All language subtitles for Unearthed Series 6 Part 13 Lost Kingdom of Kush 1080p

Narrator: Meroe, sudan.

Strange pyramids rise out
from the golden desert sands.

Creasman: Meroe is evocative.

It's awe-inspiring.

Narrator: This forgotten
landscape is almost all

That remains
of a lost civilization:

The kingdom of kush.

Naunton: The kingdom of kush is
one of the great success stories

Of ancient africa.

Narrator: Who are the mysterious
people of kush?

Why did they build these
strange pyramids

In the desert 2,000 miles
from the heart of ancient egypt?

Naunton: Oh, wow.

This is really amazing to see.

Narrator: Now, archaeologists
use ancient technology

To reconstruct the kushites'
greatest monuments...

...And explore the tombs
and temples of egypt

To investigate their rise
to become pharaohs.

Creasman: They did something
that no one else had.

The kushites take control
of egypt.

Narrator:
To discover the secrets
of this lost civilization,

We'll deconstruct their
mysterious desert pyramids,

Explore hidden tombs,
unearth their buried treasure

And reveal how the lost kings of
kush conquer and rule all egypt.

-- Captions by vitac --
www.Vitac.Com

Captions paid for by
discovery communications

Meroe, sudan.

The remains of a city
lie abandoned

For almost 2,000 years.

Naunton: Seeing the magical
pyramids of meroe

Emerging out
of the desert nothingness

Is an absolutely
astonishing sight.

Narrator: The mysterious
pyramids seem to echo

The ancient landscapes of egypt,

But these steep-sided structures
are built over 2,000 years

After the great pyramids
at giza.

They belong to the kings
of a people

Who lived
thousands of miles from egypt:

The kushites, an ancient
black african civilization.

Naunton: Kush was a kingdom of
huge achievements in which

There were more pyramids
built than there were in egypt.

Narrator:
Standing tall at meroe,

These elegant structures
have steep sides

Pitched up to 81 degrees.

Though in ruins today,
in the 3rd century b.C.,

They are perfect pyramids,

Some towering 100 feet tall
with decorated gateways

At the front
depicting kings and queens.

Painted with bold colors, over
200 spread across the landscape.

Why do the kushites build
pyramids 1,000 miles from egypt

And 1,000 years after the
egyptians stopped building them?

Egyptologist chris naunton has
studied meroe for over a decade.

He thinks there's a connection

Between
these striking structures

And the birthplace
of the pyramids, ancient egypt.

Naunton: Egypt is one of the
richest countries in the world

Archaeologically,
and it tells us a huge amount

About the peoples
who lived around egypt,

How the egyptians
interacted with them.

Narrator:
His investigation starts
1,000 miles north of meroe

At the ancient necropolis
of deir el-medina.

♪

Here, chris believes he can
trace links

Between egypt and meroe.

Naunton: Oh, wow.

This is really amazing to see.

Narrator: Small
pyramid-shaped constructions

Sit at the entrance
to the tombs.

Though restored today,

Their foundations date to 1,300
years before the meroe pyramids.

Naunton: What's really striking
about it is how similar

It is to the pyramids of meroe
with these much steeper sides

Than the ones that we see
somewhere like giza

And then this monumental doorway
here,

And we see those
in meroe as well.

Narrator: Chris thinks that
these kushite structures

Share their function with
the pyramids of deir el-medina.

They serve as gateways to tombs
cut into the mountain.

When meroe is first excavated,
hidden sections below ground

Are recorded
in the archaeological plans.

Naunton: There's a descending
staircase cut into the ground,

And then underneath,
a set of burial compartments,

So altogether the function
of the pyramid

And subterranean chamber
is as a tomb.

Narrator:
The pyramids at deir el-medina

Are strikingly similar
to the kushite monuments.

Could this just be
a coincidence?

Clues could lie within these
strange structures.

Each pyramid at meroe starts
with an infill of earth

And rubble

Piling up around a wooden pole
buried in the middle.

Two layers of sandstone blocks
make up the outer walls

That stand 30 degrees steeper
than any egyptian pyramid.

