Traditional Wall Art in Walata: Caravan City in the Eastern Hawdh

Abstract

Walata is one of the major caravan cities in the southern Sahara located on the route from Timbuktu to the northern cities of either Sijilmassa in the Tafilalt oasis or Nul Lamta on Wadi Nun. The city has a long history stretching back to before it was named Walata which archeology has only recently (2004) begun to investigate. The city is justly famous for the unique wall art on its houses. The art is the realm of women who have passed it on from generation to generation. Local oral history states the wall art found in Walata dates to al-Murabitin period (11th century) when a number of Muslims from al-Andalus were exiled there. The wall art of Walata is unique not only to its own region of the Hawdh in eastern Mauritania, but to the whole Sahara. The art can be divided into three main types: around the main street entrance to the house, walls of the interior courtyard, and the inside of rooms. The designs are subject to change over time and recently new ones have been introduced from henna for the hands, straw mats, and Moroccan carpets while some of the older designs are no longer being done.