Pre-history Africa & the Badarian Culture

8/12/2019 Pre-history Africa & the Badarian Culture

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ancestors of the 7an /ac2 more than 5+%+++ years, For these ancient hunters and foragers%the spirit world was ne'er far from daily life% and nowhere was it closer than at the tens ofthousands of roc2-art sites scattered across Nami/ia% otswana% Iim/a/we% 7outh ;frica%and Cesotho, There% on the walls of the roc2-shelters where they li'ed% they depictedantelopes% rhinos% elephants% and other animals> people hunting and performing rituals>mythical creatures% half animal and half human,

; summary of roc2 art data/ases in 7outhern ;frican countries indicates that there are atleast 1"%+++ sites on record% /ut that many more e&ist than ha'e /een formally recorded(9eacon 1!!?$, There are pro/a/ly well in e&cess of 5+%+++ sites in the region as a whole%with a conser'ati'e estimate of more than two million indi'idual images, The paintings ofpeople in Nami/ia% Iim/a/we% and Tan@ania ha'e dramatic hairstyles that are not seen sooften in the art further south, n contrast% there are many more paintings in the south of peoplewearing cloa2s% some of which are ela/orately decorated,

000 BC% Early )hartou* 3unting% gathering of wild plants% fishing% pottery (the earliestpottery in 7udan$% grindstones% wor2ed flint% ceramics% and ostrich eggshell /eads, *arlyattempts at farming% or at least% the periodic har'esting of wild cereals /y semi-nomadichunter-gatherers% as e'idenced /y Jsic2le-sheenK on their tools, We e'en see how the earliestinha/itants li'ed on an en'ironment which was intimately /ound to moist and arid phases inthe climate of the region, Ahartoum lies in the center of the 7udan at the =unction of where theWhite Nile and the lue Nile meet to form the great Nile :i'er, This =unction forms a super/and uni


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region towards the Nile 'alley /elow the second 0ataract where they made permanent orsemi-permanent settlements, ;nimals were domesticated for the first time and hunting grewless important, Ooats% sheep and cattle are descended from the wild creatures that used topopulate the regions lying close to the Nile 'alley, People also started farming, Thus% Nu/ia%*gyptKs southern neigh/or with its own ci'ili@ation% preceded ancient *gyptian (Aemet$ci'ili@ation, t has already esta/lished that this area was the /irthplace of iron industry,

The num/er of pyramids in Nu/ia (a2a Aush$ were a total of ##% dou/le the pyramids of itsneigh/or *gypt, :esearch suggests that a line of 2ings li'ed in.ustulin northern Nu/ia asearly as% or perhaps e'en earlier than% the first pharaohs of *gypt, The people of these earlycultures /uried their dead in stone-lined pit gra'es% accompanied /y pottery and cosmeticarticles, ;t this time% Nu/ia was 2nown to the *gyptians as 4Ta 7eti%4 the 4Cand of the ow%4/ecause of the fame ofNu/ian archers,The s2ill of Nu/ian archers forestalled the con'ersionof Nu/ia to slam until ;,9, 1"++,

3800-3100 !"! #ustul$ The oldest tom/s of a pharaonic type are found in Nu/ia (Aingdom of.ustul$% and these thirty-three ;-Oroup tom/s appear in Nu/ia /efore the dynasticperiod,0emetery C at .ustul%which is a small cemetery containing unusually large andwealthy tom/s of ;-Oroup, t was in one of these gra'es% 4C-#"4 coded /y the e&ca'ators% thatthe mysterious incense /urner came to light, ;n incense /urner with figures and pictographsgouged deep into the clay, This censer had /een found% not in *gypt% /ut nearly #++ milesdeep in Nu/ia, The inscription showed three ships sailing in procession, The three ships weresailing toward the royal palace, ne of the ships carried a lion - perhaps a deity, The central/oat carries the 2ing% sitting and e


