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Stone Town also known as Mji Mkongwe is the old part of the Zanzibar City. The Town was the capital of the Sultanate of Zanzibar and at one point the capital of the Sultanate of Muscat and Oman . The town's architecture and cultural composition is a mixture of centuries of various cultures that have inhabited the island such as the Arabs ...
The Roman Catholic cathedral of St. Joseph is one of the most important historical buildings in Stone Town, Zanzibar, as well as one of its main visitor attractions. The church is regularly used by the local Catholic community, with several masses being held each Sunday and occasionally on weekdays.
The House of Wonders in the early 20th century. The palace was built in 1883 for Barghash bin Said, second Sultan of Zanzibar. [2] [3] It was intended as a ceremonial palace and official reception hall, celebrating modernity, and it was named "House of Wonders" because it was the first building in Zanzibar to have electricity, and also the first building in East Africa to have an elevator. [4]
Stone Town is part of Zanzibar City, which also includes the 'New City' of Ng'ambo ("the Other Side"), which mostly extends in the interior of Unguja to the south-east. The dividing line between Stone Town and Ng'ambo is Creek Road, later renamed to Benjamin Mkapa Road, marking the west side of the now reclaimed creek that separated them. [21]
It stands on the site of the previous palace, called Bait As-Sahel Arabic: بيت الساحل) that was destroyed in the Anglo Zanzibar war of 1896., [5] The present palace was built in late 19th century to serve as a residence for the Sultan's family.
The Dispensary is one of the most finely decorated buildings of Stone Town and a symbol of the multi-cultural architecture and heritage of the city. [ 1 ] [ 2 ] Its wooden carved balconies, with stained glass decorations, are of Indian influence; the main structure is built with traditional Zanzibari coral rag and limestone , but covered with ...
Important architectural features in Stone Town are the Livingstone house, The Old dispensary of Zanzibar, the Guliani Bridge, Ngome kongwe (The Old fort of Zanzibar) and the House of Wonders. [133] The town of Kidichi features the Hamamni Persian Baths , built by immigrants from Shiraz , Iran during the reign of Barghash bin Said .
ZIFF is held at the fort. The Old Fort is one of the prominent visitor attractions in Stone Town, and its courtyard has been adapted to serve as a cultural centre with curio shops selling tourist-oriented merchandise such as tingatinga paintings; it also has an open-air amphitheatre where live dance and music shows are held most evenings, a restaurant, and a tourist information desk. [3]