{"id":14930,"date":"2020-01-17T18:55:08","date_gmt":"2020-01-17T23:55:08","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/gregcookland.com\/wonderland\/?p=14930"},"modified":"2020-01-18T09:52:40","modified_gmt":"2020-01-18T14:52:40","slug":"nubia","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gregcookland.com\/wonderland\/2020\/01\/17\/nubia\/","title":{"rendered":"Reconsidering Ancient Nubia At The MFA"},"content":{"rendered":"

\u201cAncient Nubia Now\u201d<\/a>\u2014on view at Boston\u2019s Museum of Fine Arts from Oct. 13, 2019, to Jan. 20, 2020\u2014showcases treasures from ancient north African kingdoms that flourished along the Nile Valley region of Nubia. Located in what is today southern Egypt and northern Sudan, the area was known in antiquity as Kush. Nubia, as\u00a0modern scholars call it, was a southern neighbor and rival to the ancient Egyptian dynasties. The two civilizations traded, intermarry, shared culture and ideas, while also vying for power over each other.<\/p>\n

\u201cInspired by an increased appreciation of early African heritage, many African-Americans embrace Africa\u2014and Nubia, one of the continent\u2019s oldest civilizations, in particular\u2014as a generalized ancestral legacy,\u201d Edmund Barry Gaither, director of the Museum of the National Center of Afro-American Artists in Roxbury, writes in introduction to the exhibition. \u201cRe-examining Nubia\u2019s story will help enhance our understanding of Black heritage while assisting in the restoration of Africa to her place in world cultural history.\u201d<\/p>\n

This all has special resonance in Boston at the moment as the city recently renamed Dudley Square in Roxbury\u2014the heart of Black Boston\u2014to Nubian Square after a nonbinding referendum on the issue on the November ballot lost 46 to 54 percent across Boston, but was supported by two-thirds of voters in Roxbury. Mayor Marty Walsh backed the change and in December the city\u2019s Public Improvement Commission voted unanimously to make the shift official.<\/p>\n

\"A<\/a>
A granite gneiss statue of Nubian King Senkamanisken (center), from his reign 643-623 BCE, found at Gebel Barkal, displayed with other Napatan period pieces. From \u201cAncient Nubia Now\u201d at Boston\u2019s Museum of Fine Arts, Jan. 15, 2020. (Greg Cook photo)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cAncient Nubia Now\u201d showcases 400 works of art from across thousands of years, all from the MFA\u2019s collection.\u00a0The exhibition displays evoke shrines or palaces or tombs. Jewelry, pottery and sculptures are displayed as if on raised daises or in vitrines in walls or columns. The rooms are often dim with spotlights illuminating the artifacts\u2014gold radiant in the darkness or funerary figures glowing ghostly around the edges of the galleries.\u00a0Nearly everything on view as excavated by the Harvard University-Boston Museum of Fine Arts Expedition between 1913 and 1932, with permission from British colonial rulers in Egypt and Sudan.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn exchange for financing and performing the excavations, we received a portion of the finds, a standard practice at the time,\u201d the museum writes. \u201cBecause of this history, the MFA\u2019s collection of Nubian art is unrivaled by any museum outside Sudan in scope and quality.\u201d But the collection has been little shown. \u201cOnly in 1992 did we open a dedicated Nubian gallery; that space closed in 2006, leaving just a handful of works on regular display.\u201d<\/p>\n

Moreover, the Museum of Fine Arts acknowledges that the racism of the project’s lead archaeologist, George Andrew Reisner, a curator of Egyptian art at the museum who oversaw its excavations in Egypt and the Sudan for decades, significantly contributed to misunderstanding and undervaluing Nubian history and culture.<\/p>\n

\"Pottery<\/a>
Pottery vessels, 1700-1550 BCE, Classic Kerma Period. From \u201cAncient Nubia Now\u201d at Boston\u2019s Museum of Fine Arts.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Belt<\/a>
Belt with a glazed quartz pendant, 1700-1550 BCE, Classic Kerma Period, faience, glazed quartz. From \u201cAncient Nubia Now\u201d at Boston\u2019s Museum of Fine Arts.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The Harvard University-Boston Museum of Fine Arts team began their Nubian excavations between 1913 and 1916 at a cemetery to the west of Kerma. Kerma rose from a fortified city around 2400 BCE to become the capital of a Nubian kingdom by 1700 BCE. A monumental mud-brick temple served as the focal point for this city of palaces, offices, workshops and homes.<\/p>\n

