Stunning visual displays combining exquisitely crafted artifacts and photo murals showcase the history and culture of this almost forgotten kingdom through its three main historical periods, spanning almost 3,000 years. Kush had very strong cultural, historical, and political connections to pharaonic Egypt, especially during the Napatan period, when Kushite kings ruled Egypt for the better part of a century.

In the last few decades, archaeological work in Nubia has shed new light on Kush. The exhibition reinterprets the material through a Nubian lens and discusses the adoption, adaptation, and “Nubianization” of pharaonic style, rituals, and material culture by the Kushite royals. Visitors can learn about this other powerful kingdom on the Nile from an archaeological perspective with hands-on and digital interactives.

A special display highlights a connection to the NCMA’s very own Nubiologist and features recently donated Egyptian objects as comparatives to the Nubian ones in the exhibition.

Ancient Nubia: Excavating Treasures of the Nile is organized by the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, curated by Denise Doxey (Norma Jean Calderwood Curator of Ancient Egyptian, Nubian, and Near Eastern Art).

In Raleigh additional support is made possible, in part, by the North Carolina Department of Natural and Cultural Resources; the North Carolina Museum of Art Foundation, Inc.; and the William R. Kenan Jr. Endowment for Educational Exhibitions. Research for this exhibition was made possible by Ann and Jim Goodnight/The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation Fund for Curatorial and Conservation Research and Travel.