Saturday, June 8, 2013

Meroe Pyramids

Meroe Pyramids


These Nubian pyramids are strange and unique, even by pyramid standards

                      
Slowly being reclaimed by the sands of time (literally), the pyramids of Meroë hold the fragile footprints a mysterious and long-forgotten civilization.
Meroë was an ancient city in the Kushite Kingdom, and the sheer number of its still-standing pyramids indicate that it was a massive city, once bustling with traders and everyday inhabitants. (And, most obviously, a booming tradition of masonry.)
Archaeologists have identified that the numerous pyramid structures are very clearly in the Nubian style. The structures' sharp angles and relatively narrow footprints carry all the hallmarks the former Kushite Kingdom, meaning Meroë was a pinnacle location in one of history's greatest and least well-understood civilizations.
The kingdom stretched throughout this region in ancient times. But now, little more than the dusty pyramids that stand solemnly in the desert remains of the city, and by proxy of the Kushites it belonged to. But with more than 200 of them to mark the location, they are quite enough to astound visitors and historians alike.