Who comes to mind when asked to consider the richest person that ever lived? Perhaps Bill Gates? Muammar Gaddafi? Rockerfeller? Jeff Bezos?
Would you believe that the wealthiest person to ever live comes from one of today’s poorest countries? Mali. Indeed the ruler of Mali, Mansa Musa, is credited with being the richest person in history, even when extrapolated in today’s terms.
This 14th century African ruler boasted a fortune that Time’s writer Jacob Davidson describes as “incomprehensible.” But what was the source of all this wealth? Why, gold of course!
While the Mali Empire captured 24 cities including most of West Africa: Ghana, Mauritania, Gambia, Guinea, Burkina Faso, Niger, Nigeria and Chad and Songhai – most known for their significant gold endowments, it was the emperor’s Islamic faith that prompted a Haj to Mecca that exposed his extraordinary riches to the outside world.
What we know about Mansa Musa is that he came to power in 1312 when Europe was struggling due to its dwindling gold and silver production while many African countries were thriving and increasing production rates. During his reign, Musa managed to successfully annex most of West Africa, claim land all the way up to Timbuktu and re-established power over Goa in India. In total, the Mali empire stretched over 3,200km.
He made his famous Pilgrimage to Mecca in 1324 where he was said to have included a 60,000-strong caravan of over 100 camels laden with gold and 500 slaves all carrying gold staffs while the women wore Yemeni silk.
From where we are today, it’s certainly hard to imagine a time when West Africa was relatively rich. What hasn’t changed is that gold remains the source of wealth for many.
Today with the yellow metal fetching around $1,930/oz and the US dollar on a downward trajectory for several months, investors are hurrying to get back into gold. While the focus is on Tier 1 assets in developed jurisdictions, like Canada, at these gold levels, West Africa may also regain some of it’s shine. (Access Core’s West African gold presentation here for an overview of gold in the region.)