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4The most affluent area was located in the southernmost part of Cower Nu/ia% displaying animpressi'e num/er of rich cemeteries with a strong social presence of women in /oth the'illage cemeteries and in many of the elite cemeteries, ;n ad'anced chiefdom that controlledat least the southern part of Cower Nu/ia may ha'e /een formed during the ;-Oroup% perhapsthe result of a consolidation process parallel to that of *gypt, The center was at .ustul near

the present 7udanese-*gyptian /order% where the 0hicago riental nstitute has e&ca'atedan elite cemetery with funerary offerings of outstanding is the earliest 2nown 4ci'ili@ed *gyptianci'ili@ation4 /ased on farming% hunting and mining, They li'ed at a/out "5++ ,0, and mayha'e e'en /een as far /ac2 as 55++ ,0, These farmers grew /arley% wheat% fla& and wo'elinen fa/rics in addition to tending floc2s, 0ali/rated radiocar/on dates of two charcoalsamples from a adarian site suggest that it was the first farming culture in )pper *gypt, Wedo not 2now what 2ind of house or shelter the adarian made for himself,En)y)lopedia of the 'r)haeology of 'n)ient Egypt (1!!!$,
http://www.archaeology.org/interactive/hierakonpolis/nubian.htmlhttp://wysinger.homestead.com/nubians11.htmlhttp://wysinger.homestead.com/anu2.htmlhttp://wysinger.homestead.com/badari.htmlhttp://www.archaeology.org/interactive/hierakonpolis/nubian.htmlhttp://wysinger.homestead.com/nubians11.htmlhttp://wysinger.homestead.com/anu2.htmlhttp://wysinger.homestead.com/badari.html


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The dead were /uried with their finest possessions% personal possessions and clothing foruse in the ne&t world, adarians produced fine pottery and car'ed o/=ects as well asac /ut these are all -Oroup or later still in date, ;mulets with animal heads% li2e ga@elle and hippopotami% werefound with the human s2eletal remains, f the e'ery-day religion of the adarians we 2now'ery little, That they had a /elief in the efficacy of amulets we 2now from the animalsK headsfound on the /odies> the ga@elle and the hippopotamus had attri/utes which it was desired toac


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The adarian structure is said to ha'e affinity to the /lac2 race , , , Ba& Toth% .yramid.rophe)ies% 9estiny oo2s% (1!88$D 4The oldest i'ory figurines found in ancient *gypt weresculpted /y the adari% a Negroid race of the *gyptians4,9r, *ugen 7trouhal Physical ;nthropologist was a/le to ta2e samples of se'en of the raciallymi&ed adarian indi'iduals which were macroscopically curly 6spirals of 1+-#+mm in diameteror wa'y in 6#5-5 mm, They were studied microscopically /y 7, Tittle/accho'a from the

nstitute of ;nthropology of the 0harles )ni'ersity% who found in fi'e out of se'en samples achange in the thic2ness of the hair in the course of its length% sometimes with simultaneousnarrowing of the hair pitch, 7trouhal summari@edD 4The outline of the cross-sections of thehairs was flattened% with indices ranging from 5 to 5, These peculiarities also show theNegroid inference among the adarians (pre-dynastic *gyptians$,4 (Gournal of ;frican 3istory%1!?1$, Thus% this is incompati/le with the theories that the Negro element only infiltrated into*gypt at a late stage, ;lso see otherreferences,

Badarian Pottery

The pottery from the adarian gra'es is 'ery elo ($ the :ippled Wares% which resem/le those from the Cate Nu/ianNeolithic and adarian periods, The later e&amples clearly indicate the e&tensi'e relationship/etween Nu/ia and *gypt in prehistory% and the assimilation of the ;frican component into thePharaonic culture, (The Wendorf Pottery 0ollection at the ritish Buseum$,Badarian Pottery% 4500 BC

,ite @eferencesynasty 0% Francesco :affaele% ;3 1?% #++

aily 2ife of the Nuians% :o/ert 7te'en ianchi% Oreenwood Press% #++"

0oulson% 9% E 0amp/ell%' 4001 'fri)an ro)k art, New Lor2D ;/rams

;frican :oc2 ;rt (pu/lished /y 3arry N, ;/rams% nc,% #++1$

En)y)lopedia of the 'r)haeology of 'n)ient Egypt* Aathryn ;, ard% 7te'en la2e 7hu/ert%:outledge> llustrate edition% 1!!!

