Discover Eight Millennia of Nubian Art and Architecture

At the height of the empire’s power, Nubian royalty reigned over one of the largest empires in the ancient world and had contacts extending north to Greece and Rome, south to sub-Saharan Africa, east to the Red Sea, and west across much of the Sahel.

Not surprisingly, Nubia thrived on trade, which spread its name and influence while enhancing its people’s wealth, exposure to other cultures, and freedom to hone a distinctive creativity. A brief glimpse into the world of ancient Nubia will provide ample evidence of its artistic ingenuity. Purpose-built, inspired in their design, and brilliantly engineered, the ancient Nubian art, architecture, and objects that survive today point to a material culture expansive in breadth, impressive in sophistication, and imbued with a deep sense of its own aesthetic throughout its more than eight-thousand-year lifespan. Despite their significance, the achievements of ancient Nubia are little known to the public and are often viewed as a derivative offshoot of Egypt, Nubia’s northern neighbor. Nothing could be further from the truth. During its long lifespan, beginning around 8000 BCE, Nubia indelibly shaped the art and architecture of the ancient world, an influence still felt today.

Ancient Nubian Art: A History (Getty Publications, $50) is the first comprehensive and accessible treatment of Nubian artistic culture and showcases its vast range—from ceramics, sculptures, and jewelry to tombs, temples, and palaces. Rita E. Freed, curator emerita at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, which has the largest collection of Nubian artifacts outside the Nile Valley, contextualizes the development of Nubian art against a vivid backdrop of kingship, power, worship, identity, gender, technology, and internationalism. Her text is accompanied by a foreword by Henry Louis Gates, Jr. and sidebars by expert voices from the field.