Wassu

Wassu is a small village in the Niani district of Central River Division, on the north bank of the River Gambia, known chiefly for the Wassu stone circles. The site comprises 11 laterite megalithic circles with their associated frontal stones, one of which — at 2.59 metres — is the tallest single stone recorded among all the Senegambian circles. Together with the nearby Kerr Batch circles in Gambia and the Wanar and Sine Ngayène circles across the border in Senegal, Wassu forms part of the "Stone Circles of Senegambia" UNESCO World Heritage Site, inscribed in 2006 — four groups totalling 93 circles and associated tumuli spread along roughly 350 km of the River Gambia valley. Archaeologists date the monuments broadly between the 3rd century BCE and the 16th century CE; excavations have recovered pottery, iron tools, and human burials, though the precise purpose and builders of the circles remain uncertain. The scale of labour involved points to an organized, prosperous society in the middle Gambia River valley in the centuries before written records begin locally.

By car/road: accessible from the north bank road, north of Kuntaur. Bush taxis from Farafenni and Kuntaur.

Walkable.

Wassu stone circles — the UNESCO-listed megalithic site, 11 laterite circles with a small on-site interpretation centre/museum covering the archaeology of the Senegambian circles.

Walk the stone circle site with a site guide.

• Kuntaur — 10 km south, river town and ferry
• Janjanbureh — 15 km south, historic island
• Farafenni — 80 km west, market town