A carved capstone
finishes the top.

Two layers of plaster
give a smooth finish.

Many are painted bold colors,

And some decorated
with striking star designs.

Can the techniques used
to build them

Reveal a kushite connection
with egypt?

Adel kelany is an expert
in kushite construction.

He thinks the methods used to
achieve the pyramids' tall,

Thin design reveals a direct
link with ancient egypt.

At his sandstone-quarry
workshop,

He designs and builds a model
to investigate.

To solve the problem,
adel thinks the kushites used

A piece
of ancient egyptian technology

That dates back thousands
of years before meroe is built.

If he's right, it could be proof
that the kushite engineers

Have a direct connection
with egypt.

A shaduf is a counterbalance
crane-like device

Used to haul water
for irrigation.

The wooden shaft discovered
at meroe could be a clue

That the kushites adapted
to build pyramids,

But can this simple
wooden device

Lift huge blocks of sandstone?

To investigate, adel's team
loads his replica shaduf

With a 90-pound rock.

Using the counterbalance,

The men lift the first stone
with ease...

...And set it in position.

But the capstones
that complete the pyramids

Can weigh over 150 pounds.

Can the wooden shaduf lift
a stone this heavy?

The men pull down
on the counterbalance

And lift the huge stone
into the air.

Kelany: Higher, higher, higher.

Yeah, yeah, perfect.
It's okay.

A little bit --
a little bit -- perfect.

Narrator: The stone is safely
lowered into place.

In just 10 minutes, adel's team
lift three blocks

Of heavy sandstone into place
at the top of the pyramid.

Their modification
of the shaduf design suggests

The kushite engineers have
direct links to ancient egypt.

The kushite workers pile up
rubble and sand

And cover it
with sandstone blocks

To build the bottom
half of the pyramid.

Then they use a shaduf
as a crane

To haul the heavy stones
up to the top

And finish each pyramid
with ease.

To hide the shaduf,
they cut off the tip

And cover it with an ornate
carved capstone.

With this ingenious technique,

The kushites build over 200
steep-sided pyramids,

More than the egyptians
in their entire history.

The pyramids of meroe have
a striking design

That has its roots
in ancient egypt,

Evidence of links between these
great african civilizations,

But why do the kushites build
pyramids at meroe 1,000 years

After the egyptians stop
building them?

Is there more to their
relationship than just

An imitation
of egyptian architecture?

Treasures from inside
the meroe pyramids

Could reveal a shocking
period of violence

When the two civilizations
come face-to-face.

Narrator: The pyramids of meroe:
Stunning remains of a lost

African civilization,
the kushites.

Built using ancient technology

Pioneered 1,000 miles away
in egypt,

They are evidence
of a connection

Between their builders
and the mighty egyptians.

But where does
this relationship begin?

Can its origins shed light

On why the kushites build
egyptian-style pyramids?

Clues could lie with
an astonishing discovery

Beneath the ruins of meroe.

Hidden deep under the pyramid
are two chambers

Carved into the sandstone.

In the back room
is a burial chest.

Inside, the treasures of kushite
queen amanishakheto:

Priceless gold jewelry,
beautifully detailed bracelets

And over a dozen gold signet
rings with intricate images

Reflecting the queen's power.

Can the gold hoards of meroe

Reveal a connection
between kush and egypt?

♪

To hunt for clues,

Chris naunton investigates
an ancient tomb in luxor.

Naunton:
This incredibly beautiful scene
shows a series of people,

And they're identified
by their appearance,

By the black color of the skin

That some of them have
and also by the inscriptions,

And these people include,
here, chiefs of kush.

Narrator: Painted 1,000 years
before meroe is built,

This is one of the earliest
images of kushites in egypt.

Naunton:
All these people are bringing
various different commodities

Towards something
further down the scene,

So, for example,
we have cattle here.

There's even a giraffe,
and this group here

Is bringing something
very special on these trays.

These are rings of solid gold.

Narrator:
Hundreds of gold bars and rings
are painted in the scene.

