(ORDO NEWS) — Recently, archaeologists have discovered in Old Dongola (Sudan) the remains of an ancient temple, which is 2700 years old.
The find sheds new light on the religious practices of the kingdom of Kush, which once ruled over a vast territory spanning present-day Sudan, Egypt, and parts of the Middle East.
The find consisted of stone blocks decorated with hieroglyphs and inscriptions, including references to the god Amun-Ra.
Archaeologists have discovered the remains of a temple in Old Dongola, which is believed to have been built about 2,700 years ago.
The temple was built at a time when the kingdom of Kush ruled over a large area covering Egypt, Sudan and parts of the Middle East.
The remains of the temple were found in the medieval citadel at Old Dongola, located between the third and fourth rapids of the Nile River.
Some of the stone blocks of the temple were decorated with complex hieroglyphic inscriptions and images.
Experts who analyzed the iconography and writing noted that the building probably dates back to the first half of the first millennium BC.
This discovery is particularly noteworthy as no finds from that time period had previously been found at Old Dongola.
Researchers from the Polish Center for Mediterranean Archeology at the University of Warsaw made the discovery, noting that the remains of the temple contain fragments of inscriptions.
Among them were references to Amon-Ra of Kava, a god worshiped in both Kush and Egypt.
The exact origin of the temple remains unclear.
It is not clear if the blocks were taken from the temple at Kawa or if they were moved to Old Dongola from other places such as Gebel Barkal, another place in Sudan that has several temples and pyramids.
Professor Julia Budka of the Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich, who has done extensive research in Sudan, called the discovery “very important” and noted that it raises several important questions that will need to be explored in further research.
Excavations at the site of the temple in Old Dongola continue under the leadership of Artur Obluska, an archaeologist from the Polish Center for Mediterranean Archeology.
As researchers continue to explore the site and piece together the temple’s origins and significance, we can expect to learn more about the role of religious architecture in the ancient world and how it was used to establish political and social bonds.
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