were collected and analyzed along with charcoal evidence. The pollen and spores suggested a forest, and the charcoal data indicated a low probability of fire. Overall, evidence from this site suggests the presence of forest until early in the second millennium AD, followed by forest clearance approximately 1000 years ago matches the dating of the main period of occupation for Munsa.Discoveries
Burials
Topsoil was underlain by a loose, black layer, up to about thick, that contained over of slag, tuyère fragments, furnace lining, and potsherds. Beneath this layer was a loose reddish deposit with few archaeological finds, some in thickness, which was a fill of a burial pit. A male skeleton in the pit was recorded lying on its back, its head pointed in the west direction and its feet pointed east. The head was turned right, looking south, with its arms at its side and its legs having been draped across a rock. Many of the bones, including the hands and feet, were missing. Besides the skeletons found in pits, various single burials were discovered in shallow graves. The burial positions of these individual burials differed from those observed in the pits. The head was rested in the western direction, the feet were pointed east, and the feet were in a slight flexed position. All of the skeletons discovered were those of adults or sub-adults, some of which were missing their lower incisor. Poorly preserved bones of two to three human infants were also recovered. Grave goods within the individual burials included iron and copper bracelets, along with iron beads.Food production
Animal bones, mainly those of cattle, were recovered and analyzed along with remains of other animals. A vast number of hollow pits were found also, most likely used for the storage of grain. These pits, along with large grinding stones and pottery, are indicative of cereal agriculture.Sediment core samples were collected from a swamp within Munsa in 2001. These sediments were found to contain ancient banana phytoliths, indicating the possible presence of cultivated bananas during the 4th millennium BC.
Iron working
Excavations conducted at Munsa by Robertshaw in 1995 resulted in the discovery of a 14th century iron-smelting furnace. Radiocarbon dating showed that Munsa contains the oldest currently known iron smelting remains in western Uganda.By the 14th century, the ironworks at Munsa were important for the role they served in producing iron goods that polities of central and eastern Africa viewed as important symbolic markers of power and wealth.