Artifacts of Ancient Sudan

God of the afterlife, with winged uraei flanking sun disc overhead. Meriotic, I think.

I managed to catch this exhibition at the Cultural Foundation of Abu Dhabi just days before it was due to close. I knew that there was much to see about ancient Sudan, and was especially interested in seeing this one after reading the recent Nat Geo special on Napatan Kush ( http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2008/02/black-pharaohs/robert-draper-text.html ), but even I did not expect to spend as much time as I did poring over the artifacts on display. There were pieces from all the major historical eras of Sudan - Neolithic, Kerma, Egyptian, Napatan, Meriotic, Christian and Islamic. The ones from the Egyptian, Napatan and Meriotic period were especially worth a second look. Great sculptures and carvings, and intricate goldwork (couldn't get pics of those, due to resolution constraints). As Nat Geo mentioned, the Nubians were probably the first Egyptomaniacs, and they carried their particular branch of Egyptian culture well into the ADs and past the subsumption of classical Egyptian civilization, even invading and holding Egypt for a time.