Historic Caravans in Tanzania: Towards reinvigorating multidisciplinary exploration

Abstract

Although the nineteenth-century caravan trade is extensively documented in both primary and secondary sources, there are still some knowledge gaps to be addressed. In particular, there is a need to generate a clear understanding of prevailing situations prior to the expansion of the pre-1840 caravan trade and to set a reference baseline against which changes can be examined. It is on this basis that archaeological research like those examples presented here needs to be encouraged in order to make important contributions to this topic. Additional long-term empirical information can help to reveal how much the material lives of local populations were actually transformed as a consequence of caravan trade expansion in the region, and how this model can be applied elsewhere. Multidisciplinary research projects designed within the framework of historical ecology should therefore be invigorated (Lane 2010).