Kumbi Saleh and Tegdaoust (also known as Aoudaghoust) along with Azougui, Idjil, and Awlil constitute the main stages of the first historic route of the trans-Saharan caravan trade. They have flourished thanks to the commerce of salt, gold, and manufactured products. Given their importance and strategic position, Kumbi Saleh and Tegdaoust became at the center of the conflicts which took place between the kingdom of Ghana and the Lamtouna as well as the object of the first Almoravid conquests.
The area of Kumbi Saleh is rich in archaeological remains dating from the beginning of the Christian era and the medieval period. The actual site of Kumbi Saleh is one of the main centers of trans-Saharan trade.
The ruins of Koumbi-Saleh are located between the headwaters of the Senegal and Niger rivers, in southeast Mauritania. The city played a key role as an intermediary between the gold-bearing regions in western Sudan and the northern Saharan port of the caravan trade, supplying salt and manufactured products such as ceramics and utensils.
Over the years, written sources have described Tegdaoust as a populated city, surrounded by gardens and palm groves. It exported powdered gold and imported costumes as well as fashioned products. A large North African community, made up of Zeneto-Ibadi traders, lived there. Archaeological excavations carried out on the site of Tegdaoust over two decades have enabled researchers to unearth complete quarters, multiple levels of occupation, and eloquent and very significant archaeological material. Several archaeological pieces, ceramic utensils, glassware, and metal objects that were imported from North Africa bear witness to the role played by Tegdaoust in the Saharan trade.
The districts of Tegdaoust were characterized by the specialization of their trade. Industrial districts where objects used in metal smelting, ceramic manufacturing, and the gold industry were discovered, indicating that the city was, for centuries, an economic capital of the Sahara.