When missionaries from the Eastern Roman (Byzantine) Empire converted the Nubian kings to Christianity, many important changes took place in Nubian culture. Priests began to teach people how to read and write again, a skill they had lost. But the written languages now were Greek and Coptic (early medieval Egyptian). Byzantine art replaced traditional art. Burial customs also changed: people were no longer buried with their personal possessions.
Old Dongola, the capital of Makuria, was the most important city of medieval Nubia. It was built on the east bank of the Nile at the southwestern corner of the river's great bend. It had large walls with towers, and contained palaces, monasteries, and many churches.
The throne room of the Makurian kings was built in the 9th century. It still survives because it was converted into a mosque in the early fourteenth century.
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| Fresco of a Nubian bishop with the Virgin Mary and Christ child. From the great cathedral at Faras, Sudan. About 900 to 1000 CE. |
| Courtesy of the Sudan National Museum, Khartoum. |
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| View of the ruined Christian church at Qasr Ibrim, Lower Nubia, 600 to 1000 century CE. |
| Photo: W.Y. Adams. |