Nabta Playa was once a large
basin- Natural forms :* Depression - landform lower than the surrounding area, such as the Kalahari Basin* Drainage basin - in geography and hydrology, a hydrological basin or catchment basin, a region of land where water drains downhill into a specified body of water* Endorheic basin - in geography...
in the
Nubian DesertThe Nubian Desert is in the eastern region of the Sahara Desert, spanning 50,000 km² of northeastern Sudan between the Nile and the Red Sea at .. The arid region, a largely sandstone plateau, has lots of wadis flowing towards the Nile. There is virtually no rainfall in the Nubian, and there are no...
, located approximately 800 kilometers south of modern day
CairoCairo is the capital of Egypt and the largest city in the Arab World. Nicknamed "The City of a Thousand Minarets" for its preponderance of Islamic architecture, Cairo has long been a center of the region's political and cultural life...
or about 100 kilometers west of
Abu SimbelAbu Simbel is an archaeological site comprising two massive rock temples in Nubia, southern Egypt on the western bank of Lake Nasser about 290 km southwest of Aswan...
in southern
EgyptEgypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Western Asia...
, 22° 32' north, 30° 42' east. Today the region is characterized by numerous archaeological sites.
Early history
We have to look at the climate of this remote region before understanding what happened in this barren region. Whilst today, the western Egyptian desert is totally dry, it was not the case in the past. There is good evidence that there were several humid periods in the past (when up to 500 mm of rain would fall per year) the most recent one during the last
interglacialAn interglacial is a geological interval of warmer global average temperature that separates glacial periods within an ice age. The current Holocene interglacial has persisted since the end of the Pleistocene, about 11,400 years ago....
and early last glaciation periods which stretched between 130.000 and 70.000 years ago. During this time, the area was a
savannaA savanna, or savannah, is a grassland ecosystem characterized by the trees being sufficiently small or widely spaced so that the canopy does not close...
and supported numerous animals such as extinct buffalo and large giraffes, varieties of antelope and gazelle.
Beginning around the
10th millennium BCThe 10th millennium BC marks the beginning of the Mesolithic and Epipaleolithic period, which is the first part of the Holocene epoch. Agriculture, based on the cultivation of primitive forms of millet and rice, occurred in Southwest Asia...
, this region of the
Nubian DesertThe Nubian Desert is in the eastern region of the Sahara Desert, spanning 50,000 km² of northeastern Sudan between the Nile and the Red Sea at .. The arid region, a largely sandstone plateau, has lots of wadis flowing towards the Nile. There is virtually no rainfall in the Nubian, and there are no...
began to receive more rainfall, filling a lake. Early people may have been attracted to the region as a source of water.
Archaeological findings indicate occupation in the region dating to somewhere between the
10thThe 10th millennium BC marks the beginning of the Mesolithic and Epipaleolithic period, which is the first part of the Holocene epoch. Agriculture, based on the cultivation of primitive forms of millet and rice, occurred in Southwest Asia...
and
8th millennia BCIn the 8th millennium BC, agriculture becomes widely practiced in the Fertile Crescent and Anatolia.Pottery becomes widespread and animal husbandry spreads to Africa and Eurasia. World population is approximately 5 million.-Events:*c. 8000 BC—Ice Age ends.*c. 8000 BC—Upper Paleolithic period...
. These peoples have been suggested as being early pastoralists, by
Fred WendorfFred Wendorf is Henderson-Morrison Professor of Anthropology at Southern Methodist University. He received his Ph.D. in 1953 from Harvard University, and founded the anthropology department at SMU along with founding the Fort Burgwin Research Center in Taos, New Mexico.Dr...
and
Christopher EhretChristopher Ehret , Professor at the University of California at Los Angeles UCLA, is a major figure in African history and African historical linguistics, particularly known for his efforts to correlate linguistic taxonomy and reconstruction with the archeological record...
, although this is disputed by other sources as the cattle remains found at Nabta have been shown to be morphologically wild in several studies, and nearby Saharan sites such as Uan Afada in Libya were penning wild
Barbary sheepThe Barbary Sheep, Ammotragus lervia, also known as Waddan, is a species of caprid native to rocky mountains in North Africa. Six subspecies have been described. Although it is rare in its native North Africa, it has been introduced to North America, southern Europe and elsewhere.- Description...
, an animal that was never domesticated. They consumed and stored wild sorghum, and used
ceramicA ceramic is an inorganic, non-metallic solid prepared by the action of heat and subsequent cooling. Ceramic materials may have a crystalline or partly crystalline structure, or may be amorphous...
s adorned by complicated
paintPaint is any liquid, liquifiable, or mastic composition which after application to a substrate in a thin layer is converted to an opaque solid film.-History:...
ed patterns created perhaps by using
combA comb or hair polarizer is a toothed device used in hair care for straightening and cleaning hair or other fibers. Combs are among the oldest tools found by archaeologists, having been discovered in very refined forms from settlements dating back to 5000 years ago in Persia.-Description:Combs can...
s made from fish bone.
