Archaeological Sites of the Island of Meroe

World Heritage

Sudan

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The archaeological site of Meroe, a semi-desert landscape located between the Nile and Atbara rivers, was the heart of the Kingdom of Kush, a major power from the 8th century BC to the 4th century AD. The site includes the royal city of the Kushite kings at Meroe near the Nile, and the nearby religious sanctuaries of Naqqa and Sufra. It was the seat of the rulers who occupied Egypt for nearly a century and contains, among other remains, pyramids, temples and civil buildings, as well as major facilities related to water management. Their vast empire stretched from the Mediterranean to the heart of Africa, and the site bears witness to the exchange of art, architecture, religion and language between the two regions.

# Archaeological sites