Kilwa Kisiwani was once a massive Swahili port town. It was first established in the 8th Century and flourished between the 12th and 14th Centuries. At its prime, it was one of the largest coastal settlements in East Africa and was an important center within  the Indian Ocean trade network.  The site was inscribed into the World Heritage List (with Songo Mnara) in 1981 as an exceptional testimony to the expansion of the Swahili coastal culture, the spread of Islam in East Africa and the extraordinarily extensive and prosperous Indian Ocean trade from the medieval period up to the modern era. The property was placed on the List of World Heritage in Danger in 2004 due to extensive damage that was occurring to the monuments due to sea battering as well as the reuse of the coral stones within the local village. After extensive conservation work, that included managing the vegetation on site, the re-establishment of the mangroves, filling and strengthening sections of the beach, and the restoration of some sections of various monuments, the property was removed from the List of World Heritage in Danger in 2013. 