Iconi is one of the most historic places in the Comoros: an old town south of Moroni, at the foot of Mount Djabal, that was the capital of Grande Comore and seat of the powerful sultanate of Bambao long before Moroni took the lead. Wandering its medina of narrow alleys, seeing the ruins of the sultans' palace almost at the water's edge and climbing the crater that overlooks the town is a glimpse into the archipelago's sultanate past.
But Iconi is also a place of memory and legend. The N'Gouni crater, above the cliffs, was the setting for one of the most moving episodes in Comorian history: during raids by Malagasy pirates in the early 19th century, the women of the town took refuge on the mountain and, according to tradition, several chose to throw themselves into the void rather than be taken as slaves. The figure of Fatima Karibangwé, who leapt from the rift, stands for that resistance and courage.
This practical guide explores Iconi through a traveller's eyes: what to see in its medina and ruins, how to get up to the crater viewpoint, what legends it holds and how to combine the visit with Moroni. Recently recognised as a UNESCO World Heritage Site along with other medinas of the Comorian sultanates, Iconi is a must-see stop for understanding the deep history of Grande Comore.
Iconi is one of the oldest settlements on Grande Comore, capital of the island two centuries before Itsandra and seat of the sultanate of Bambao. It keeps its medina, the ruins of the Kapviridjohé sultan's palace by the sea and a citadel on the cliffs. The N'Gouni crater recalls the tragic flight of its women from Malagasy pirates. Inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2026, its history of sultanates and legends is covered in detail on our history page.
Read the full history ↓The largest island and home of the capital: land of eleven warring sultanates, crowned by the active Karthala volcano, with Swahili Moroni and its mosques and dhows at its feet.
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Origins, formation and what the sources say.
Iconi (or Ikoni) is one of the oldest settlements on Grande Comore, with roots that tradition traces back to the 12th century. Set in the southwest of the island, at the foot of Mount Djabal (an ancient crater that towers over it), it was for centuries one of the most important towns on Ngazidja. According to local sources, it was also the island's capital two centuries before that role passed to Itsandra. That makes it a key place for understanding the origins of historic Grande Comore.
Like the rest of the archipelago, Iconi was part of the Swahili civilisation of the Indian Ocean. This was a network of Muslim coastal towns, home to a mixed African, Arab and Shirazi population, that lived from maritime trade with Zanzibar, the East African coast, Madagascar, Arabia and India. Its medina, with narrow alleys, stone houses and centuries-old mosques, bears witness to the urban Swahili culture that flourished in the Comoros between the Middle Ages and the modern era.
When the island was organised into sultanates, Iconi became the capital of the Sultanate of Bambao, one of the two most powerful on Grande Comore (alongside Itsandra). At its heart stood the sultans' palace, Kapviridjohé, the seat of power, whose ruins still rise a few metres from the sea. Around it, the town was protected by walls and by a citadel built on the mountain as a fortress.
During the 17th and 18th centuries, Grande Comore was split into about ten sultanates that competed with one another for control of trade and territory. Bambao, with its capital at Iconi, was one of the main players in those struggles, caught up in a constant game of alliances, dynastic marriages and wars with neighbouring sultanates such as Itsandra. The sultans claimed prestigious Arab or Shirazi origins and ruled from their palaces, surrounded by advisers.
On top of these internal rivalries came a devastating outside threat: raids by Malagasy pirates (Sakalava and Betsimisaraka). Above all between the late 18th and early 19th centuries, they ravaged the Comorian coasts in search of loot and, most of all, captives to sell as slaves. These attacks forced the island's towns, Iconi among them, to fortify themselves with walls, citadels and refuges on high ground.
The Kapviridjohé palace, now restored, keeps the memory of that period alive. It holds the tomb of Prince Saïd Ibrahim, son of Said Ali bin Said Omar, the last sultan of Grande Comore. In Iconi, then, you can read the whole history of the sultanates that ruled the island before French colonial power arrived, written in its ruins and walls.
The best-remembered and most moving episode in Iconi's history is tied to those very raids by Malagasy pirates. According to tradition, around 1805, when pirates invaded in search of slaves, the town's women took refuge in the crater of Mount Djabal, the N'Gouni, which looms over the town from the top of the cliffs.
Trapped, and certain they would be captured and enslaved, several of those women are said to have made a desperate choice: to throw themselves from the top of the cliff, preferring death to slavery. The figure who embodies this story is Fatima Karibangwé. As the story goes, she leapt from the cliff convinced that slavery would be the fate of every Comorian woman who fell into the pirates' hands.
This legend, a blend of history and oral memory, turned the N'Gouni crater and Mount Djabal into symbols of courage and resistance for the people of Iconi and for the whole country. Mount Djabal became the town's emblem and is still part of its identity, its associations and its folklore today. For travellers, climbing to the crater viewpoint is a chance to look out over one of the most powerful episodes in Comorian memory.
With the arrival of French rule in the late 19th century and the rise of Moroni as capital, Iconi lost its former political importance, but it kept its rich historical and cultural heritage. Today it is a town of several thousand people that keeps its ancestral customs alive. These range from the toirab of Nour El Djabal, a traditional music with Arab-Swahili roots, to dances such as the Shigoma, along with a strong sense of identity tied to Mount Djabal, its emblem.
Like other old Comorian towns, Iconi has produced many historical figures, politicians and intellectuals, which adds to its prestige within the country. The town blends tradition with modern life through its associations, sports clubs and small businesses, where the name Djabal crops up again and again as a mark of local identity.
Major recognition came on 25 July 2026, when the medina of Iconi was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List, together with those of Moroni, Mutsamudu, Domoni and others, as part of the 'Historic Sultanates of the Comoros'. Approved at the 48th session of the World Heritage Committee in Busan (South Korea), the listing recognises the value of the archipelago's centuries-old medinas as evidence of Swahili architecture and of the Indian Ocean trade networks. It also raises hopes that these fragile historical treasures will be better preserved.
