Chapters › Kush: Napata & Meroe · Sudan – Middle Nile
Kingdom of Kush – Napatan period
800 BCE – 270 BCE
Approximate area of control ≈ approximate
- Swiss-Sudanese Archaeological Mission at Kerma History (Kerma chronology) link [low]
Geometry: Natural Earth (NACIS) Natural Earth vector data (rivers, disputed areas)
Sources: Swiss-Sudanese Archaeological Mission at Kerma History (Kerma chronology); G. Mokhtar (ed.), UNESCO International Scientific Committee (1981) General History of Africa, II: Ancient Civilizations of Africa; 中华人民共和国驻苏丹大使馆 (PRC Embassy in Sudan) (2020) 苏丹历史漫谈 (Notes on Sudanese history); Natural Earth (NACIS) Natural Earth vector data (rivers, disputed areas) - Swiss-Sudanese Archaeological Mission at Kerma History (Kerma chronology) link [low]
Geometry: Natural Earth (NACIS) Natural Earth vector data (rivers, disputed areas)
Sources: Swiss-Sudanese Archaeological Mission at Kerma History (Kerma chronology); Natural Earth (NACIS) Natural Earth vector data (rivers, disputed areas)
Reference points
- Elephantine (find-spot, not a border) [low] — G. Mokhtar (ed.), UNESCO International Scientific Committee (1981) General History of Africa, II: Ancient Civilizations of Africa pp. 280
Dating note
Reign dates follow UNESCO GHA II ch.10 (Leclant, 1981); later scholarship revises several (incl. the Shabaka/Shebitku order) – treat as approximate. WHC gives Napatan 900–270 BCE; -800 start kept as display convention. Coordinates: Pleiades/Wikidata.
Key events
- Alara, then Kashta (c.760–750 BCE); Kushites in Upper Egypt c.750
- Peye (Piye/'Piankhi') reign from c.751 BCE; Victory Stela; conquest of Egypt c.728/727
- Shabaka from c.713 BCE founds 25th Dynasty rule over all Egypt
- Shabataka (Shebitku) c.700–690; Taharqa 690–664 BCE (cenotaph/pyramid at Nuri)
- Tanwetamani (Tanoutamon) 664–c.656; Assyrian sack of Thebes 663; Kushite withdrawal
- Atlanarsa 653–643, Senkamanisken 643–623, Anlamani 623–593, Aspelta 593–568 BCE
- Psamtik II's expedition captures Napata (GHA: 591 BCE; widely dated 593 BCE)
- Royal burials at El-Kurru then Nuri; burial shift to Meroe c.270 BCE
Capitals / sites
Jebel Barkal / Napata, El-Kurru, Nuri, Kawa (Gematon)
Geopolitics
Kushite kings ruled Egypt as the 25th Dynasty; Shabaka 'brought the entire Nile valley as far as the Delta under the empire of Kush' (GHA II). Assyria sacked Thebes 663 BCE and the Kushites withdrew; Psamtik II captured Napata (591/593 BCE).
Culture
Strong Egyptian religious and funerary influence (Amun cult at Jebel Barkal, pyramids at El-Kurru and Nuri).
Economy
Agriculture and herding developed; gold mining an important activity (PRC Embassy text, popular source).
Regional power
- Kush (25th Dynasty, c.713–664 BCE): 0.9
- Assyria: Research in progress unscored; defeated Kush in Egypt per GHA II but no comparative measure
- Saite Egypt (26th Dyn.): Research in progress unscored
Cross-language checks
- zh · partial · 公元前530年左右迁都麦罗埃 (capital moved to Meroe c.530 BCE); Psamtik II sacked Napata 591 BCE (ZH_EMB_HIST2020; capital vs royal burial distinction; 591 matches GHA)
- zh · partial · 约前950年摆脱埃及统治独立 (independent of Egypt c.950 BCE); 'Meroe' also given as capital from c.760 in another passage (ZH_EMB_PYR2020; source internally inconsistent)
Open data flags
- unscored; defeated Kush in Egypt per GHA II but no comparative measure
- unscored
Sources
- G. Mokhtar (ed.), UNESCO International Scientific Committee (1981) General History of Africa, II: Ancient Civilizations of Africa UNESCO / Heinemann / University of California Press link [en]
- UNESCO World Heritage Centre (2003) Gebel Barkal and the Sites of the Napatan Region UNESCO link [en]
- 中华人民共和国驻苏丹大使馆 (PRC Embassy in Sudan) (2020) 鲜为人知的苏丹金字塔群 (Sudan's little-known pyramids) sd.china-embassy.gov.cn link [zh]
- K. Michałowski (1981) The spreading of Christianity in Nubia (General History of Africa II, ch.12) UNESCO link [en]
- Derek A. Welsby (1996) The Kingdom of Kush: The Napatan and Meroitic Empires British Museum Press link [en]
- Wikipedia contributors Kingdom of Kush Wikipedia link [en]
- Wikipedia contributors Twenty-fifth Dynasty of Egypt Wikipedia link [en]