9.3.2 The Meroitic Period in Nubia

The rise of the Neo-Assyrian Empire and completion of its conquest of Egypt in 656 BCE brought an end to Nubian rule in Egypt. The Kushite leadership fled Thebes and reconstituted their kingdom at a new capital, Meroe, located well south of the fifth cataract. This effort inaugurated the Meroitic period of the Kingdom of Kush. Sometimes called the Island of Meroe because of the way the Nile and Atbara rivers flowed around it, the new capital had several distinct advantages. One advantage was its distance from Egypt, which helped to protect it from raiding and conquests coming from the north. Another advantage was the plentiful iron ore in the surrounding land. As discussed previously, iron smelting technology had only recently reached Egypt in the early 600s BCE. But after facing the well-trained iron-wielding army of Assyria, the Kushite leadership came to appreciate the utility of this metal both as a part of their economy and as a defensive measure against possible invasion. Over time, the iron workers in Meroe earned a reputation for producing high-quality tools well regarded by kingdoms and empires far beyond its boundaries.

Archaeological work done at Meroe suggests that the site was occupied at least a couple hundred years before the Assyrians arrived in Egypt. There is evidence of possibly royal or at least elite tombs at the site which have been dated to the early ninth century BCE. While the earliest inhabitants may not have recognized the benefits of the rich iron ore deposits, they surely would have appreciated the environmental conditions. Unlike lower reaches of the Nile, which were known for wide floodplains and insufficient rainfall, Meroe is far enough south to receive natural watering from the sub-Saharan tropical rains. This meant that the agriculturalists of Meroe were not entirely reliant on the waters of the Nile. Instead, they could expand their farms of sorghum and millet out across the landscape and depend on the plentiful rainfall.

Given its proximity to the Red Sea, Meroe became an important trading center. Evidence from Persia, Egypt, and Rome indicates that iron, wood, elephants, and ivory flowed from Meroe to the wider world. Meroe was also known for its distinctive jewelry produced by highly skilled artisans and made with a great variety of materials. As the goods flowed out, wealth flowed back in. According to some accounts, the wealth of Meroe was so well known that Persia in the sixth century BCE once attempted to conquer the kingdom and add it to its enormous empire. Whether this story is based in fact is up for debate, though it is undeniable that the Persians were quite familiar with the wealth of Meroe. Records indicate that ivory from Meroe was used to decorate the palace of Darius I at Susa. Additionally, stone reliefs at Persepolis appear to show a Nubian delegation bringing gifts of ivory and exotic animals to the Persian king.

Having had many centuries of cultural contact with Egypt, it is no surprise that Egyptian influences in writing, architecture, and religion persisted despite the great geographic distance. The use of Egyptian hieroglyphs, for example, continued for centuries until it was ultimately replaced by Meroitic, an alpha-syllabic script derived from the Egyptian Demotic script. Similarly, the Meroitic rulers constructed pyramids for their rulers just as they had seen and clearly admired in Egypt. Unlike the much older pyramids in Egypt, however, the Meroitic variants were smaller, with steep sides and blunt tops (Figure 9.17). Finally, traces of Egyptian religious practices endured throughout Meroe’s long history, albeit gradually and predictably deviating from the original practices as time went on. For example, the Kushite religious traditions eventually included the worship of the lion-headed god Apademak. This was a war god worshipped exclusively by the people of Kush, though it was often depicted in an artistic style clearly influenced by Egyptian culture.

The majority of people worked in the fields and the grazing pastures. They lived in mud homes within small rural villages overseen by minor chiefs of family clans. The elite, ruling families, and artisans, on the other hand, lived in larger towns. The entire kingdom was ruled by monarchs from the reigning family. However, unlike in Egypt where succession to the throne tended to flow from father to son, in the Meroitic kingdom, the monarch was carefully selected by a group made up of local chiefs, military officials, and other high officials. While theoretically the ultimate authority in the land, the power of the kings was limited by customs, taboos, and the consent of the nobility and the priestly class. Unpopular monarchs could be and were removed if they fell out of favor with either of these groups. There was also the position of the kentake, or queen mother. The kentake exercised a degree of official power somewhere above the highest officials and below that of the king. On several occasions, the kentakes themselves, given the right circumstances, could assume complete power and even lead armies into battle.

During the second and first centuries BCE, Roman power spread across the Mediterranean and, in the year 30 BCE, assumed control of Egypt. Around this same time, the Kushite kings of Meroe were also expanding their power northward. These two expanding powers inevitably clashed as Rome sought to secure its southern border and prevent further Meroitic expansion. In one reported encounter, the Romans came face-to-face with a possibly battle-scarred kentake leading an army. In another encounter at Syene (modern Aswan in southern Egypt), the Kushite forces of Meroe appear to have gotten the better of the Romans. Kushite soldiers pillaged the city and took with them a number of statues and other valuables, including a bronze head of the Roman emperor Augustus.

Not a group to leave such an affront unanswered, the Romans counterattacked and nearly destroyed Napata. When they finally left, they took with them several thousand Kush subjects whom they sold into slavery. Historians debate the nature of the subsequent relationship between Rome and the Meroitic Kingdom of Kush. Evidence suggests that at some point during the Augustan period, Kush was a client state of the Roman Empire. In exchange for its internal autonomy, Kush helped Rome secure its East African frontier by providing soldiers and support for garrisoned legions stationed in the kingdom.

The Kingdom of Kush reached a new high-water mark in its power and artistic achievement a few decades later under King Natakamani, in the early first century CE. During his reign, Kush also attained its maximum geographic extent, stretching from the Ethiopian foothills in the south to the Nile’s first cataract in the north. Testifying to its wealth and influence during this period are the pyramids built under Natakamani as well as the temples that were constructed and restored, including one for the lion-headed god Apademak and the Egyptian god Amun (Figure 9.18).

Despite earlier tensions, Meroe and Roman Egypt enjoyed mostly friendly relations for the next two centuries. During this time, however, Meroe’s power began to wane, and the kingdom came to an end sometime in the fourth century CE. Scholars are uncertain what caused its decline, although environmental degradation due to the overuse of timber for charcoal manufacture may have been a factor. Trees were being cut down faster than they could replace themselves, which would likely have led to erosion and reduced fertility of the soil, so the land could no longer support a large urban population.

In addition, the weakening of the Roman Empire and its economic contraction in the third century led to a steep decline in demand for the types of luxury goods traded through Kush, especially the ivory, enslaved peoples, perfume, exotic animals, and hardwoods on which its economy depended. Having no partners of similar size and wealth with whom to trade African goods on a large scale, the kings of Kush found that Rome’s economic crisis triggered a fiscal crisis for them. Perhaps the final blow was the rise of the kingdom of Aksum. Better placed to take advantage of the Red Sea trade, Aksum starved Kush of regional commerce. Sometime around 350, the Aksumite king Ezana invaded Meroe but found the island capital of the Kingdom of Kush had been abandoned.