<P> Following this period, a period of weak emperors, conflicts and disunity began in Mali . Ibn Khaldun died in 1406, and following his death, there was no continuous record of events in the Mali Empire . It is known from the Tarikh al - Sudan that Mali was still a sizeable state in the 15th century . The Venetian explorer Alvise Cadamosto and Portuguese traders confirmed that the peoples of the Gambia were still subject to the mansa of Mali . Upon Leo Africanus's visit at the beginning of the 16th century, his descriptions of the territorial domains of Mali showed that it was still a kingdom of considerable size . However, from 1507, neighbouring states such as Diara, Great Fulo and the Songhay Empire were eroding the extreme territories of Mali . In 1542 the Songhay invaded the capital city of Niani, but were unsuccessful in conquering the empire . During the 17th century, the Mali empire faced incursions from the Bamana Empire . After unsuccessful attempts by Mansa Mama Maghan to conquer Bamana, in 1670 Bamana sacked and burned Niani, and the Mali Empire rapidly disintegrated and ceased to exist, being replaced by independent chiefdoms . The Keitas retreated to the town of Kangaba, where they became provincial chiefs . </P> <P> Rock art in the Sahara suggests that northern Mali has been inhabited since 10,000 BC, when the Sahara was fertile and rich in wildlife . By 300 BC, large organised settlements had developed, most notable near Djenné, one of West Africa's oldest cities . By the 6th century AD, the lucrative trans - Saharan trade in gold, salt and slaves had begun, facilitating the rise of West Africa's great empires . </P> <P> There are a few references to Mali in early written literature . Among these are references to "Pene" and "Malal" in the work of al - Bakri in 1068, the story of the conversion of an early ruler, known to Ibn Khaldun (by 1397) as Barmandana, and a few geographical details in the work of al - Idrisi . </P> <P> In the 1960s, archaeological work at Niani village, reputed to be the capital of the Mali Empire, by Polish and Guinean archaeologists revealed the remains of a substantial town dating back as far as the 6th century . </P>

In what way was the empire of ghana different from the empire of mali