Evidence type: Documented history
Timbuktu, in present-day Mali at the edge of the Sahara, was an intellectual and spiritual capital in the 15th and 16th centuries, with the Sankore university and many Qur'anic schools. It was also a market where salt, gold, cattle, grain and manuscripts were traded. Its three great mosques, Djingareyber, Sankore and Sidi Yahia, recall this golden age. UNESCO notes that the monuments, though regularly restored, are threatened by desertification.
Written by CCAF from the sources below. Check them for the full account.