3,000 years ago,
gold is one of the most

Sought-after substances
in ancient egypt.

Naunton:
It's pretty clear that there was
a huge quantity of gold

Coming from the south
into egypt.

Narrator:
The gold trade helps fund

The growth of
the kushite civilization.

Chris thinks egypt's greed
for gold

Brings it closer to kush.

Naunton: Control of gold,
control of trade in gold,

Was a key factor in
the expanding relationship

Between egypt and kush.

Narrator: Through the gold
trade, kush is introduced

To the wonders
of egyptian civilization

Like the royal pyramid burial
sites at giza and saqqara,

But gold alone can't have
inspired the kushites

To build pyramids.

Countless civilizations
trade with egypt,

But none copy
their iconic structures,

And there are signs
that the relationship

Between kush and egypt
has a dark side.

Naunton: All this gold is being
brought to this figure,

Who stands inside this shrine

With a frieze of cobras
at the top.

Narrator: The gold here is also
an offering to a higher power.

The image is badly damaged,
but this is one

Of the most important
figures of ancient egypt.

Naunton: We in fact know from
inscriptions

Elsewhere in the tomb
that this is king tutankhamun.

Narrator:
It's believed that tutankhamun's
burial treasure is made

From kushite gold
used to make

His sarcophagus
and funerary mask.

Centuries before tutankhamun
rules egypt,

Kushites strike gold
in the banks of the nile.

With its newfound wealth,

Kush builds a powerful army
of skilled archers.

Egypt builds 14 forts along
the kushite border on the nile

To station troops
and control the gold trade.

And in the 16th century b.C.,

Pharaoh thutmose I conquers the
kush and takes all their gold.

In the years after he invades,

Signs of an even more sinister
side to egypt appear.

Kushite expert
pearce paul creasman

Investigates the great temple
of abu simbel in aswan.

He thinks there's evidence here
of the true nature

Of kush's relationship
with egypt.

Creasman: When you see this,
you can't help but be awestruck.

It's incredible.

Ramesses the great choosing
to build a temple here,

On the border with kush,
is a statement piece.

Narrator:
Among the lavish decorations

Are images of kushites
bound together.

Inside the temple, the king
himself is depicted

Violently punishing
his kushite captives.

Creasman:
Here, we have ramesses the great
rearing back, holding a mace,

Ready to strike his captives,
holding them in his other hand.

It's showing
the forthcoming action

If people don't get in line.

Narrator: But pearce paul thinks
behind this show of strength,

A very different message
can be deciphered.

Creasman: Why does anybody
intimidate anyone else?

Maybe because there's
a little bit of fear,

Concern about the rise
of their southern neighbor.

Narrator:
Abu simbel is designed to remind
kush of egypt's dominance.

But if kush is reduced
to an egyptian colony,

Why do its people imitate

The pyramids
of their tyrannical overlords?

Could mysterious artifacts
unearthed at meroe

Reveal how kushites go
from prisoners to invaders?

Narrator: The ancient ruins of
the meroe pyramids in sudan:

The spectacular architectural
legacy of the kushites.

To find out why they build them,
experts are investigating links

Between kush and the birthplace
of ancient pyramids, egypt.

But in the 13th century b.C.,

Kush is a colony ruled
by the egyptian pharaoh.

What changes make kush adopt the
architecture of its overlords?

A clue could lie inside
a pyramid at meroe.

Near the entrance, investigators
unearth a strange statue:

A bird with a human head

Believed to keep the spirit of
the dead alive in the afterlife,

And deeper inside the chamber,

A stone offering table
with mysterious symbols

Carved around the edge.

In the center, two gods of the
dead pouring liquid offerings

Into the earth...

...A powerful symbol
of kushite worship

Of the natural environment.

Creasman:
Offering tables in tombs,

They're an essential aspect
of this deal

Between humanity
and the gods to maintain order.

Narrator:
Evidence is emerging that the
kushite prayers are answered.

Pearce paul creasman thinks
that the natural world

Helps kush flip
the power balance with egypt.

