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Diving the Pyramids: Underwater Tombs and Excavation at the Royal Cemetery of Nuri, Sudan

October 19 @ 3:00 pm - 4:30 pm

Mitchell Hall, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee
3202 Downer Avenue
Milwaukee, WI 53211 United States


AIA Society: Milwaukee

Lecturer: Pearce Paul Creasman

The pyramids and necropoleis of Nuri, Sudan, compose one-fifth of the UNESCO World Heritage Site of “Napata” in Sudan. Nuri’s 20 standing pyramids mark the burials of Nubian rulers from the kingdom of Kush, dating from the Napatan period (900-270 BCE). Hundreds of other burials, temples, and monuments spanning millennia cover the 7,500,000+ square feet of the site. The largest pyramid marks the burial of Taharqa (690-664 BCE), the most famous of ancient Egypt’s 25th Dynasty pharaohs, and who is mentioned in the Bible. Taharqa and his relatives brought about a renaissance in art and architecture in Egypt and Nubia. Since 2018, we have been excavating numerous areas of the site, but this talk focuses on the excavation of the pyramid and burial of king Nastasen (died ca. 315 BCE) – the last king buried at the site. Nastasen’s subterranean tomb is now submerged due to rising groundward, requiring novel adaptation of underwater archaeological techniques to “dive the pyramid.”

The Frederick R. and Margaret B. Matson Lectureship for Near Eastern Archaeology and Archaeological Technology

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