The Kingdom of Kush: The History and Legacy of the Ancient Nubian Empire

*Includes pictures *Includes ancient accounts of Kush *Includes online resources and a bibliography for further reading *Includes a table of contents “The desert lands of Egypt will remain desert, however many millions of pounds are expended in Nile reservoirs. All that man can do is to extend somewhat the narrow strip of green running along the banks of the Nile.” – Sir Benjamin Baker, Royal Institution, June 6, 1902 During the several centuries that ancient Egypt stood as one of the greatest, if not the greatest, civilizations of the ancient world, conflicts with its neighbors often played a central role in hieroglyphic texts and art from temples and tombs. The three primary enemies of the Egyptians were the Libyans who occupied the Western Desert and its oases, the so-called Asiatics who lived in the Levant, and finally the Nubians to Egypt’s south. Among the three peoples, the Nubians were the most “Egyptianized” and at times were integral to the development of Egyptian history. Truly, the Nubians were the greatest of all sub-Saharan peoples in pre-modern times and deserve to be studied in their own right, apart from ancient Egyptian history.