Babban Gwani — 'the great expert' — was the title borne by Mallam Mikhaila, the Hausa master builder appointed Sarkin Maigini, chief builder, in the aftermath of the Sokoto jihad. Born in Zaria to a family of craftsmen, he built in mud and azara palm timber, and he is the earliest West African builder whose individual authorship is securely and repeatedly recorded. The Scottish traveller Hugh Clapperton watched him at work on a Sokoto mosque in 1824 and described him as 'a shrewd-looking little man'. His masterpiece is the Friday Mosque of Zaria, whose ribbed mud vaults translate the geometry of Fulani nomadic tents into permanent masonry. He also worked on the Kano emir's palace. He was executed by the Emir of Birnin Gwari after building a mosque there.
