Return of the Cat Mummy

The property consists of three separate site components, Meroe, the capital, which includes the town and cemetery site, and Musawwarat es-Sufra and Naqa, two associated settlements and religious centres. 

The Meroe cemetery, Musawwarat es-Sufra and Naqa are located in a semi-desert, set against reddish-brown hills.

The pyramids at Meroe are outstanding examples of Kushite funerary monuments, which illustrate the association with the well preserved remains of the urban centre of the Kushite capital city, Meroe.

Immerse yourself in the heart of an ancient city and discover Meroe, the ancient capital of the Kushite Kingdom, in the Nile Valley in Sudan, here.

The architectural remains at the three site components illustrate the juxtaposition of structural and decorative elements from Pharaonic Egypt, Greece, and Rome as well as from Kush itself, and through this represent a significant reference of early exchange and diffusion of styles and technologies.

The site of Musawwarat es-Sufra, known to the Kushites as Aborepe, lies around 40 km south of Meroe. Constructed in sandstone, one of its features, the Great Enclosure, comprises individual buildings, store rooms, workshops, kitchens, walled enclosures, and ramps. 

The Lion Temple in Musawwarat es-sufra is situated about 600 m southeast of the Great Enclosure. It is a typical Meroitic one-roomed temple, dedicated to the lion god Apedemak, an indigenous Kushite god.

The site encompasses a wide range of architectural forms, including pyramids, temples, palaces, and industrial areas that shaped the political, religious, social, artistic and technological scene of the Middle and Northern Nile Valley for more than 1000 years (8th century BC-4th century AD).

The Lion (Apedemak) temple, here in Naqa, is considered a classic example of Kushite architecture. Apedemak was a lion-headed warrior god worshipped in Nubia.

The front of the temple is an extensive gateway, and depicts Natakamani and Amanitore on the left and right exerting divine power over their prisoners, symbolically with lions at their feet. 

The Kiosk is a small rectangular sandstone structure preserved almost to its roof level, standing a few metres to the east of the Lion Temple.

Architectural and decorative elements show Pharaonic Egyptian, Hellenistic and local artistic influences and the building is thought to be a shrine to the goddess Hathor. 

The Amun Temple stands to the east of the Kiosk. It is built of sandstone, red brick and mud brick. It is approached from the west by a long ramp which is lined on each side with six ram figures and is interrupted in the centre by a sandstone kiosk.

The Archaeological Sites of the Island of Meroe was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 2011 under Criteria: (ii)(iii)(iv)(v).

The treasure hunting of Ferlini in the 1830s was very deleterious to some of the pyramids in the Meroe cemeteries. Inappropriate interventions which reduced the integrity of the site have not occurred since then.

The Archaeological Sites of the Island of Meroe reflect the interchange of ideas and contact between Sub-Saharan Africa and the Mediterranean and Middle Eastern worlds, along what was a major trade corridor over a very long period of time. 

The interaction of local and foreign influences is demonstrated by the preserved architectural remains and their iconography.

The property with its wide range of monument types, well preserved buildings, and potential for future excavation and research, contributes an exceptional testimony to the wealth and power of the former Kushite state and its extensive contacts with African, Mediterranean and Middle Eastern societies.

The Kushite civilization was largely expunged by the arrival of Christianity on the Middle Nile in the 6th century CE.

The three site components selected represent the capital city of the Kushite kingdom, Meroe, with its associated extensive burial grounds of pyramid tombs, and the kingdom’s two largest hinterland centres, Musawwarat es-Sufra and Naqa.