Welcome to digNubia!

The fragment of a tool, a shard of pottery, a mysterious script, beads from a necklace, a skeleton?. Out of such clues archaeologists use the tools and insights of science, mathematics, engineering, and technology to piece together the forgotten histories of ancient civilizations. The digNubia project, supported with a major grant from the National Science Foundation, was created to introduce young people to archaeology through an exciting archaeological find: the remains of the ancient African civilization of Nubia in northern Sudan and southern Egypt that emerged over six thousand years ago. The project includes this web site, a documentary film, and a traveling exhibit.

Largely overlooked by archaeologists until the 1960's, ancient Nubia was finally rediscovered when Egypt elected to build the Aswan High Dam, which threatened to flood forever nearly 300 miles of the Nubian Nile Valley and all traces of ancient settlement that lay within it. The more than 40 teams of archaeologists that raced to explore this region before it was lost recorded thousands of prehistoric sites and rock drawings, dug hundreds of cemeteries and townsites, moved gigantic temples, and discovered traces of a brilliant, literate civilization that over the millennia traded with Egypt, fought with Egypt, was conquered and ruled by Egypt (ca.1500-1100 BC) and even conquered and ruled Egypt itself (ca. 720-660 BC).

The front page of this web site represents a virtual archaeologist's tent set amid pyramids of Mero‘, capital of the ancient Nubian kingdom. Each section of the site contains information about archaeology and ancient Nubia, as well as interactive applications exploring various aspects of science and Nubian history. The following is a list of the content that can be found on the site:

Explorations (click on the door handle to open the door, then click on the open door)

Investigate archaeological concepts.

Bookshelf (click on the bookshelf, then on the switch)

The Meroitic Primer
Explore the Nubian language and write words in Meroitic hieroglyphs or Meroitic cursive.

Lineage of the Nubian Rulers
Explore what we know about the men and women who ruled ancient Nubia.

Nubian Artifacts Around the World
Archaeologists have discovered many Nubian artifacts. Learn about where you can see these artifacts.

Nubian/ Egyptian Gods and Goddesses
Investigate the many gods and goddesses worshipped by the ancient Nubians and Egyptians.

Who's Who (click on the notebook on the desk and again after it opens)

Explore the various people who work on the study of ancient Nubia.

Galleries (click on the poster twice)

View pictures and video of archaeology and people in the Sudan.

Objects (click on the basket of potsherds twice)

Investigate objects found in archaeological digs in Nubia.

Maps (click on the map, then on the hidden drawing)

Timeline/ Map
Explore ten thousand years of the Nubian story.

Comparative Timeline
Investigate and compare the histories of many cultures.

Trade Map
Explore the geography and natural resources of ancient Nubia and Egypt.

Toolkit (click on the tool chest or the key, then on the tool chest after it opens)

Explore the many tools used by archaeologists.

Parents/Teachers

Learn more about the project and find resources and hands-on activities to further explore archaeology and ancient Nubia.

The traveling exhibit is a fictional recreation of an archaeological dig site that was manufactured for both accuracy and durability. The premise of the exhibit is that the visitor is an archaeologist investigating the tomb of a Nubian queen. (Nubian civilization, unusual in the ancient world, had numerous female rulers.) Visitors to the exhibit will have the opportunity to examine a (plastic) skeleton, try to determine its sex; explore carvings in a pyramid chapel, interpret the name of the dead person by reading the ancient Meroitic script, date the burial by examining the objects found in the tomb, and more.

The project's 30-minute documentary film allows viewers to visit to some of the ancient sites of the Sudan and hear from the archaeologists working there. You can view portions of the film on this web site in the Gallery section.