Hariputirwe, a photo from Matabeleland North, West

Photographer's Note

Not necessarily my best photograph, but I suspect this is a site that has not appeared on TrekEarth too often: Khami Ruins, about 10 or 15km from Bulawayo in the South West of Zimbabwe. As a bit of a ruin freak (and owner of a labrador who is also a ruin freak - must be something about the ancient smells), I had been looking forward to Great Zimbabwe for years. I had an awareness that the Medieval Shona culture had built many sites, but until I visited I was unaware that Khami is another Zimbabwean UNESCO World Heritage site.

The title comes from a song title by Oliver Mtukudzi, THE superstar of Zimbabwean music. Hariputirwe is Shona for 'this should not be forgotten' - and while Oliver's song has a more political slant to it, it struck me as a good title for a photo of a relatively obscure archaeological site.

SnapRJW, holmertz, sacimar, worldcitizen, Atousa, delpeoples, Fly, ruisc_pt, kordinator ha contrassegnato questa nota come utile

Critiques | Translate

GiovanniG (3914) 2012-02-22 5:02

Hello,
A wonderfully composed geometric with good colors and point of view. Great detail but not overstated. Bravo
GiovanniG

Yiannis84 (2824) 2012-02-22 6:02

hi Iain..

Very intersting composition! i love the warm colors and the light management! seems like an abstract work :) very well taken...original idea!

Best regards..Yiannis

SNOOP_Chan (4377) 2012-02-22 6:52

hello Iain, indeed a unique image from this beautiful spot. Very colorful. Just lovely!
Regards!

SnapRJW (31631) 2012-02-22 6:58

Another super shot of ruins in Zimbabwe, and I can see that I shall have to "maak 'n plan" and get there myself Iain. The neatly laid stone work is full of texture and design and quite wonderful. The way it is built around the outcrop so clever. An super and informative shot and note. Warm regards Rosemary

holmertz (102588) 2012-02-22 7:56

Hello Iain,
Zimbabwe seems to be full of amazing ruins but this is more remarkable than most others. The variously coloured stones have created a fine pattern and you have composed the picture well by including the large boulder at the side.
Regards,
Gert

carlo62 (81265) 2012-02-22 13:31

Ciao Iain
composizione molto bella e dettagliata, piacevole da guardare.
Saluti
Carlo

divail (8334) 2012-02-22 16:58

Bonsoir Iain,
J'adore le graphisme de ces pierres bien disposées. Les couleurs sont chaudes et c'est vrai que je n'ai pas vu cet endroit sur TE.

diane

danyy (0) 2012-02-23 3:50

Bonjour Iain,
on ne sait pas vraiment ce qu'on voit mais en tout cas, cela a un grand sens graphique et esthétique, c'est aussi une jolie mosaïque de couleurs.
Regards.
Daniel.

sacimar (38173) 2012-02-23 5:55

Hola Iain,

no conocia el sitio, la imagen me gusta mucho, tiene un potente grafismo que resulta llamativo, los detalles de la pared son impresionantes, bien visto,

Un saludo,

Sergio

worldcitizen (16046) 2012-02-23 14:30

Hello Iain,
I love the colors and patterns in this photo. I had never heard of these ruins before, so thanks for teaching us about them. :-) I think you made a wonderful composition, placing that large stone on the right side to break up the repeating rows.

Atousa (7131) 2012-02-23 22:52

Salam Iain,

Very interesting pattern created by these stones.. the color are attractive too.. if the big one in the right was not there,seeing the thumbnail, I might have thought it was a piece of cloth!.. well done.. tfs
Best regards, Atousa

wolf38 (30) 2012-02-24 9:01

Hi Iain. Red brick and rock. What an interesting wall. I assume that the rock was there before the wall. With a bit of intelligence is built around the rock. However, the wall is an eye-catching first class. Rgds, Wolfgang.

delpeoples (60342) 2012-02-24 19:09

Hello dear Iain

What an interesting composition, with amazing textures and of course a fascinating subject. Thanks for sharing, have a lovely day.

Warm regards
Lisa

aliabazari (22065) 2012-02-25 1:02

Hello
Very nice texture and composition with excellent lighting. Very beautiful colors.
With respect

willperrett (14215) 2012-02-27 7:51

Hello Iain
It certainly shouldn't be obscure, and I'm glad that it features in UNESCO's list. Your take on it is very graphic: rather than try to give us a mug-shot of the place, you have concentrated on the brilliant orange bricks to good effect. This is almost an abstract or cubist interpretation. Good work!
Regards
Will

Fly (366) 2012-03-02 12:10

Hi Iain

I don't know why you don't think this is not one of your better images - I think it's a great shot!

I don't think the exact age of these ruins have been determined, but for the intricate paterns in the stone work to have survived in such pristine condition for hundreds (if not thousands) of years is truly remarkable.

I love the colours of the stones and including the large rock in the image places the size of the stones in the wall in perspective. Well composed.

I look forward to seeing more of your work

Regards, JP

Ricx (13495) 2012-03-05 11:38

Hi Iain, a lovely post.. the patterns and colours are well managed.. Is this in anyway related to the Great Zimbabwe ruins? well posted Ric

ruisc_pt (11584) 2012-03-12 12:19

Wonderfull Iain
Uma fantástica composição com os padrões definidos pelas pedras alinhadas em tons de ocre.
Vale!
R

kordinator (8738) 2016-11-09 0:24

Dear lain
Nice the view of this fine scenery that looks like as a painting.
Nice colors of rows of stones and grass make the image even more attractive.
Great photo job.
Kind regards
Saša

clic (76) 2017-01-08 7:55

Hello Iain Why do I imagine a 'glacier' of earth strata slowly making its way down around the boulder! Your artistry sparks interest, for shure! Cheers