The stone city of Zanzibar is an excellent example of the coastal trading cities of Swahili-speaking peoples in East Africa, as well as one of the most significant port cities on the Great Silk Road. For several centuries, a huge commercial maritime activity connected Asia with Africa, while the diverse influences underlying the Swahili culture, mixing Arabic, Persian, Indian and European elements, made the local Stone City just as unique. It flourished as an international trade center in the 19th century, when the city was the capital of the Sultanate of Zanzibar.
The status of the center of international trade makes itself felt through the local architecture: Arabic-style mansions with high snow-white walls side by side with lacy wooden balconies and bright stained-glass windows of majestic Indian residences.
Barazas – or benches – have been the center of public life in Zanzibar for several centuries. Benches are arranged around verandas in front of traditional houses or on the sides of heavy doors in townhouses in a more distinct Arabic style. On the long narrow streets of the Stone City, barazas are installed on both sides instead of sidewalks.
Baraza has evolved as a way for Islamic men to receive visitors in their homes without compromising the privacy of their women. Coffee and sweets were served on the baraza to everyone who sat down on it, and only the closest friends or family members were invited inside the house. Omani sultans held public meetings, also known as barazas, outside their palaces to receive petitioners or give a public audience to visiting dignitaries. Today, baraza is still a meeting place for all strata of Zanzibar society.
Checkers boards can be scratched on the stone surfaces of the bars with chalk, and for merchants who do not have their own counter in the market, the baraza provides a flat surface on which to present their goods.
The idea of baraza as an architectural element was very much liked by the designers of modern hotels in Zanzibar, and almost every courtyard, nook and even bathroom now has a similar bench, whitewashed to match the coral walls or tiled with mosaic tiles.
Another famous element of the architecture of the Stone City is the design of doors. These massive teak or mahogany structures adorn the facade of almost every building, and their style is copied all over the world. The original Zanzibar doors owe their characteristic brass rivets to India – rivets appeared there as a means of protection against war elephants, which were used to destroy fortified doors during tribal wars in Punjabi history.
- Старые традиционные двери. Каменный город, Занзибар, Танзания.
The craftsmen who carved both the doors themselves and the stone reliefs above them adapted each door to the social status, religious practices and occupation of its future owner. Due to the Islamic ban on depicting living creatures, most of the door patterns were abstract, their design only hinted at the natural objects that inspired them. A chain or rope is always cut on the outermost strip of the door jamb to enslave any evil spirits trying to force their way into the dwelling. Arabic inscriptions carved on the stone frieze above the lintel usually represent verses from the Koran or the names of the owner of the house who ordered the door.
- Балконы Каменного города
Another notable feature of the Stone Town houses are their balconies. Elaborately carved from rosewood or teak, they are imported from India and owe much to haveli from Gujarat, the birthplace of many wealthy Indian merchants of Zanzibar. The larger the balcony, the higher the status of the owner. Like covered bridges, these balconies allowed the housewives of the house to breathe fresh air, while remaining protected from prying eyes from the street below.

Stone City, Zanzibar, Tanzania. The old dispensary, or Itnasheri dispensary. Originally built in the 1890s, renovated in 1995. Now the Stone Town Cultural Center is located here. Decorative balconies are characteristic of the South Asian style of architecture.
The most beautiful balconies in the Stone City are located around the so-called Old Pharmacy (now renamed the cultural center of Zanzibar). The magnificently decorated facade of this old building was commissioned by a rich Indian named Tariah Topan, who earned his millions in the XIX century as a businessman and adviser to Sultan Bargash. This building was not his private residence, but a hospital that he founded in the last years of his charitable work.

Панорама англиканского собора Крайст-Черч, Стоун-Таун, Занзибар, Танзания
European residents of Zanzibar also left their mark on the appearance of the city. The huge Anglican cathedral was built by order of the famous Bishop Steer, the leader of the anti-slavery movement and the head of the powerful mission of universities in Central Africa.
As a final triumph of the church over commerce, the cathedral was consecrated on the site of the former slave market, and the altar took the place of the flogging post in the center. The wooden crucifix is made from the wood under which David Livingston, an abolitionist advocate, died in Zambia.
The Stone City was included in the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2000.
The author of the article is Varvara Sergeevna Kartushina.