Creasman:
The offerings were often
about ensuring fertility,

Trying to ensure
that the annual floods came.

The annual floods probably play
an important role

In the rise of kush.

Narrator: The nile is crucial
for kush and egypt.

Their power and wealth
depend on its annual flood.

To investigate this life-giving
resource,

Pearce paul disembarks
at a riverbank

Where the trees record
fertility year after year.

He uses an increment borer
to examine the growth of a tree.

Creasman:
This is a core from the tree.

It's very faint, but you can
just see some darker

And lighter bands.

Narrator: Pearce paul marks up
the different bands.

Creasman: In the case of trees
right by the edge of the nile,

It's telling us about how much
water was available to them.

Narrator:
A ticker growth band means the
tree has absorbed more water.

In ancient egypt,

The water supply is dictated
by the annual floods.

Creasman: The annual floods
were the lifeblood

Of ancient egypt and kush.

Each year, the floods came down
and redeposited

New silt and water.

They overflowed the banks
of the nile

And allowed people to plant
a much broader area of the land.

Narrator:
To monitor the progress of this
critical natural process,

The ancient egyptians invent
an ingenious device

Called a nilometer.

At elephantine island
in the aswan region,

Pearce paul investigates
a nilometer that dates

Back over 3,000 years.

Built into the riverbank,
it's a hidden staircase

That disappears
into the nile waters.

Creasman:
So here, we're at the bottom
of the nilometer right now.

As the water is lapping
against the wall,

You can see exactly
where it changes.

Narrator:
Marks cut into the walls

Are used to measure
the height of the river.

Creasman: People could measure
whether or not

It was going to be
a good harvest,

Hoping, praying
for the waters to rise.

Narrator: When floodwaters in
egypt are critically low,

A bad harvest can hit
the economy hard,

Giving kush a chance to strike
back at their oppressors.

Creasman: A series of lower
floods would create a situation

Like a chaos for the egyptians.

If there isn't enough food
to feed everybody,

Power structures
start weakening,

And we see that in the years
leading up

To the rise of the kush.

Narrator:
In the 12th century b.C.,

The waters of the nile
are extremely low.

Central egypt's power weakens.

1,000 miles south,
kush is unaffected by the chaos.

Creasman: In kush, the
floodplains are smaller,

And there are fewer people,
so the level of the flood

Is perhaps less critical
in any given year

Than it would have
been in egypt.

It would have been a really
golden opportunity for them

To have a resurgence
and a rebirth.

Narrator:
The forces of nature finally
give kush an opportunity

To break free of egyptian rule.

But egypt is still a more
powerful civilization than kush.

How can the kushites take on
the imperial might of egypt?

Pearce paul visits
the antiquities museum in cairo,

The world's greatest collection
of egyptian

Archaeological treasures.

He examines a stele carved
in honor of piankhi,

A black african kushite

Who wants to end
egypt's rule over kush.

Creasman:
This is an essential document.

For hundreds of years,
egypt had been fractured.

This is the kushite resurgence.

These were chieftains,

But they are bowing down
at the feet of the king,

Demonstrating his power.

Narrator:
The hieroglyphic code reveals
a great kushite uprising

And how the kush eventually
conquer all of egypt.

Creasman: It tells us that they
were strong

Because they conquered
major cities and centers

In the ancient capitals
of egypt.

This is the moment
that the kushite king

Overtook the egyptians.

Narrator:
In the 8th century b.C.,
piankhi's archers marched north,

Conquering much
of the nile valley.

Piankhi takes control of
lower egypt

Before leading his army
north to the capital, memphis.

Victory here means rule
over all egypt.

Piankhi, a kushite king,

Conquers the land
of the pyramids,

But victory alone can't explain

Why kushites build similar
structures at meroe.

No other invaders
of egypt build pyramids.

Why do the kush do it?

More clues could lie
in shocking events

That happen after
the kushites invade.

Narrator: The pyramids of meroe

Have baffled archaeologists
for centuries.