The Harvard University-Boston Museum of Fine Arts Expedition found\u00a0temples near the royal tombs at Kerma that were decorated with paintings and blue-glazed tiles depicting lions, hippos, processions of boats, defeated enemies. Deceased rulers had been laid to rest upon leather mats or wooden beds inside massive mounded tombs. The bodies were surrounded by sculpture, food, weapons, jewelry (they seem to have favored big, chunky beads), cosmetic equipment, ostrich feather fans, beaded leather clothing, caps inlaid with mica, pottery and the remains of animals and people, sacrificed to accompany them to the afterlife.<\/p>\n

\"Wall<\/a>
Wall inlay of lion, classic Kerma period, 1700-1550 BCE, found at Kerma, blue faience. From \u201cAncient Nubia Now\u201d at Boston\u2019s Museum of Fine Arts.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Nubians farmed and raised goats and sheep.\u00a0\u201cThroughout their history, the Nubians were famous for their skill in archery,” a sign explains.\u00a0Kerma controlled gold mines and prospered from a trade network that stretched from the Nile Valley to central Africa t0 the Red Sea, giving it access to luxury goods like ivory, ebony, incense and cheetah skins.<\/p>\n

But \u201clike a number of Egyptologists in the early 20th century, [archaeologist George Andrew Reisner] believed that Africans south of Egypt were incapable of developing highly advanced civilizations,\u201d the Museum of Fine Arts writes. His racism led to him wrongly conclude \u201cthat Kerma was an Egyptian outpost in Nubia, ruled by an Egyptian governor. Fine quality objects were attributed to Egyptian influence, while mundane ones were identified as Nubian. \u2026 He had it almost entirely backward. We now believe that an army from Kerma attacked Egypt, looted sanctuaries, and brought Egyptian objects \u2026 home as souvenirs and status symbols. They demonstrate Nubian success against Egypt, rather than the other way around.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Stone<\/a>
Stone statue of Lady Sennuwy, Egyptian 1971-1926 BCE, found at Kerma. From \u201cAncient Nubia Now\u201d at Boston\u2019s Museum of Fine Arts.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"\u201cAncient<\/a>
\u201cAncient Nubia Now\u201d at Boston\u2019s Museum of Fine Arts.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

One Egyptian stone sculpture the archeologists found dates to 1971-1926 BCE. It depicts Lady Sennuwy, the wife of an Egyptian official. Centuries after it was crafted it ended up buried in the tomb of Kerma\u2019s last ruler\u2014perhaps a spoil of war\u2014\u201calong with hundreds of people who died to accompany their king into the afterlife.\u201d<\/p>\n

Subsequently, the Nubian capital was seized and burned by Egyptians in retaliation for the army of Kerma invading Egypt during the mid-16th century BCE.<\/p>\n

\"Flint<\/a>
Flint arrowheads, early Napatan periods, 860-840 BCE, found at el-Kurru. From \u201cAncient Nubia Now\u201d at Boston\u2019s Museum of Fine Arts, Jan. 15, 2020. (Greg Cook photo)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Egyptians had ruled northern Nubia from 2040 to 1640 BCE, building a string of fortresses to guard the frontier. Egyptian control waned with the rise of Kerma to the south. But from 1550 to 1070 BCE, Egyptian power rose in Nubia again, greatly expanding, to stretch near to present-day Khartoum.<\/p>\n

Then the Nubian King Piankhy, who reigned from 743 to 712 BCE, conquered Egypt. Based at his capital of Napata, he and four successors \u201ccontrolled one of the largest empires in antiquity,\u201d the MFA writes, ruling as the 25th Dynasty. They embraced the Egyptian god Amen and \u201cafter being ruled by Egypt for 500 years, the Nubians now portrayed themselves as the true upholders of Egyptian religion.\u201d\u00a0Nubian kings claimed to be descended from the god, who was\u00a0symbolized by a ram\u2014a figure that appears\u00a0frequently in the belief systems of societies that keep goats and sheep.<\/p>\n

\"Statue<\/a>
Statue of King Senkamanisken, 643-623 BCE, Napatan Period, reign of Senkamanisken, granite gneiss. From \u201cAncient Nubia Now\u201d at Boston\u2019s Museum of Fine Arts.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Winged<\/a>
Winged Isis pectoral, 538-519 BCE, Napatan period, reign of Amaninatakelebte, gold. From \u201cAncient Nubia Now\u201d at Boston\u2019s Museum of Fine Arts.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cAncient Nubia Now\u201d includes a statue of Nubian King (and prolific builder) Senkamanisken, who ruled from 643 to 623 BCE. He\u2019s depicted stern-faced, striding forward. His stone kilt, headdress, jewelry and sandals were originally decorated with gold leaf.\u00a0In the mummy wrappings of the Nubian King Amaninatakelebte, who reigned from 538 to 519 BCE, archeologists\u00a0found sewn\u00a0a dazzling golden pectoral (breast plate) depicting a winged woman. She represents Isis,\u00a0wife of funerary god Osiris, who in the afterlife would bring\u00a0the breath of life to the dead.<\/p>\n

