Rhapta

[citation needed] However, the first evidence of inhabitation starts solely in the seventh century at a site called Tumbe on the northern end of the island,[11] limpidly contradicting these assertions.

"[12] In recent years, professor Felix Chami has found archaeological evidence for extensive Roman trade on Mafia Island and, not far away, on the mainland, near the mouth of the Rufiji River, which he dated to the first few centuries CE.

Miller notes that ancient authorities (e.g. Herodotus 3.111) state that cinnamon and cassia bark were harvested in Africa, yet these species until recently were found only in Southeast Asia, which would hint at some conflation.

Miller points to the well-documented cultural links between Indonesia and East Africa (e.g., the Malagasy language is related to Malay, both people use double outrigger canoes).

He then posits that the use of monsoons began far earlier than previously thought, allowing traders to bring their spices westward perhaps as early as the 2nd millennium BC.