Why do the kushites build
over 200 structures

Modeled on some of the most
iconic buildings on the planet,

The pyramids of egypt?

Could the answer lie in egypt
and kush's volatile

History of conquest
and colonization?

Chris naunton looks for clues
at the great temple of karnak.

Naunton: The decoration and the
inscriptions on these buildings

Allows us to read something
of egyptian history

Into what we're
looking at here.

Narrator:
Chris thinks evidence of
a shocking kushite impact here

Could provide clues to why they
build the pyramids of meroe.

Among the remains of a building
at the heart of the complex,

He examines
the hieroglyphic sign

Of one of egypt's
most surprising rulers.

Naunton: Even in a small temple,
we can see royal names,

And we can tell when
we've got a royal name

Because the hieroglyphic signs
are enclosed in a name ring

Which we call a cartouche.

That's exactly
what we've got here.

This is a very interesting
name though.

This is the name taharqa,
and taharqa was a kushite.

Narrator: 40 years after
piankhi invades,

The kushites consolidate
their control of egypt,

But taharqa
is no ordinary kushite.

He changes egypt forever.

♪

Taharqa leaves his mark
on karnak,

The most important
temple in egypt.

♪

He builds colossal pillars
at the entrance

With his name
inscribed all over them.

Alongside a sacred lake,
he builds a grand new temple

With carvings
depicting his divine status.

Inside, he erects a sculpture
of himself

Wearing two cobras
on his headdress.

Could this be a clue to why

Kush build egyptian-style
pyramids at meroe?

♪

To find out, chris examines
the intricate carvings

Of taharqa up close.

Naunton:
This is taharqa, and he's
wearing a cobra at his brow,

But there's just the faint
traces of a second one here.

Narrator: The second cobra
is badly damaged,

But the headdress reveals
taharqa's position

Here in egypt.

Naunton:
Only one person in the country

Had the privilege of wearing
the cobra at the brow here.

This is clearly the image
of a pharaoh.

Narrator: Taharqa, a kushite,
is a black pharaoh of egypt...

...And wearing two cobras
could be a clue

That he is more powerful than
any other pharaoh before him.

Naunton:
It's possible each of these
represents the idea of their

Having ruled over two kingdoms,
both kush and egypt.

Narrator:
Ruling over both peoples,

Taharqa combines
the two territories,

Merging them
into one huge kingdom.

3,500 years ago,

Kush is a small
independent kingdom

That sits along
the banks of the nile.

By the time of taharqa,

His two kingdoms stretch
almost 2,000 miles,

Ruling more of the great nile
valley than anyone before him.

Chris
explores the temple complex.

He finds evidence of other
kushite pharaohs

With the double cobra.

It's proof that taharqa is not
the only kushite pharaoh.

Naunton: In fact, there were
five kushites

Who became kings of egypt,

So this was
an entire dynasty of kushites

Ruling as pharaoh in egypt.

It's an extraordinary reversal
of fortunes for kush and egypt.

Narrator: Piankhi's invasion
marks the beginning

Of over a century
of kushite rule.

They become known as the kings
of the 25th dynasty,

The black pharaohs of egypt.

Naunton: The kushites had
a constant, ever-changing

And at times very dramatic
relationship with egypt.

By the time they became
pharaohs themselves,

They were already egyptianized.

Narrator: The kush rule the land
of the pyramids

But don't build their pyramids
then and there.

Why do they build them
500 years later

And 1,000 miles away in meroe?

Their fate in egypt could
finally reveal the answers.

Shocking discoveries at
the heart of ancient luxor

Could be evidence
of a catastrophic change

In fortunes
for the black pharaohs.

Narrator:
In the 8th century b.C.,

Kushite pharaohs rule
all of egypt.

So why do they leave
to build pyramids

1,000 miles away at meroe?

Answers could lie
in the ultimate fate

Of the kushite kings.

To investigate,
chris naunton has come

To the great temple
of karnak in egypt.

Here, traces of the black
pharaoh dynasty still remain.

