Kunta Kinteh Island and Related Sites - Gambia

Website Category: European Colonial Influences  

Area: 0.1 km² 

Inscribed: 2003

Criteria: (iii)  cultural tradition (vi)  association with belief system

Location and Values:  Kunta Kinteh Island is located in the middle of the Gambia River estuary, about 30 km from its mouth, in the heart of Gambia, West Africa.  It has the ruins of a fort, slave house, governor’s kitchen and other buildings associated with the development of the Gambia River as the first European trade route into the African interior.  There are six other components of the world heritage site, five of them located in the villages of Albreda, Juffureh and San Domingo on the north bank of the river opposite the island.  The other component, Fort Bullen and the Six Gun Battery, is located near the mouth of the river.  Together, these seven components demonstrate different aspects of the European experience in West Africa from the time of the first arrival of Portuguese sailors around 1446.  In particular, the site bears testimony to the various stages of the slave trade from its early beginnings to abolition.

Slideshow of Kunta Kinteh Island And Related Sites:

Google Earth View:  To view satellite imagery of Kunta Kinteh Island on Google Earth, click here.  This opens a new window, so when you are finished, just close the Google Earth page and you will be straight back here to continue browsing. You can learn an enormous amount from this kind of ‘bird’s eye view’, so take a few minutes to explore the surroundings.  Follow the north shore of the Gambia River towards its mouth and try to spot Fort Bullen (near the Barra ferry crossing north of Banjul).

Links to other places featuring European colonial influences:   Ghana Forts  I  Fort Jesus  I  Essaouira  I  Mazagan  I  Mozambique  I  Goree  I  Saint-Louis  I  Robben Island  I  Cidade Velha I Asmara Modernist City 

Other Links:     Official UNESCO Site Details  I  World Monuments Fund