Nowhere near as large as Stonehenge, the Wassu Stone Circles in Eastern Gambia are shrouded in mystery none-the-less.

Dating back to between the 3rd Century BC and the 16th Century AD; and built out of laterite (the same as Angor Wat, the Catacombs in Rome, the roads in Cambodia, Thailand and a few other places). It is believed that these were used as burial sites, and placing a rock on top of one of the circles is supposed to grant wishes.

What is impressive is the sheer number. Each circle is made of around a dozen monoliths (each about 1-2.5m high), and there are literally thousands of circles litteres around Wassu and Sine-Saloum. Additionally, the burials were slightly odd, archeologists seem to feel that each circle was used to bury a different part of the body! Finally, the whole area (termed a megalithic zone), is considered to be unrivalled in terms of size, complexity and consitency; world-wide!

I’ll upload pictures next time I’m in the region! (probably Dec/Jan 2010/2011).