Ancient Nubian Art

Kingsand queens of Nubia reigned over one of the largest empires in the ancientworld and had contacts extending north to Greece and Rome, south tosub-Saharan Africa, east to the Red Sea, and west across much of the Sahel.Even a quick look at Nubia's artifacts reveals the incredible creativity ofits artists, architects, craftspeople, and thinkers. Despite their significance, theachievements of ancient Nubia are little known to the public and are oftenviewed as a subculture, a derivative offshoot of Egypt, Nubia's northernneighbor. Nothing could be further from the truth. During its overeight-thousand-year lifespan (beginning around 8000 BCE), Nubia indeliblyshaped the art and architecture of the ancient world, an influence still felttoday. Ancient Nubian Art is thefirst comprehensive and accessible treatment of Nubian artistic culture andshowcases its vast range-from ceramics, sculptures, and jewelry to tombs,temples, and palaces. Rita E. Freed, curator emerita at the Museum of FineArts, Boston, which has the largest collection of Nubian artifacts outsidethe Nile Valley, contextualizes the development of Nubian art against a vividbackdrop of kingship, power, worship, identity, gender, technology, andinternationalism. Her text is accompanied by a foreword by Henry Louis GatesJr. and sidebars by expert voices from the field.