History

Kush and Rome

In 30 BC, the Romans replaced the Ptolemies as Kush's northern neighbors. During the reign of Kushite Queen Amanishekhato, Greek geographers reports and archeological evidence reveal a military clash that took place between Kush and the Romans contemporary with Augusts. The clash was a border conflict. The Romans have negotiated with Kushite officials at Philae, and each side agreed that Aswan in Lower Nubia would be the border and that Kush,¹ as Roman clients, was a tributary. However, Augustus was persuaded by Kushite ambassadors to cancel the tribute imposed by the local Roman authorities in Egypt.²

Relief of Kushite Queen Amanishekhito. Source: Wildung, Dietrich. Sudan: Ancient Kingdoms of the Nile.

© 2003 Greg Gulik Norwehian Dream Cruise 2003. Bust of Augustus from Sudan.

The Romans also wanted control over the Wadi Allaqi, a region southeast of Dodekaschoinos in Lower Nubia that is rich in gold.³ Soon, revolts broke at Thebes in anger of the Roman policy of excessive taxation.⁴ This revolt was obviously supported by Kush and it was also true that the revolts spread throughout Lower Nubia and Upper Egypt. Then, a strong Roman political conflict that occurred in Arabia encouraged Kush to take action.

Strabo, a Roman conservative geographer, who lived in first century AD, was the first to write on the bloody conflicts between Kush and the Romans under the leadership of General Aelius Petronius.⁵ However, since Strabo was Roman himself, and was a personal friend of Petronius, he greatly degraded the roll of Kushites and patronized the Romans side of the conflict.

In 24 BC, at the reign of Queen Amanishekhato, Kushite forces attacked the Roman territory at Aswan. From there, they continued all the way to Thebes and defeated the Roman garrison there. Strabo reported that the Kushite Queen "enslaved the inhabitants, and threw down the statues of Caesar." (Strabo xvii.54). Recent archeological work uncovered a statue of Caesar at Meroe buried under the entrance floor of a temple at Meroe (currently in the British museum, London), and this confirms the authenticity of Strabo's story. (The Kushites believed that stepping over an enemy's depiction, would ultimately mean reducing his dominance.⁶

According to Strabo, when Petronius - a Prefect of Egypt at the time - was informed about the Kushite advancement he prepared a large army and marched south. The Roman forces clashed with the Kushite armies near Thebes and forced them to retreat to Pselchis (Maharraqa), an Ethiopian (or Kushite) city. Petronius, then, sent deputies to the Kushites to convince them to stop the war and contest to Roman wishes.

Quoting Strabo, the Kushites "desired three days for consideration"⁷ in order to make a final decision. However after the three days Kush did not respond and Petronius advanced with his armies and took the Kushite city of Premnis (modern Karanog) south of Maharraqa, and from there he advanced all the way to Napata, the second Capital in Kush after Meroe. Petronius attacked and sacked Napata causing the son of the Kushite Queen to flee. Strabo describes the defeat of the Nubians at Napata, stating that "He (Petronius) made prisoners of the inhabitants," and some "were publicly sold as loot, and thousands were sent to Caesar".

Click here for larger view. Ancient path of the Kushite and Roman armies in the battle of 24 A.D. according to the first-century Geographer and historian Strabo.

Click here for full gallery. From the collection of photographs by Osman Elkhair Architect, & Imad-eldin Ali. Hellenistic style temple Kiosk, Meroe.

This was not the end of the war; the Queen attacked the occupying Roman garrison of Napata, in the words of Strabo, "with an army of many thousand men." The Nubians, however, lost the war. The Kushite Queen then sent messengers to ask Petronius to allow them to speak to the King of Rome. In response, Petronius sent the Kushite messengers to Caesar, who was in Syria at the time. The negotiations in Syria were successful; it is recorded by Strabo that the Caesar "even remitted the tribute which he had imposed (upon the Kushites earlier). "Although not so clearly defined, the Kush-Rome border seemed to have been somewhere in the Dodecaschoenus area.⁸

Throughout the three centuries of the Roman rule over Egypt, Kush had extensively interacted with Rome as its northern neighbor and vise-versa. Kush and Roman Egypt maintained good relations of trade and politics. In return Rome had a profound effect on the Kushite civilization. The Roman influence onto Kush was manifested in arts, architecture, and writings. Not only were that, but there is even strong archeological evidence for the existence of a Roman community in Nubia.9 Roman manufactures and products were documented as found in considerable amounts.

The Dendur Temple, MMA, New York.

The Dendur Temple was given to the United States by Egypt in 1965 and is currently housed at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. The temple was built in 15 BC, in honor to the goddess Isis. Motifs and names of the Roman Emperor Augustus are carved and inscribed on the temple walls. Also, are the names and motifs of the two sons of a Kushite queen (Pihor and Pedesi), who participated in building portions of the temple. The Dendur Temple stands as a testament to the peaceful relations Rome and Nubia maintained for the next seven centuries.

• ^{1 R. B. Jackson, At Empire's Edge: Exploring Rome's Egyptian Frontier (Yale UP, 2002).}
• ^{2 Jackson, note 1 above at 147-54.}
• ^{3 L. P. Kirwan, "Rome Beyond the Southern Egyptian Frontier." British Academy Proc. 63 (1977) 13-31.}
• ^{4 Jackson 127.}
• ^{5 Strabo, and H. C. Hamilton, W. Faulkner, The Geography of Strabo, trans. H. C. Hamilton, and W. Falconer (G. Bell & Sons, 1889).}
• ^{6 The ancient Nubians and Egyptians shared a common cultural heritage including traditions such as those pertaining to beliefs in the magical powers of representations. For relevent readings see: E. Hornung, The Secret Lore of Egypt: Its Impact on the West, trans. D. Lorton (Cornell UP, 2001), and A. G. McDowell, Village Life in Ancient Egypt: Laundry Lists and Love Songs (Oxford UP, 2001).}
• ^{7 For all quotes by Strabo on this article see: Strabo xvii. 54.}
• ^{8 Kirwan, note 3 above at 13-31.}
• ^{9 W. Y. Adams, and A. J. Arkell. Meroitic North and South: A Study in Cultural Contrasts (Akademie-Verlag, 1976).}