Pyramids and Africa normally conjure images of the great pyramids of Giza in Egypt. But as many Sudanese are keen to tell you there are in fact more pyramids in Sudan than its famous neighbour to the north.
Sudan may have a little way to go to match Egypt as a tourist destination but it has just as much to offer in terms of its intriguing ancient history as a new BBC documentary Lost Kingdoms of Africa discovers.
Begininning in the far north near the border with Egypt British historian Dr. Gus Casely-Hayford traces the earliest signs of the Nubian civilisation and explores the relationship between southern Nubia and the Pharaohs of upper Nubia, in what is now Egypt.
As Casely-Hayford discovers, far from being the lesser cousin, Nubian kings at times ruled ancient Egypt. Indeed it wasn’t other peoples that brought the end of the Nubian kingdom but the expansion on the Sahara desert.
To find out what became of cattle herding and wrestling the typified Nubian culture Casely-Hayford travels to central Sudan where he speculates that due to the cultural similarities of the Nuba people could be the descendants of ancient Nubia.
The programme is no longer available to watch on the BBC website but to watch the rest of the series visit the Lost Kingdoms of Africa website.
For more background on Nubia see the BBC World Service the Story of Africa.
After Sudan the series heads to South Africa to look at the Mapungubwe a kingdom that dominated southern Africa from the 11th to 13th centuries..
Casely-Hayford next visits the Ethiopian Orthodox Church, which according to ancient tradition can trace its roots back to 950 BC with links to King Solomon and the Queen of Sheba.
Finally the series travels to the West African countries of Nigeria and Mali to see the 16th-century bronze casts of the kingdom of Benin.
Lost Kingdoms of Africa is part of the Wonderful Africa Season by the BBC ahead of the South Africa 2010 World Cup – the first time the football tournament is being held on the continent.
Tags: Egypt · Kush · Northern Sudan · NubiaNo Comments
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