In the footsteps of history
Dating from the 8th century, the traces of settlement found in Koungou are the oldest on the island. At that time, the villages consisted of camps scattered along the coast, erected on promontories overlooking lagoons and mangroves and made of vegetable matter. Place of settlement and exchanges, the coast also shelters astonishing necropolises. Those of Antsiraka Boira, M'Tsanga Miangani and especially Bagamoyo, whose oldest parts date back to the 10th century, bear witness to a great sophistication of funerary rites and a very codified organization of space. The vast site of Dembéni shelters the remains of one of the first permanent constructions of the island: a coral stone base wall. From the 11th century, the first Arab-Muslim chiefdoms appeared on the island and were accompanied by the creation of villages with fortified enclosures, such as Majicavo or Acoua, whose urban model was organized around the mosque. Vegetable villages were replaced by stone buildings.
During the sultanate period, Mayotte experienced a period of splendor. Its architecture reflects the wealth of the famous Persian clan of Shirazian princes who invested the island, while mixing Arab, Swahili and Malagasy influences, thus testifying to the place of Mayotte as a meeting point for the great cultures of the Indian Ocean. The mosque of Tsingoni, in activity since the 16th century, is the most beautiful witness of it. Originally, the mosque was made of blocks of coral and beach sandstone bound with a coating of sand and coral lime, with a framework of mangrove wood and a thatch roof. Its plan, composed of a large prayer room separated from two aisles by imposing pillars, is a great novelty. The mihrab, niche indicating Mecca, is the most spectacular part of the mosque with its geometric shingles in relief enhanced with colors, its flutes and its delicate arcatures. A decorative richness that can be found in the two Shirazian-inspired tombs outside the mosque, which impress with their faience-encrusted walls and pyramidal domes covered with coral. The ruins of the Polé mosque
and its well supplying the ablutions basin, the remains of masonry walls and basalt columns of the palace of the Sultan of M'tsamboro, or the tomb of Sultan Andriantsouli in Mamoudzou are all witnesses of this splendid period. Fortified in the 18th century, Dzaoudzi is home to most of the island's colonial heritage, of which the former governors' residence of 1846 is the most famous witness. The latter is a model of ingenuity and functionality. The residence is composed of 8 houses in kit form, with a square plan, a peripheral gallery or varangue providing shade and ventilation, a 4-slope roof whose overhangs protect from the rain and whose ridge lantern provides ventilation of the attic, and made of a fir wood frame with brick masonry filling ensuring excellent insulation. Only the main house of the residence, transformed in 1890, has a metal frame designed according to the principles of Gustave Eiffel. Erected on a platform in the perfect axis of the hospital, this house is both the witness of an urban planning inspired by classical European codes, and of a will to adapt the architecture to the climate of the island. Little known because it has largely disappeared, the industrial heritage linked to the exploitation of sugar is also an important witness of this colonial period. The village of Dzoumogné is still very much imbued with this heritage, with its small marina where an old storage warehouse remains, the road built along the line of the old small railroad linking the factory to the jetty and of course its college installed on the former site of the factory, from which its imposing chimney still emerges. Not far from Dembéni, the chimney of the old Hajangoua factory is still visible, as well as the remains of a warehouse and a loading dock in the heart of the mangrove swamp, testifying to the complexity of the infrastructures put in place at the time.Traditional habitat
Most of the island's villages are built along the coast, on promontories in the heart of an omnipresent nature. Their organization is the expression of a defined hierarchy within the community, as well as the expression of spiritual power. The inhabitants seek the advice of the mwalimou (seer) and the fundi (spiritual leader) in order to determine the best location, as well as the best dates and times to build their dwelling. The Mahoran hut is most often oriented to the north with the main opening facing east. The basic element of this traditional dwelling is the shanza, the dirt plot on which the hut is built. The latter is delimited by a mraba, an enclosure made of raffia or coconut leaf weaving. The hut, called nyumba, is built on a raffia or bamboo frame, with a cob filling made of earth and vegetable fibers. It consists of two rooms or fuko. The men's room, fuko la watru baba, faces the street, while the women's room, fuko la watru mama, communicates with the inner courtyard via a varangue (veranda). This courtyard houses the storage granary (kanya
) and the chicken coop, structures of earth and plants on stilts, as well as the kitchen and the toilet and ablutions area. If all the Maori huts use the materials present in abundance on the island (earth, bamboo, raffia, coconut tree), some are distinguished by very particular features. The trotro hut is made of earthen cob on a wooden or bamboo lattice, while the walls of the kripi hut are filled with stones bound with cement mortar on a wooden or bamboo lattice. The buru hut is made entirely of raffia stems, while the mtsévé hut is characterized by a cover of braided coconut leaves called uhandza. If the use of these natural materials reflects a constant concern for the environment, it also implies regular maintenance of the hut, which must be partly redone every 5 years, which is why sheet metal is increasingly replacing thatched roofs. In all cases, the Mahoran house is the property of the woman who welcomes her husband. But before that, the latter will have shown his emancipation by building with his own hands his banga, a small temporary one-room hut with a wooden frame and cob walls that are adorned with bright colors and numerous decorative elements intended to attract the attention of the female gender. Nothing is left to chance! Among the most beautiful examples of this traditional habitat, don't miss: the coconut houses of Acouoa, the earthen houses of Hamouro, and the colored bangas of Mtsangamouji. A change of scenery guaranteed!SIM and the construction boom
