Ouadane
Ouadane, along with Chinguity, is one of the most culturally and historically important cities in the Adrar region. The city was built uphill along the Adrar plateau. Nowhere else in Mauritania do the ruins of the old city extend over such an extensive area as here. It is therefore not without reason that the ksar is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, along with Chinguity, Oualata and Tichitt. As an important trading post of the Trans-Sahara trade and at the same time center of date cultivation in the Adrar, the city was of far transregional importance in the 13th and 14th centuries. Located at the foot of the eastern plateau, Ouadane can be reached from Chinguity within 2 hours. The city is worth a day trip including an overnight stay. In addition to the old town, which is well worth seeing, including its partially restored mosque and the houses of the town's founders, we recommend a visit to the date oasis and an excursion to Guilb er Richat, only 25 km away. This rock formation is visible even from the moon and already the drive there becomes an adventurous experience.
In its prime, the trading post was a major trade center in West Africa. According to legend, founded in the 12th century by three Hajj pilgrims, Ouadane remained part of the Trans-Sahara trade for many years. Gold was once exchanged here for dates and salt from the north. The date, originally from Mesopotamia, could eventually be planted in the Adrar region and from then on contributed significantly to economic prosperity. Even today, the city of Ouadane is surrounded by date plantations. Although the town never attained the religious significance of Chinguity, it was probably even more popular as a trading center - and much better protected. But knowledge was also taught in Ouadane, as evidenced by the name alone The Street of the Forty Sages, which was one of the main streets of the old city. Its dependence on trade, however, became the city's undoing. The caravan routes shifted eastward from the 16th century, and Ouadane became impoverished.
