Naqa

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Archaeological sites of Meroe Island
UNESCO world heritage UNESCO World Heritage Emblem
Naqa Apedamak temple.jpg
Roman kiosk with lion temple
National territory: SudanSudan Sudan
Type: Culture
Criteria : ii, iii, iv, v
Reference No .: 1336
UNESCO region : Arabic states
History of enrollment
Enrollment: 2011  (session 35)

Naqa (also Naga ; ancient Egyptian twjlkt ; Meroitic Tolkte ; Arabic النقعة an-Naqʿa , Sudanese-Arabic : in-Nagʿa ) is the name of a ruin site in today's Sudan . It is one of the largest in the country and suggests an important ancient city ​​at this point. At the same time as the Ptolemaic Empire and the Roman emperors , it was one of the centers of the kingdom of Meroe for around half a millennium, which, as Egypt's southern neighbor, playeda bridging role between the Mediterranean and Africa. Together with Meroe and Musawwarat es Sufra , Naqa was addedto the list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites as Archaeological Sites on Meroe Island in 2011.

Geographical location

Naqa (Sudan)
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Location of Naqa in Sudan

The place is about 170 kilometers north-north-east of Khartoum and about 35 kilometers south-south-east of the Nile . Here smaller wadis meet the Wadi Awateib, which comes from the center of the Butana region and ends further north at Wad ban Naqa on the Nile. Naqa was only a camel or donkey journey from the Nile and could have been of strategic importance as a trading post on the way east.

exploration

The first European travelers reached Naqa from 1822, including Hermann von Pückler-Muskau in 1837 . In 1843 it was visited by Richard Lepsius and his Prussian Egypt-Sudan expedition , who copied some inscriptions and depictions of the temples standing here. In 1958 a team from the Humboldt University in Berlin was on site to build the Tempel 500 z. T. documented. From 1995 a German team from the Egyptian Museum of the State Museums in Berlin was digging in Naqa . The sponsorship of the research and excavation project was transferred to the State Museum of Egyptian Art in Munich in 2013 .

buildings

The Roman kiosk

The remains of various temples can be found in Naqa. King Natakamani founded the Amun and the Apedemak lion temples, both of which are still relatively well preserved.

Roman kiosk

The so-called Roman kiosk is a small temple that has strong Hellenistic elements. Recent excavations on the building have shown that it was probably a Hathor chapel.

Lion temple

The lion or Apedemak temple is dedicated to the Nubian god of war Apedemak and is considered a classic example of Cushitic architecture. The massive front pylon of the temple shows King Natakamani and the Kandake Amanitore (around 50 AD), who are subjugating their enemies, each with a lion at their feet. On the two side walls there are very well-preserved reliefs of Horus , Amun and Apedemak on the one hand and Isis , Mut , Hathor , Amesemi and Satet on the other.

  • Front pylon of the Lion Temple with King Natakamani and Kandake Amanitore submitting their enemies. The queen holds a sword, the king an ax

  • Apedemak with three lion heads and four human arms

  • Apedemak as a coiled serpent with a lion's head rising from a lotus flower

Amun temple

The Amun Temple

The 100 m long Amun Temple was founded by King Natakamani. The temple is built in the Egyptian style. Similar to the Amun temples of Jebel Barkal and Karnak , it is reached via an all of rams. The path leads to a large courtyard, which is followed by the column hall ( hypostyle ). Continuing the axis one comes to the naos .

In the temple was a stele of Queen Amanishakheto , who was previously believed to rule before Natakamani. However, the discovery of the stele in this temple built by King Natakamani makes this dating uncertain, as Queen Amanishakheto may have donated the stele to the temple during her own reign. It is possible, however, that an older monument that previously stood elsewhere was placed in the temple. Here a painted “ altar ” was found undamaged , which is considered unique in Sudan and probably also in Egypt. After excavation, reconstruction and measurement, the Temple of Amun was handed over to the Sudanese cultural authorities on December 1, 2006.

Temple 200

Another Amun temple ( Temple 200 ) has been excavated since 2004. The builder is Amanichareqerem . Numerous first-class reliefs were found here. The decoration is very similar to the lion temples of Natakamani, so that this ruler Amanichareqerem, who was previously dated to the 2nd or 3rd century AD, probably ruled very close to Natakamani. Here, too, shows how new findings can change the shaky Nubian chronology . Three reconstructed wall relief elements from Temple 200 are on permanent loan since the new opening in the Neues Museum .

Temple 500

The temple 500 stands at the foot of the sandstone mountains of Jebel Naqa (Arabic for Mount Naqa ). He was from the Kandake Shanakdakheto around 135 BC. It is the oldest building on the site. The texts on the temple walls that they name are the oldest known writings in Meroitic hieroglyphics . Judging by the reliefs, the temple was dedicated to the Theban triad Amun, Mut , and Chons and Apedemak. In 1834 Giuseppe Ferlini's temple was severely damaged while searching for treasures. An excavation and restoration is still pending.

exhibition

literature

Web links

Commons : Naqa  - collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b Inge Hofmann: The Meroitic religion: state cult and popular piety. Berlin 1995, p. 2819.
  2. ↑ Naqa, a ruined ancient city of the Kushitic Kingdom of Meroë. UNESCO
  3. ^ Project Naga. (PDF) State Museum of Egyptian Art, accessed December 7, 2014 .
  4. ^ State Museum of Egyptian Art: Royal City of Naga .
  5. ^ Stiftung Kunstforum der Berliner Volksbank: Königsstadt Naga ( Memento from February 20, 2014 in the Internet Archive )
  6. ↑ Ulf von Rauchhaupt : Africa's gateway to the ancient world. In: Frankfurter Allgemeine Sonntagszeitung , June 5, 2011, p. 66.

Coordinates: 16 ° 16 '  N , 33 ° 17'  E