In order to remedy the problem of precarious and unhealthy housing, which is multiplying due to constant demographic pressure, the Société Immobilière de Mayotte (SIM), created in 1977, is launching an unprecedented project of state-subsidized and debt-free houses for modest families who will participate in the construction. This is the birth of the SIM house. At the beginning, the latter takes the structure of the traditional hut but using this time hard materials. Then, progressively, new formats appeared. The Cavani model has 2 communicating rooms and 2 varangues, while the Bandrélé model has 3 rooms. With or without shanza
, semi-detached or isolated, the SIM boxes are multiple. Once delivered, the house is still to be finished. Trained by the Compagnons du Devoir, the owner takes care of the electricity, the interior painting and the paving. For the exterior paintings, the inhabitants can choose the colors from a palette created by SIM in partnership with the painter Philippe Girard. Colorful and unique, the SIM huts are one of the key elements of the Mauritanian landscape. These huts are made of an innovative and precursory material in terms of sustainable development: laterite, the soil of Mauritania, transformed into compressed earth bricks. The objective is to limit imported materials as much as possible (concrete is limited to the foundations and reinforcement elements against earthquakes and cyclones), and to favor local resources (brick masonry on a wooden frame). To respond to this construction boom, dozens of brick factories were built on the island. Then, progressively, SIM diversified its offer, creating housing estates perfectly integrated into the surrounding nature. In order to build these housing estates, major sanitation work was carried out, while the island was equipped with new urban infrastructures designed to improve the living conditions of the inhabitants (paved streets, wells, fountains, washhouses, etc.). Mayotte was modernizing! This omnipresence of the SIM is reflected in the toponymy of the towns and villages, which all have "one hundred villa" districts or "SIM streets". The importance of this heritage was recently underlined by the registration of the SIM huts in the Sharangue district of Mamoudzou as Historic Monuments. Threatened with destruction, they are now part of a heritage project aimed at transmitting the know-how of the people of Mauritania and highlighting the architectural qualities of this habitat designed in harmony with nature. Trévani, Cavani and Bandrélé also have beautiful examples. From the 2000s, these traditional construction methods have gradually given way to imported materials, with concrete breezeblocks at the forefront, in much larger houses that now have one or two floors and a roof terrace. Polychromy of the facades, balustrades with molded or openwork decorations, stylized pillars...: the decorative possibilities of concrete are multiple. But despite the advantages of this new habitat, many inhabitants today see its limits and wish to combine this comfort with the key elements of traditional architecture: ventilation, light, interior/exterior relationship and natural materials.Contemporary renewal
Having become a territorial collectivity in 1976, Mayotte has seen an increase in the number of public buildings, whether administrative, hospital or school buildings. Symbols of the French administration, the first town halls were built in Bandraboua and Chirongui. It is only in 1989 that the 17 communes of the island will have a permanent town hall. Among the most astonishing, don't miss the beautiful ashlar town hall of Sada or the half-timbered town hall of Alsatian inspiration in Koungou! One of the great figures of the architecture of this period is Léon-Attila Cheyssial, founder of the Atelier Mahorais d'Architecture. A defender of ethno-socio-architecture, he imposed strict rules on himself: use of local resources in terms of materials (wood, basalt stone, mud brick), labor and know-how; adaptation to the terrain without recourse to earthworks or cranes; adaptation of the building to the local climate and use of a natural polychromy for better integration into the environment. Objective: to associate republican issues and Mahoran traditions. Léon-Attila Cheyssial designed most of the major buildings of the time, including the Prefecture of Mayotte with its façade of stone, brick and wood geometry; the hemicycle of the General Council with a circular plan and entirely made of stone; the College of Tsimkoura, thefirst in France to be powered by a photovoltaic plant, and whose circular structure recalls the curves of the Bay of Turtles; or the old hospital of Mamoudzou whose original Mayotte stone and local wood are still visible in the new structure. Alongside these public buildings, Mayotte is also seeing the birth of new mosques that are constantly being modernized. While the first ones were very modest, often taking the structure of a traditional hut, the more recent mosques show a concern for grandeur allowed by the potential of concrete and which is reflected in particular by the construction of minarets, previously absent from the island. They are now real spiritual beacons whose whiteness attracts all eyes. A grandeur that does not prevent a sobriety of plans and lines. Among the very beautiful mosques of Mayotte, do not miss those of Sada, Pamandzi or Kawéni
Today, many houses are still built by themselves. This is why Mayotte has been equipped, at the beginning of 2021, with a Council of Architecture, Urbanism and Environment whose objective is to accompany the inhabitants to live better. Aware of its assets, the island is also increasingly highlighting its know-how. Traditional housing and mud bricks were the stars of the Journées Nationales de l'Architecture in October 2021, in which Mayotte participated for the first time! The MUMA has many projects in mind to highlight this heritage, including the creation of a large museum complex in the former residence of the governors of Dzaoudzi. At the same time, the island is seeing the multiplication of amazing contemporary projects, such as those carried out by the agency Tand'M Architecture, which is currently completing the Tourist Office of Petite-Terre. The latter will amaze you with its cladding made of recycled plastic scales, its structure made of boxes linked by a wooden frame and its roof made of stretched canvas. The agency has other highly anticipated projects such as the Hotel Stenel in Mamoudzou, the media library in Dzaoudzi or the Mob'Helios project with its photovoltaic roofing allowing for vehicle charging. A constant concern for the environment can be seen in the large eco-district project in Dembéni by the Tekhnê Architects and Urbanists agency. While the city is to propose between 3,200 and 4,600 housing units by 2030, the agency has chosen a project where nature is omnipresent. Mayotte, an island rooted in tradition but looking to the future!
