English: Necklace from Meroë. 50-320 AD. Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. ©Hans Ollermann

In the years between 1907 and 1928 the American Egyptologist George Reisner carried out various excavations in Nubia, when archaeological remains came under threat from treasure hunters and the construction of dams. It was agreed that he would take some of the finds back to America with him. The other finds were presented to museums in Khartoum and Cairo. Educated as an Egyptologist, Reisner saw Nubia primarily as a peripheral region of Egypt. But in actual fact the region was far from peripheral. In antiquity, Nubia was the leading trading centre between Egypt, Central Africa and the Red Sea region. Nubian pottery ranked among the most refined worldwide and the Nubians used a script of their own that is still not fully understood today. Nubia had a major impact on the region’s history. Nubian culture has a distinct identity all its own showing influences from ancient Egypt.

Centered on its capital at Napata, the Nubian ruling dynasty flourished militarily and economically through the ninth century B.C. Around 730 B.C., the Nubian king, Piye, successfully invaded and conquered Egypt, extending his control to the whole Nile Valley. Piye became the first pharaoh of Egypt’s 25th dynasty (ca 770-656 B.C.), the so-called Black Pharaohs. With gratitude for the interesting information about the Nubian culture and history, supplied by the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston and the National Geographic.

Exhibition NUBIA Land of the Black Pharaohs - Drents Museum, Assen, Netherlands.

The exhibition is a collaboration of the Drents Museum in Zwolle, and the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston. Between 1907 and 1928 researchers from the museum in Boston were involved in the excavations of the finds in Nubia, which is why the American museum now has the most diverse Nubian collection in the world.

Museum of Fine Arts, Boston (MFA).

Here you find a link to the website of the MFA:

www.mfa.org/