9eacon% G 1!!? ; regional management strategy for roc2 art in 7outhern ;frica, 0onser'ationand Banagement of ;rchaeological 7ites #D #!-#
http://wysinger.homestead.com/proof.htmlhttp://wysinger.homestead.com/proof.htmlhttp://www.kilidavid.com/Ancient_Civ/DSCInfo/Egypt/dsc01595.jpghttp://wysinger.homestead.com/proof.htmlhttp://www.kilidavid.com/Ancient_Civ/DSCInfo/Egypt/dsc01595.jpg


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P, reunig% The 8000-year-old dugout )anoe from ufuna 5NE Nigeria6 % O, Pwiti and :, 7oper(eds,$% ;spects of ;frican ;rchaeology, Papers from the 1+th 0ongress of the Pan;frican;ssociation for Prehistory and related 7tudies, )ni'ersity of Iim/a/we Pu/lications (3arare1!!$ "1-"8

'fri)an .eoples7 "ontriutions to orld "i&ilizations$ 9hattering the Myth(;frican Peoples0ontri/utions to World 0i'ili@ations$/y Paul C, 3amilton% :, ;, :enaissance Pu/lications> #nd edition (Guly 1% 1!!5$

Early Khartoum :Mesolithi): 9ettlements in the (eili-Kaashi 'rea* 9udan% Gournal of Field;rchaeology #+% (1!!$% pp, 51!-5##

3assan% F,;, The .redynasti) of Egypt% Gournal of World Prehistory% Vol, # (1!88$% pp, 15-185

E;)a&ations et


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e&ca'ation sitesD /eads% /one needles% copper pins% clay model /oats% com/s% mirrors%/racelets% i'ory finger-rings% nose and ear studs% shells amulet-pendants% wo'en linenclothing% s2ins% i'ory spoons% coo2ing pots% /as2et wor2s% and arrow-heads, adarianci'ili@ation is an earlier phase of the ;mratian-Pre-dynastic, The close typological relationship/etween the two is e'ident, :acially they are one, The use of matting% which is almostuni'ersal in adarian gra'es% is also common in *arly Pre-dynastic times% /ut gradually dies

out after that, Gudging from the remains that we ha'e of the adarians% they seem to ha'e/een a 'ery peaceful people, There is a considera/le proportion of long-li'ed indi'idualsamong the /urials> there are no e&amples of /ro2en /ones or in=uries> and we find no warli2eweapons such as the dis2-mace which is characteristic of the *arly Pre-dynastics,Theadarian culture appears to ha'e de'eloped% or rather degenerated further% in Nu/ia% where itwas much less affected /y foreign influences, Bany of the *arly Pre-dynastic parallels toadarian o/=ects% especially flints% /one awls% and the li2e% are found in Nu/ia, The rippledsurfaces to the pottery 'ases in a modified form continued on there till much later periods,Bost stri2ing of all are the pottery forms> the /owl% which is /y far the commonest adarianshape% is also 'ery usual in Nu/ia% where it persisted for many centuries, We need% thin2% /ein no two minds a/out the essentially pre-dynastic character of the adarian ci'ili@ation, Theonly other culture so far found in *gypt which is compara/le with it is that of the MPan-gra'epeople,

runton% 0aton-Thompson% The adarian "i&ilization and .redynasti) emains Nearadari* 1!#8,

rade and /nification of the 2o ands

The pro/lem in most /oo2s -- it regards the unification of the Two Cands as the start of*gyptian history, f course it is not -- /y then they had de'eloped glass% sil'er% /ron@e inlimited amounts% shells% all of these show usD (1$ that they had traded regularly anddeli/erately for some time> (#$ that they 2new e&actly where to go% how to get there% and whatthey would find when they got there> ($ they had de'eloped (or learned of$ new technologiesfrom their o'erseas contacts,

