Beit al Ajaib through time

Stone Town 1900–2023 27 photos of this spot

27 photographs taken at the same spot in Stone Town, spanning 1900–2023 — 2 of them from before 1980. Line them up and watch the place change.

Soldiers perform a changing-of-the-guard ceremony outside the Sultan's Palace in Zanzibar in this photograph from between roughly 1880 and 1920, a routine display of the palace guard.

EU: Changing of the guard at the Sultan's Palace, Zanzibar (c. 1880-1920) 1900 Soldiers perform a changing-of-the-guard ceremony outside the Sultan's Palace in Zanzibar in this photograph from between roughly 1880 and 1920, a routine display of the palace guard.

EU: Paleis Sultan (Sultan's Palace), Zanzibar (c. 1900-1920) 1910 The Sultan's Palace in Stone Town, Zanzibar, photographed between about 1900 and 1920.

Stone Town rooftops 2005 Stone Town's rooftops, photographed in 2005, show the tightly packed layout of Zanzibar's old town, built up over centuries as a trading center linking Africa, Arabia, and India.

Beit al Ajaib 2010 Beit al-Ajaib, or the House of Wonders, was built in 1883 as a ceremonial palace for Sultan Barghash bin Said and is shown here in Stone Town, Zanzibar, in 2010, one of the island's most recognizable landmarks.

Old Fort Zanzibar 2010 The Old Fort in Stone Town, Zanzibar, photographed in 2010, was built by Omani Arabs in the late 17th century on the site of an earlier Portuguese chapel and now hosts cultural events.

Forodhani Park 2010 Forodhani Park, Stone Town's waterfront garden facing the harbor, appears in this 2010 photograph of Zanzibar's historic quarter, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Stone Town Old Dispensary 2010 The Old Dispensary on the Stone Town waterfront in Zanzibar, Tanzania, was built in the 1890s by the merchant Tharia Topan and is known for its ornately carved balconies.

Beit al Ajaib (House of Wonders) 2010 Beit al-Ajaib, or the House of Wonders, in Stone Town, Zanzibar, was built in 1883 as a ceremonial palace for Sultan Barghash bin Said and was among the first buildings in East Africa to have electric lighting.

Stone Town TZ Street 2010 A street in Stone Town, the historic quarter of Zanzibar City, Tanzania, whose dense network of coral-stone buildings and narrow lanes earned it UNESCO World Heritage status in 2000.

Beit al Ajaib (House of Wonders), Zanzibar 2010 The House of Wonders in Stone Town, Zanzibar, Tanzania, a late 19th-century palace built for Sultan Barghash, later served as the seat of the Zanzibari government.

Old Fort, Stone Town, Zanzibar 2010 The Old Fort in Stone Town, Zanzibar, Tanzania, was built by Omani Arabs at the end of the 17th century on the site of an earlier Portuguese chapel.

The Old Dispensary, Stone Town, Zanzibar 2010 The Old Dispensary in Stone Town, Zanzibar, Tanzania, combines Indian, Omani, and European architectural details typical of the port city's 19th-century merchant buildings.

Palace Museum, Forodhani, Zanzibar 2010 Beit al-Sahel, known today as the Palace Museum, stands near Forodhani Gardens in Stone Town, Zanzibar, and was the official residence of the Zanzibari sultans until 1964.

Forodhani Park, Zanzibar 2010 Forodhani Gardens, a waterfront park in Stone Town, Zanzibar, faces the harbor and has long served as a public gathering space near the old sultan's palace.

An antique shop in Zanzibar 2010 An antique shop in Stone Town, Zanzibar, Tanzania, a historic trading port whose old quarter has long dealt in goods brought by centuries of Indian Ocean commerce.

Beit al Ajaib (House of Wonders), Stone Town (2010) 2010 Beit al-Ajaib in Stone Town, Zanzibar, one of the largest buildings on the East African coast when completed in 1883, was constructed for Sultan Barghash bin Said as a palace for public ceremonies.

Old Fort, Stone Town (2010) 2010 Stone Town's Old Fort in Zanzibar, Tanzania, dates to around 1699, originally built by Omani Arabs for coastal defense, and today hosts cultural events within its coral-stone walls.

Palace Museum, Forodhani, Stone Town (2010) 2010 The Palace Museum near Forodhani Gardens in Stone Town, Zanzibar, Tanzania, occupies the former sultan's residence and now displays exhibits on the history of the Zanzibar sultanate.

Old Dispensary, Stone Town 2010 A view of Zanzibar's Old Dispensary, an ornately decorated late 19th-century building along the Stone Town seafront, restored as a landmark of the city's Omani and Indian merchant heritage.

Forodhani Park, Stone Town (2010) 2010 The seafront gardens at Forodhani in Stone Town, Zanzibar, Tanzania, sit between the old palace buildings and the harbor, a public space renovated in recent decades.

Palace Museum, Forodhani, Stone Town 2010 Overlooking Forodhani in Stone Town, Zanzibar, the Palace Museum building once served as the residence of the sultans of Zanzibar before Tanzania's 1964 revolution.

A building in Stone Town, Zanzibar 2010 A building in Stone Town, Zanzibar City, Tanzania, part of the old town's dense 19th-century core, built largely from coral stone in a mix of Swahili, Arab, and Indian styles.

Stone Town, Zanzibar rooftop view 2016 A rooftop view over Stone Town, Zanzibar, photographed in 2016. The old town's dense maze of coral-stone buildings and narrow lanes developed as a major Indian Ocean trading center in the 19th century.

Stone Town street and rooftop view 2016 A street and rooftop view of Stone Town, Zanzibar, photographed in 2016; the old town's narrow lanes and carved wooden doors reflect centuries of trade across the Indian Ocean.

Cathedral Church of Christ, Zanzibar 2017 Another 2017 view of the Cathedral Church of Christ in Stone Town, Zanzibar, the Anglican cathedral raised on the grounds of the town's former slave market in the 19th century.

Hamamni Persian Baths, Zanzibar 2019 The Hamamni Persian Baths in Stone Town, Zanzibar, were built in 1888 on the orders of Sultan Barghash bin Said, making them the first public baths on the island. Though no longer in use, the building survives as one of Stone Town's notable historic structures.

Darajani Market scene, Zanzibar 2023 Daily trade at Darajani Market in Stone Town, Zanzibar, photographed in 2023.