By the
7th millennium BCDuring the 7th Millennium BC, agriculture spreads from Anatolia to the Balkans.World population is essentially stable at around 5 million people, living mostly scattered across the globe in small hunting-gathering tribes...
, exceedingly large and organized
settlementA town is a type of settlement ranging from a few hundred to several thousand inhabitants, although it may be applied loosely even to huge metropolitan areas; the precise meaning varies between countries and is not always a matter of legal definition...
s may be found in the region, relying also on deep
wellA water well is an excavation or structure created in the ground by digging, driving, boring or drilling to access groundwater in underground aquifers. The well water is drawn by an electric submersible pump, a vertical turbine pump, a handpump or a mechanical pump...
s for sources of water.
HutHut may refer to:*Hut *Hans Hut , an Anabaptist leader*Hut Records, a British audio records company*Sunglass Hut International, largest American retailer of sunglasses*Software Hut, a computer software development company...
s are found constructed in straight
rowRow may refer to:*A series of items placed in a row *Row , a single, implicitly structured data item in a table.*Tone row, in music, a permutation, an arrangement or ordering, of the twelve notes of the chromatic scale...
s. Sustenance included
fruitThe term fruit has different meanings dependent on context, and the term is not synonymous in food preparation and biology. Fruits are the means by which flowering plants disseminate seeds, and the presence of seeds indicates that a structure is most likely a fruit, though not all seeds come from...
,
legumeIn botanical writing legume is a plant in the family Fabaceae , or a fruit of these specific plants. A'legume' fruit is a simple dry fruit that develops from a simple carpel and usually dehisces on two sides. A common name for this type of fruit is a pod, although "pod" is also applied to a few...
s,
milletThe millets are a group of small-seeded species of cereal crops or grains, widely grown around the world for food and fodder. They do not form a taxonomic group, but rather a functional or agronomic one. Their essential similarities are that they are small-seeded grasses grown in difficult...
s,
sorghumSorghum is a genus of numerous species of grasses, some of which are raised for grain and many of which are used as fodder plants either cultivated or as part of pasture. The plants are cultivated in warmer climates worldwide. Species are native to tropical and subtropical regions of all continents...
and
tuberTubers are various types of modified plant structures that are enlarged to store nutrients. They are used by plants to overwinter and regrow the next year and as a means of asexual reproduction. Two different groups of tubers are: stem tubers, and root tubers.- Stem tubers :A stem tuber forms from...
s.
Also in the late
7th millennium BCDuring the 7th Millennium BC, agriculture spreads from Anatolia to the Balkans.World population is essentially stable at around 5 million people, living mostly scattered across the globe in small hunting-gathering tribes...
, but a little later than above, imported
goatThe domestic goat is a subspecies of goat domesticated from the wild goat of southwest Asia and Eastern Europe. The goat is a member of the Bovidae family and is closely related to the sheep: both are in the goat-antelope subfamily Caprinae. There are over three hundred distinct breeds of...
s and sheep, apparently from
Southwest AsiaWestern Asia, West Asia, Southwest Asia or Southwestern Asia are terms that describe the westernmost portion of Asia. The terms are partly coterminous with the Middle East - which describes geographical position in relation to Western Europe rather than location within Asia...
http://www.comp-archaeology.org/WendorfSAA98.html, appear. Many large
hearthIn common historic and modern usage, a hearth is a brick- or stone-lined fireplace or oven used for cooking and/or heating. Because of its nature, in historic times the hearth was considered an integral part of a home, often its central or most important feature: its Latin name is focus...
s also appear.
High level of organization
Archaeological discoveries reveal that these
prehistoricPrehistory is a term used to describe the period before recorded history. Paul Tournal originally coined the term Pré-historique in describing the finds he had made in the caves of southern France...
peoples led livelihoods seemingly at a higher level of organization than their contemporaries who lived closer to the
Nile ValleyThe Nile is a major north-flowing river in Africa, generally regarded as the longest river in the world....
:
- above-ground & below-ground stone
In geology, rock is a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals and/or mineraloids.The Earth's outer solid layer, the lithosphere, is made of rock. In general rocks are of three types, namely, igneous, sedimentary, and metamorphic...
constructionIn the fields of architecture and civil engineering, construction is a process that consists of the building or assembling of infrastructure. Far from being a single activity, large scale construction is a feat of multitasking...