4adarian trade we ha'e ample e'idence, t is a matter of dispute from what neigh/oringlands certain materials and o/=ects come> /ut it is


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*gypt and newer 'ersions can certainly cause layman considera/le consternation,rea2throughs in *gyptology are li2ely to e'en accelerate, New imaging tools and methods ofe&ploration% along with the general use of computers and sophisticated data/ases will li2elyincrease our 2nowledge of ancient *gypt dramatically in the coming years, ;nd while thenternet is a 'ia/le tool for the dissemination of the 2nowledge% unfortunately it is so often alsoa media of crac2pots and simply the uninformed, 7o it is 'ery important that readers /eware%

and use a good amount of intelligent =udgment on what information can /e trusted% and whatcannot /e,4(Tour Egypt% Gimmy 9unn$ 6emphasis addedBadarian (4500 BC!% fe*ale ivory figurine ecavated fro* the al-Badari urial siteFrom the ritish Buseum% Condon

A hunter 2ith +egroid features% aout 55 feet in height% holds an arro2 in his righthand and a heavy o2 in the left in assili n" Agger% Algeria% ;000 BC

Professor >illia* inders Petrie,udanese 8ynasties

From The Making of Egypt* (1!!$,

7corpion 2ing of the;nu6;unu culture,

4; /reath of life came from the 7udan, This southern source was li2ewise the inspirationof , , ,4 the 1st% #nd (;nu$%rd 67udanese% "th% 5th% 1#th 67udanese dynasties, 4The 1#th dynasty was undou/tedlydescended from ;menemhat% the great 'i@ier of the 11th dynasty, t seems% then% that hemarried the heiress of the )ah-2a family% as stated in the pseudo-prophecy% 4; 2ing shallcome from the south whose name is ;meny% son a Nu/ian woman,4 7he called her son /y thefamily name 7enusert% and he was the founder of the 1#th dynasty% according to Banetho,The main sources of the 18th dynasty were Nu/ian and Ci/yan% depicted /lac2 and yellow%/ut not red of the *gyptians, ;hmos Nefertari was one of their /lac2


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and ancestry, The 1!th dynasty was a direct mi&ture of races,4 Petrie statesD 49ecaycontinued in a di'ided 2ingdom> *gypt seemed hopeless until a fresh *thiopian in'asionstimulated it% as in earlier instances4, This was the /eginning of the #5th dynasty,$st 8ynasty)ing enes close upD fro* +ar*er"s talet discovered y a*es 1uiell in#ieraonpolis in $F

)ing enes (+ar*er!Also see +ar*er Pallette

The Making of Egypt/y William Batthew Flinders% Petrie Condon% 1!!% p, ?"
http://wysinger.homestead.com/narmer.htmlhttp://wysinger.homestead.com/narmer.html


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This type of figure is a fine e&ample of one of the earliest 2nown sculptures from *gypt, t ismade from one of the lower canines of a hippopotamus found in *gypt at the time, From atleast the adarian period onwards% figurines of women made of clay% wood% i'ory or stone%were included among funerary e


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8ufuna Canoe% 000 years oldEcavated near @iver Goe% +igeria

Eggshell thin% hand*ade polished 2are of +uian A-=roup% 2ith lac interior and uffeterior painted 2ith red painted geo*etric patterns i*itating asetry

+eolithic eaer of a distinctive and unusual shape no2n as calicifor* ,uch eaersare usually found in graves% suggesting that they 2ere used for funerary rituals 3;$0H33F' BC7udan National Buseum
http://wysinger.homestead.com/canoe.html


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iniature dagger7udan (Aerma% cemetery B% gra'e "8$% *arly Aerma culture% 1!++-1?++ ,0, Oold% /ron@e%e/ony% and i'ory

n 1!1 Oeorge ;ndrew :eisner and the 3ar'ard )ni'ersityQBuseum of Fine ;rts *&peditiondisco'ered this e&

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Pre-history Africa & the Badarian Culture