At first, Napata kings and queens were buried in pyramids at el-Kurru, just downstream from Nubia\u2019s holiest site, Gebel Barkal, the \u201csacred mountain\u201d where the god Amen was said to reside. The MFA reports, \u201cWhile most of the pyramids have been quarried away and nearly all the tombs were robbed, some retained treasures.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Statuette<\/a>
Statuette of King Taharqua, Napatan period, reign of Taharqa, 690-662 BCE, found at Gebel Barkal, bronze. From \u201cAncient Nubia Now\u201d at Boston\u2019s Museum of Fine Arts, Jan. 15, 2020. (Greg Cook photo)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Shawabty<\/a>
Shawabty of King Taharqa, 690-664 BCE, Napatan period, Reign of Taharqa
Travertine (Egyptian alabaster). From \u201cAncient Nubia Now\u201d at Boston\u2019s Museum of Fine Arts.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

A small bronze statue depicts Taharqua, \u201cNubia\u2019s most powerful king \u2026 under whom Nubia\u2019s empire reached its greatest extent.\u201d Made during his reign from 690 to 664 BCE, the king is shown wearing a distinctive cap-like headdress adorned with ribbon and a pair of uraeus cobras identifying him as ruler of both Nubia and Egypt.\u00a0Taharqa\u00a0selected Nuri as his final resting place. There, across the Nile from Gebel Barkal, he and later Nubian rulers were buried in pyramid tombs. Their coffins, crafted from gilded wood inlaid with semiprecious stones, have been lost to the elements and looting. But archeologists found funerary figurines, called shawabties (the names\u00a0means \u201cone who answers\u201d), sometimes numbering in the hundreds, lining the walls as guardian sentinels for the afterlife.<\/p>\n

\"Royal<\/a>
Royal Shawabites, a funerary practice adopted from the Egyptians. They were placed standing against the walls of the burial chamber, surrounding the coffin. From \u201cAncient Nubia Now\u201d at Boston\u2019s Museum of Fine Arts, Jan. 15, 2020. (Greg Cook photo)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Royal<\/a>
Royal Shawabites in \u201cAncient Nubia Now\u201d at Boston\u2019s Museum of Fine Arts.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The exhibition concludes with what the Harvard University-Boston Museum of Fine Arts archaeologists uncovered at Meroe. Nubian leaders moved their capital south to this ancient city by the 4th century BCE and ruled there for more than 600 years\u2014even repelling an invasion by ancient Romans.<\/p>\n

A 5-foot-tall granite gneiss stone stele\u00a0found at Gebel Barkal dating to the\u00a0Meroitic period, 180-140 BCE, is topped by a carving of\u00a0King Tanyidamani, standing upon a vanquished enemy.\u00a0The inscription below in Meroitic may record military victories and subsequent gifts to the king\u2014though historians remain unsure as it’s \u201ca language still not fully translated.”<\/p>\n

\n

If this is the kind of coverage of arts, cultures and activisms you appreciate, please support Wonderland by contributing to Wonderland on Patreon<\/a>. And sign up for our free, weekly newsletter<\/a> so that you don’t miss any of our reporting.<\/em><\/p>\n