,
- village
A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet, but smaller than a town or city. Though often located in rural areas, the term urban village is also applied to certain urban neighbourhoods, such as the West Village in Manhattan, New York City and the Saifi Village in...
s designed in pre-planned arrangements, and
- deep well
A water well is an excavation or structure created in the ground by digging, driving, boring or drilling to access groundwater in underground aquifers. The well water is drawn by an electric submersible pump, a vertical turbine pump, a handpump or a mechanical pump...
s that held water year-round.
Findings also indicate that the region was occupied only seasonally, likely only in the
summerSummer is one of the four temperate seasons, marked by the time of year with the longest days, and lies between spring and autumn. The seasons are popularly considered to start on different dates in different cultures based on astronomy and regional meteorology. When it is summer in the southern...
when the local lake filled with water for grazing
cattleCattle are the most common type of large domesticated ungulates. They are a prominent modern member of the subfamily Bovinae, are the most widespread species of the genus Bos, and are most commonly classified collectively as Bos primigenius...
. Analysis of human remains suggest migration from
sub-Saharan AfricaSub-Saharan Africa is a geographical term used to describe the area of the African continent which lies south of the Sahara, or those African countries which are fully or partially located south of the Sahara...
.
Religious ties to ancient Egypt
By the
6th millennium BCDuring the 6th millennium BC, agriculture spreads from the Balkans to Italy and Eastern Europe and from Mesopotamia to Egypt. World population is essentially stable at ca. 5 million people.-Events:...
, evidence of a prehistoric
religionA religion is a system of human thought which usually includes a set of narratives, symbols, beliefs and practices that give meaning to the practitioner's experiences of life through reference to a higher power, deity or deities, or ultimate truth...
or
cultCult may popularly refer to a religious group with relatively few adherents whose beliefs or practices are regarded by others as strange or sinister.The term "cult" was originally used to denote a system of ritual practices...
appears, with a number of
sacrificeSacrifice is commonly known as the practice of offering food, objects , or the lives of animals or people to the gods as an act of propitiation or worship...
d cattle buried in
stoneIn geology, rock is a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals and/or mineraloids.The Earth's outer solid layer, the lithosphere, is made of rock. In general rocks are of three types, namely, igneous, sedimentary, and metamorphic...
-roofed chambers lined with
clayClay is a naturally occurring material composed primarily of fine-grained minerals, which show plasticity through a variable range of water content, and which can be hardened when dried and/or fired...
. It has been suggested that the associated
cattleCattle are the most common type of large domesticated ungulates. They are a prominent modern member of the subfamily Bovinae, are the most widespread species of the genus Bos, and are most commonly classified collectively as Bos primigenius...
cultCult may popularly refer to a religious group with relatively few adherents whose beliefs or practices are regarded by others as strange or sinister.The term "cult" was originally used to denote a system of ritual practices...
indicated in Nabta Playa marks an early evolution of
Ancient EgyptAncient Egypt was an ancient civilization of eastern North Africa, concentrated along the lower reaches of the Nile River in what is now the modern country of Egypt. The civilization coalesced around 3150 BC with the political unification of Upper and Lower Egypt under the first pharaoh, and...
's
HathorHathor , , was an Ancient Egyptian goddess who personified the principles of feminine love, motherhood and joy. She was one of the most important and popular deities throughout the history of Ancient Egypt...
cultCult may popularly refer to a religious group with relatively few adherents whose beliefs or practices are regarded by others as strange or sinister.The term "cult" was originally used to denote a system of ritual practices...
. For example, Hathor was worshipped as a nighttime protector in desert regions (see
Serabit el-KhadimSerabit el-Khadim is a locality in the south-west Sinai Peninsula where turquoise was mined extensively in antiquity, mainly by the ancient Egyptians...
). To directly quote professors Wendorf and Schild:
- ... there are many aspects of political and ceremonial life in the Predynastic
The Predynastic Period of Ancient Egypt is traditionally the period between the Early Neolithic and the beginning of the Pharaonic monarchy starting with King Narmer...
and Old Kingdom that reflects a strong impact from SaharaThe Sahara , , "The Greatest Desert") is the world's largest hot desert. At over 9,000,000 square kilometres , it covers most of Northern Africa, making it almost as large as the United States or the continent of Europe. The desert stretches from the Red Sea, including parts of the Mediterranean...
n cattle pastoralistsPastoralism or pastoral farming is the branch of agriculture concerned with the raising of livestock. It is animal husbandry: the care, tending and use of animals such as camels, goats, cattle, yaks, llamas, sheep, and so forth. It may have a mobile aspect, moving the herds in search of fresh...
...
Nevertheless, though the religious practices of the region involving cattle suggest ties to
Ancient EgyptAncient Egypt was an ancient civilization of eastern North Africa, concentrated along the lower reaches of the Nile River in what is now the modern country of Egypt. The civilization coalesced around 3150 BC with the political unification of Upper and Lower Egypt under the first pharaoh, and...
