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Archaeological Sites of the

Island of Meroe
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Archaeological Sites of the Island of Meroe
The Archaeological Sites of the Island of Meroe, a semi-desert landscape between the Nile
and Atbara rivers, was the heartland of the Kingdom of Kush, a major power from the th
centur! "#$# to the %th centur! A#&# The propert! consists of the ro!al cit! of the Kushite
'ings at Meroe, near the (iver Nile, the nearb! religious site of Na)a and Musawwarat es
Sufra# It was the seat of the rulers who occupied *g!pt for close to a centur! and features,
among other vestiges, p!ramids, temples and domestic buildings as well as major
installations connected to water management# Their vast empire e+tended from the
Mediterranean to the heart of Africa, and the propert! testifies to the e+change between the
art, architectures, religions and languages of both regions#
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/utstanding .niversal 0alue
Brief synthesis
The Island of Meroe is the heartland of the Kingdom of Kush, a major power in the ancient
world from the th centur! "$* to the %th centur! $*# Meroe became the principal residence
of the rulers, and from the 1rd centur! "$* onwards it was the site of most ro!al burials#
The propert! consists of three separate site components, Meroe, the capital, which includes
the town and cemeter! site, and Musawwarat es-Sufra and Na)a, two associated
settlements and religious centres# The Meroe cemeter!, Musawwarat es-Sufra, and Na)a
are located in a semi-desert, set against reddish-brown hills and contrasting with the green
bushes that cover them, whilst the Meroe town site is part of a riverine landscape#
These three sites comprise the best preserved relics of the Kingdom of Kush, encompassing
a wide range of architectural forms, including p!ramids, temples, palaces, and industrial
areas that shaped the political, religious, social, artistic and technological scene of the Middle
and Northern Nile 0alle! for more than 2333 !ears 4th centur! "$-%th centur! A&5# These
architectural structures, the applied iconograph! and evidence of production and trade,
including ceramics and iron-wor's, testif! to the wealth and power of the Kushite State# The
water reservoirs in addition contribute to the understanding of the palaeoclimate and
h!drological regime in the area in the later centuries "$* and the first few centuries $*#
Criterion (ii)6 The Archaeological Sites of the Island of Meroe reflect the interchange of ideas
and contact between Sub-Saharan Africa and the Mediterranean and Middle *astern worlds,
along a major trade corridor over a ver! long period of time# The interaction of local and
foreign influences is demonstrated b! the preserved architectural remains and their
iconograph!#
Criterion (iii)6 The propert! with its wide range of monument t!pes, well preserved buildings,
and potential for future e+cavation and research, contributes an e+ceptional testimon! to the
wealth and power of the former Kushite state and its e+tensive contacts with African,
Mediterranean and Middle *astern societies# The Kushite civili7ation was largel! e+punged
b! the arrival of $hristianit! on the Middle Nile in the 8th centur! $*#
Criterion (iv)6The p!ramids at Meroe are outstanding e+amples of Kushite funerar!
monuments, which illustrate the association with the well preserved remains of the urban
centre of the Kushite capital cit!, Meroe# The architectural remains at the three site
components illustrate the ju+taposition of structural and decorative elements from 9haraonic
*g!pt, :reece, and (ome as well as from Kush itself, and through this represent a
significant reference of earl! e+change and diffusion of st!les and technologies#
Criterion (v)6 The major centres of human activit! far from the Nile at Musawwarat and Na)a
raise )uestions as to their viabilit! in what is toda! an arid 7one devoid of permanent human
settlement# The! offer the possibilit!, through a detailed stud! of the palaeoclimate, flora, and
fauna, of understanding the interaction of the Kushites with their desert hinterland#
Integrity
The three site components selected represent the capital cit! of the Kushite 'ingdom, Meroe,
with its associated e+tensive burial grounds of p!ramid tombs, and the 'ingdom;s two largest
hinterland centres, Musawwarat es-Sufra and Na)a# Together the! provide evidence of the
si7e, and influence of the Kushite civili7ation at the height of power#
Although man! features of the site have deteriorated over the course of time, including the
collapse of several p!ramid tombs, inappropriate interventions which reduced the integrit! of
the site have not occurred since the treasure hunting of ,erlini in the 213s, which was ver!
deleterious to some of the p!ramids in the Meroe cemeteries# The main north-south highwa!
lin'ing Khartoum and 9ort Sudan, which separated the two parts of the Meroe site has
negative visual and auditor! impact on the integrit! of the propert!, as does the line of high
voltage power transmission along its route#
Authenticity
Although at large the authenticit! in terms of the attributes of material, design and substance
is acceptable, conservation wor's at several temples and p!ramids were based on large-
scale reconstructions, including introduction of new materials, or anast!losis, which affected
the authenticit! of these features# <owever, considering the overall number of significant
features on-site, the percentage of reconstructed or reassembled structures is comparativel!
small and does not impact on a general conception of authenticit!#
At the site component of Meroe, archaeological research activities, primaril! b! foreign
scholars since the late 2=th centur!, have left large spoil heaps, which impact adversel! on
the authenticit! of the setting#
Protection and management reuirements
The propert! is protected under the provisions of article 21 4>5 of the Interim $onstitution of
the (epublic of Sudan of ?33>, and under the Anti)uities 9rotection /rdinance of 2=3>,
amended in 2=>? and most recentl! in 2===, which confers it the status of national
monument# It is also protected b! 9residential &ecree 4no# 28? of ?3315 which established a
natural reserve around the site and established the management committee# The reserve
declared under this &ecree encompasses the three site components and their complete
buffer 7ones#
Although formall! managed b! a $ommittee involving a variet! of sta'eholders, the propert!
is factuall! managed b! the National $orporation of Anti)uities and Museums 4N$AM5, which
involves a field wor' section responsible for site supervision and coordination of the foreign
archaeological missions# A technical office for supervision is located at Shendi, about %3'm
from Meroe and 83 'm from Musawwarat es-Sufra and Na)a, where a resident site manager
has been appointed# Securit! guards and police men supervise the propert! on a dail! basis#
To ensure the re)uirement of a shared overarching management authorit! for serial
properties, a management committee has been established and a chairperson appointed#
,ollowing the management plan drafted and approved in ?33=, this management committee
shall be supported b! an e+ecutive @orld <eritage Site management team, which will
oversee the implementation of the management plan strategies and actions# ,inancial
provisions and staff are essential for the establishment of this team and the implementation
of the management plan# As part of the future implementation of the management plan, it is
necessar! to develop conservation approaches based on best practice to avoid repeating
some of the less fortunate techni)ues and methods used in the past#

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