Salt was in high demand in Western Africa and was one of the main traded goods for gold from the Sahara since the first millennium.

The human body needs some salt to work properly. People who eat mostly grains and vegetables don’t get enough salt naturally from the foods they eat. They need to add salt to their diets.

The human body needs some salt to work properly. People who eat mostly grains and vegetables don’t get enough salt naturally from the foods they eat. They need to add salt to their diets.

Salt was so abundant in areas around present-day Sudan that salt slabs were used to build homes.

The salt trade is still in continuation today across the Sahara desert. 

In some rural areas, salt was used as currency.

Saharan Desert salt naturally formed into slabs and was easily mined. This made the Sahara Desert a superior source of salt.

Gold was the main commodity of trade from the 8th century onward thanks to trans-Saharan trade routes.

Africa’s gold was so abundant that a European map from 1375 shows the king of Mali holding a gold nugget.

Gold nuggets found in the Ghana Empire could weigh anywhere from one ounce to one pound.

Common people were only allowed to carry gold dust in order to prevent too much gold from entering the market and losing its value.

The Ghana Empire earned the nickname the “land of gold” due to its overwhelming accumulation of gold.

Scholars believe that African gold was used in the creation of Western gold coinage.