, Egyptologist
Mark LehnerMark Lehner, Ph.D., is an American archaeologist with more than thirty years of experience excavating in Egypt. His approach, as director of Ancient Egypt Research Associates , is to conduct interdisciplinary archaeological investigation...
cautions:
- It makes sense, but not in a facile, direct way. You can't go straight from these megaliths to the pyramid of Djoser
Netjerikhet or Djoser is the best-known pharaoh of the Third dynasty of Egypt. He commissioned his official, Imhotep , to build the first of the pyramids, a step pyramid for him at Saqqara...
.
Other subterranean complexes are also found in Nabta Playa, one of which included evidence of perhaps an early Egyptian attempt at
sculptureSculpture is three-dimensional artwork created by shaping or combining hard and/or plastic material, sound, and/or text and or light, commonly stone , metal, glass, or wood. Some sculptures are created directly by finding or carving; others are assembled, built together and fired, welded, molded,...
.
One of the world's earliest known examples of archeoastronomy
By the
5th millennium BCThe 5th millennium BC saw the spread of agriculture from the Near East throughout southern and central Europe.Urban cultures in Mesopotamia and Anatolia flourish, developing the wheel. Copper ornaments become more common, marking the Chalcolithic. Animal husbandry spreads throughout Eurasia,...
these peoples had fashioned one of the world's earliest known archeoastronomical devices (roughly contemporary to the
Goseck circleThe Goseck circle is a Neolithic structure in Goseck in the Burgenlandkreis district in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. It consists of a set of concentric ditches 75 meters across and two palisade rings containing gates in defined places. It is considered the earliest sun observatory currently known in...
in Germany and the
MnajdraMnajdra is a megalithic temple complex found on the on the southern coast of the Mediterranean island of Malta. Mnajdra is approximately 500 metres from the Ħaġar Qim megalithic complex...
megalithic temple complex in Malta), about 1000 years older than but comparable to
StonehengeStonehenge is a prehistoric monument located in the English county of Wiltshire, about west of Amesbury and north of Salisbury. One of the most famous sites in the world, Stonehenge is composed of earthworks surrounding a circular setting of large standing stones and sits at the centre of the...
(see sketch at right). Research suggests that it may have been a prehistoric
calendarA calendar is a system of organizing days for social, religious, commercial, or administrative purposes. This is done by giving names to periods of time, typically days, weeks, months, and years. The name given to each day is known as a date. Periods in a calendar are usually, though not...
which accurately marks the
summerSummer is one of the four temperate seasons, marked by the time of year with the longest days, and lies between spring and autumn. The seasons are popularly considered to start on different dates in different cultures based on astronomy and regional meteorology. When it is summer in the southern...
solsticeA solstice is an astronomical event that happens twice each year, when the tilt of the Earth's axis is most inclined toward or away from the Sun, causing the Sun's apparent position in the sky to reach its northernmost or southernmost extreme...
.
The research done by the astrophysicist Thomas G. Brophy suggests that these
monolithA monolith is a geological feature such as a mountain, consisting of a single massive stone or rock, or a single piece of rock placed as, or within, a monument...
s might tell much more. The calendar circle itself is made up of one doorway that runs north-south, a second that runs northeast-southwest marking the summer solstice, and six center stones (see sketch above). Brophy's hypothesis proposes first that the southerly line of three stones inside the calendar circle represented the three stars of Orion’s Belt and the other three stones inside the calendar circle represented the shoulders and head stars of
OrionOrion, often referred to as "The Hunter," is a prominent constellation located on the celestial equator and visible throughout the world. It is one of the largest, most conspicuous, and most recognizable in the night sky...
as they appeared in the sky. These correspondences were for two dates -- circa 4,800 BC and at precessional opposition -- representing how the sky "moves" long term. Brophy proposes that the circle was constructed and used circa the later date, and the dual date representation was a conceptual representation of the motion of the sky over a precession cycle.
Near by the calendar circle, which is made of smaller stones, there are alignments of large megalithic stones. The southerly lines of these megaliths, Brophy shows, aligned to the same stars as represented in the calendar circle, all at the same epoch, circa 6270 BC. The calendar circle correlation with Orion's belt occurred between 6400 BC and 4900 BC, matching the radio-carbon dating of campfires around the circle.
Brophy found that the lines made to these megaliths match the spots in the sky where the various stars rose in vernal equinox
heliacal risingThe heliacal rising of a star occurs when it first becomes visible above the eastern horizon at dawn, after a period when it was hidden below the horizon or when it was just above the horizon but hidden by the brightness of the sun.Each day after the heliacal rising, the star will appear to rise...
. In analyzing the varying distances, mulling through assumptions such as that they represented the brightness of the stars, he inadvertently found that they matched the distance of the stars from Earth on a scale of roughly 1 meter = .8 light years within the margin of error for astronomical distances calculated today..
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