\n
\"Stele<\/a>
Stele of King Tanyidamani, Meroitic period, 180-140 BCE, found at Gebel Barkal, granite gneiss. From \u201cAncient Nubia Now\u201d at Boston\u2019s Museum of Fine Arts, Jan. 15, 2020. (Greg Cook photo)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"\u201cAncient<\/a>
\u201cAncient Nubia Now\u201d at Boston\u2019s Museum of Fine Arts.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Figurines<\/a>
Figurines of Taweret, Napatan period, reign of Anlamani, 623-593 BCE, found at Nuri, low-fired clay. A favorite household goddess in both Nubia and Egypt, Taweret took the form of a hippopotamus, with paws of lion, breasts of woman and tail of crocodile. Taweret was protector of women during pregnancy and childbirth, as well as aiding in rebirth of dead into the afterlife. From \u201cAncient Nubia Now\u201d at Boston\u2019s Museum of Fine Arts, Jan. 15, 2020. (Greg Cook photo)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Loincloth<\/a>
Loincloth of the Nubian man Maiherperi, a member of the royal court during the reign of Thutmose III. He was one of the few non-royal individuals buried in the Valley of the Kings. An entire gazelle skin (except for the border and a patch of leather left plain near the top to cover the buttocks) was made into a mesh by cutting it with staggered rows of tiny incisions and then pulling the skin out to expand it. (Egypt, New Kingdom, Dynasty 18, reign of Thutmose III, 1479\u20131425 BCE). From \u201cAncient Nubia Now\u201d at Boston\u2019s Museum of Fine Arts, Jan. 15, 2020. (Greg Cook photo)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Strings<\/a>
Strings of beads that adorned horses of King Shabaka, Napatan period, reigned 712-698 BCE. Bronze, faience, cowrie shell. From \u201cAncient Nubia Now\u201d at Boston\u2019s Museum of Fine Arts, Jan. 15, 2020. (Greg Cook photo)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Strings<\/a>
Strings of beads that adorned horses of King Shabaka, Napatan period, reigned 712-698 BCE. From \u201cAncient Nubia Now\u201d at Boston\u2019s Museum of Fine Arts, Jan. 15, 2020. (Greg Cook photo)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Strings<\/a>
Strings of beads that adorned horses of King Shabaka, Napatan period, reigned 712-698 BCE. From \u201cAncient Nubia Now\u201d at Boston\u2019s Museum of Fine Arts, Jan. 15, 2020. (Greg Cook photo)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Faience<\/a>
Faience pectorals including (center) a shrine-shaped pectoral, Napatan period, reign of Piankhy (Piye), 743\u2013712 B.C. faience. From \u201cAncient Nubia Now\u201d at Boston\u2019s Museum of Fine Arts, Jan. 15, 2020. (Greg Cook photo)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Head<\/a>
Head of a canopic jar of Queen Atakhebasken, Napatan period, reign of Taharqa, 690-664 BCE, found at Nuri, travertine. Nubian leaders adopted Egyptian practice of canopic jars to house internal organs removed from body of deceased during mummification. The Baboon-headed Hapy protected the lungs. From \u201cAncient Nubia Now\u201d at Boston\u2019s Museum of Fine Arts, Jan. 15, 2020. (Greg Cook photo)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Vessel<\/a>
Vessel in the form of a bound onyx, early 7th century BCE, Napatan Period, travertine (Egyptian alabaster). From \u201cAncient Nubia Now\u201d at Boston\u2019s Museum of Fine Arts.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Collar,<\/a>
Collar, 712-698 BCE, Napatan Period, reign of Shebitka, electrum. From \u201cAncient Nubia Now\u201d at Boston\u2019s Museum of Fine Arts.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Shrine,<\/a>
Shrine, 100-200 CE, Meroitic Period, stuccoed and painted sandstone. From \u201cAncient Nubia Now\u201d at Boston\u2019s Museum of Fine Arts.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Mirror<\/a>
Mirror of King Shabaka, 698-690 BCE, Napatan Period, reign of Shabaka, bronze and gilded silver. From \u201cAncient Nubia Now\u201d at Boston\u2019s Museum of Fine Arts.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Alabastron<\/a>
Alabastron (bag-shaped vessel) with inlaid gold and silver decoration, 593-568 BCE, Napatan Period, reign of Aspelta, ravertine (Egyptian alabaster), gold, silver, Egyptian blue, carnelian, magnetite, amazonite. From \u201cAncient Nubia Now\u201d at Boston\u2019s Museum of Fine Arts.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Pendant<\/a>
Pendant with ram-headed sphinx, 743-712 BCE, Napatan Period, reign of Piankhy, gilded silver, lapis lazuli, and glass. From \u201cAncient Nubia Now\u201d at Boston\u2019s Museum of Fine Arts.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Bracelet<\/a>
Bracelet with image of Hathor, 250-100 BCE, Meroitic Period, gold, enamel. From \u201cAncient Nubia Now\u201d at Boston\u2019s Museum of Fine Arts.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Hathor-headed<\/a>
Hathor-headed crystal pendant, 743-712 BCE, Napatan period, reign of Piankhy, gold, rock crystal. From \u201cAncient Nubia Now\u201d at Boston\u2019s Museum of Fine Arts.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\u201cAncient Nubia Now\u201d\u2014on view at Boston\u2019s Museum of Fine Arts from Oct. 13, 2019, to Jan. 20, 2020\u2014showcases treasures from ancient north African kingdoms that flourished along the Nile Valley region of Nubia. Located in what is today southern Egypt and northern Sudan, the area was known in antiquity as Kush. Nubia, as\u00a0modern scholars call […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":14957,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[100],"tags":[669,37,667,670,668,485,665,666,162],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/gregcookland.com\/wonderland\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14930"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/gregcookland.com\/wonderland\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/gregcookland.com\/wonderland\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gregcookland.com\/wonderland\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gregcookland.com\/wonderland\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=14930"}],"version-history":[{"count":26,"href":"https:\/\/gregcookland.com\/wonderland\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14930\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":15003,"href":"https:\/\/gregcookland.com\/wonderland\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14930\/revisions\/15003"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gregcookland.com\/wonderland\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/14957"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/gregcookland.com\/wonderland\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=14930"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gregcookland.com\/wonderland\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=14930"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gregcookland.com\/wonderland\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=14930"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}