 In the following centuries it flourished caravan city on the Trans-Saharan trade from Timbuktu when it was the most significant city of the Mauritanian Sahara, renowned for its palm groves, mosques and libraries.In the 17th century the city was visited by the Portuguese who established trade links and at which time Ouadane reached its apogee.Its decline started when European mariners saw to the diversion of sub-Saharan trade from the end of the 17th century.