Archaeology, History and the Monoliths Heritage: Nta Akwansisi in Perspective

Abstract

Akwansisi monoliths study provides a convergence of history and archaeology – two complementary disciplines. This is especially so for Nta Akwansisi which has a definite tradition of carved and uncarved monoliths in anthropormophic form commemorating past clan heads, the Ntoon Asiane or Ntoon Emang. Thirty-nine carved and uncarved monoliths in succession are named after previous clan heads from the duo communities of Etinghi-nta and Nnaborakpa. The duo communities represent the political and spiritual capitals of Nta kingdom and provide the kings of Nta in rotation thereby producing a dynasty which stretches back to antiquity. This heritage of stone carving which is fast facing extinction by human and ecological forces, has elicited the cupidity of scholars, researchers and visitors, each prying hard to establish a probable date for the stone culture, their carvers and also decipher other sign writings which appear on the monoliths. Relying on primary sources, preliminary examination attempts to establish that the present occupants, some of who claim autochthonous origins are fragments of an earlier civilization which flourished in prehistoric times. Nta kingdom commemorated their demise kings with a carved and uncarved monolith which stand in a particular burial site for the kings. A king list has been used to provide a relative date of 975 to 1050AD for the Akwansisi stones. The study recommends the methods of archaeology and other modern techniques to unravel the ambiguities surrounding this ancient heritage and also establish absolute dates for Akwansisi stones of Nta dynasty in the middle Cross River Region of Nigeria.