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Nubia was home to some of Africa’s earliest kingdoms. Known for rich deposits of gold, Nubia was also the gateway through which luxury products like incense, ivory, and ebony traveled from their source in sub-Saharan Africa to the civilizations of Egypt and the Mediterranean. Archers of exceptional skill provided the military strength for Nubian rulers. Kings of Nubia ultimately conquered and ruled the Hyksos Egyptians for about a century. Monuments still stand—in modern Aswan Egypt and Sudan—at the sites where Nubian rulers built cities, temples, and 2,400 Royal pyramids. African people from what is now the Sahara began to move toward the Nile in Nubia by around 5000 BC. And brought with them the art of making pottery. Originally herdsmen and hunters of large animals, they eventually became fishermen, farmers and scribes. Over time, new people moved into the region from the south, so that Nubia’s population was often a diverse mix of African and Arab peoples.
