Gold as a Lens for Understanding Meroitic Power, Expansion, and Decline | ||||
| التاريخ والمستقبل | ||||
| Article 1, Volume 39, Issue 78, July 2025, Page 1-60 PDF (3.49 MB) | ||||
| Document Type: المقالة الأصلية | ||||
| DOI: 10.21608/hfj.2025.415056.1227 | ||||
 View on SCiNiTO | ||||
| Author | ||||
د/ هند الفقى  
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| كلية الدراسات الأفريقية-جامعة القاهرة | ||||
| Abstract | ||||
| The Meroitic kingdom, which flourished in the Middle Nile Valley from the third century BCE to the third century CE, was profoundly shaped by its relationship with gold, both as a material resource and an ideological symbol. Far more than a precious metal, gold served as a cornerstone of statecraft, religious expression, and economic organization. This study investigates how gold influenced the emergence of state power, the mechanisms of territorial expansion, and the factors contributing to the kingdom's eventual decline. By tracing the evolution of gold usage, from its sacred integration into early royal ideology to its diminished presence in later funerary and architectural contexts, the research identifies gold as a diagnostic indicator of Meroe’s political and economic trajectory. Drawing on a combination of epigraphic evidence and archaeological analysis, particularly the variation in gold weights, including two unpublished objects housed in the British Museum and the Petrie Museum, this study demonstrates how changing patterns of gold visibility and institutional control mirror the transformation of Meroe’s administrative and economic structures. | ||||
| Keywords | ||||
| Gold; Inscriptions; Gold weights; Petrie Museum: British Museum | ||||
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