In a temple at the edge
of the complex,

He examines the carved
image of shebitku,

The second kushite pharaoh
to rule egypt.

Naunton: This is an image of
pharaoh, and again,

It's an image of a king looking
very distinctively kushite,

A double cobra at the brow,

And one of those cobras
is quite well-preserved.

The other one is not
much more of a shadow,

But what that tells us

Is that that's been
deliberately hacked away.

Narrator:
Chris thinks this is evidence

Of a turn
against the kushite kings.

Naunton:
They were not egyptians.

They were outsiders
at this time.

They'd lost control of egypt.

They reverted to being egypt's
enemy again,

And that's perhaps why
later pharaohs wanted to remove

All memory of there ever having
been kushite kings in egypt

By removing this distinctive
feature, this second cobra,

And this is really a very,
very striking moment

In egyptian history.

Narrator:
The destroyed cobra symbolizes

The end of kushite rule
over egypt,

But it's not the egyptians
that strip them of the crown.

The kushite pharaohs fall
at the hands of a powerful ruler

From the east:
King esarhaddon of assyria.

The assyrian king conquers
the kush with his huge army,

Bringing kushite rule in egypt
to an end.

The assyrians rule
for just 12 years,

But they force
the kushites 800 miles south,

Back out of egypt
into kush territory,

But even their homeland
can't offer the kush safety.

Pearce paul creasman thinks
a new force

Pushes them
further south to meroe.

At the great temple
of abu-simbel

On the ancient border
with egypt,

He tracks down the identity
of kush's latest enemy.

Creasman: Just under the left
knee of ramesses the great,

You can see a greek inscription.

It's actually a graffiti.

It tells us about the exploits
of mercenaries

Sent down by the king,
psamtik ii.

Narrator:
Psamtik ii is a new pharaoh

Who rules egypt after his father
expels the assyrians.

Pearce paul thinks
this graffiti

Is evidence of a new
egyptian invasion of kush.

The proof is in the ancient name
the egyptians used to describe

Enemies from the south:
The people of the nine bows.

Creasman: The nine bows are
a representation,

A way of talking
about the enemy.

This graffiti specifically
mentions the nine bows

As the enemy
that needs to be tended.

There's no question
that this talks

About a combined egyptian
and mercenary army

Being sent by the pharaoh
into the land of the kush.

Narrator: On the island of
kalabsha near aswan,

A record of the battle
is preserved on a stone carving.

Pearce paul decodes
the hieroglyphic story

Cut into the granite.

Creasman:
In this section, it's saying the
king is strong and successful,

Strong of arm and he who smites
the people of the nine bows.

It tells us that he brought back
4,200 captives,

Not one of them escaping,

And waded in their blood
as water.

Narrator:
In the 6th century b.C.,

Pharaoh psamtik ii's army
descends on kush,

Forcing its people
200 miles south to meroe.

Here, the kush build a new
capital,

Complete with beautiful palaces,
temples and pyramids.

Kush's relationship with egypt
develops over 3,000 years.

They rise to rule egypt,

Adopting the pharaonic way
of life and way of death.

The kushite pyramids at meroe
can be seen as symbols

Of their adaption
of egyptian civilization.

After egypt eventually
collapses, meroe survives

As the last bastion
of this iconic ancient culture.

Kushite civilization
thrives at meroe for 650 years.

By 350 a.D., the kingdom of kush
disappears completely.

What wipes it out?

Mysterious artifacts unearthed
from an ancient chapel

Could reveal
how kush meets its end.

Narrator:
At their peak, the kushites rise
from the shadows of egypt

To rule the greatest empire
in the ancient world.

But 100 years
after their conquest,

The kush are forced
out of egypt.

They construct a new capital
at meroe,

Building over 200 iconic
egypt-inspired pyramids,

But by 350 a.D., the kushites
vanish from history.

What destroys
the once-powerful kushites?

A clue could lie in a strange
building nestling

Among the kushite pyramids.

Hidden in the ruins
of a christian church,

Archaeologists make
a surprising find.

The stone slabs that line
the central aisle

Have intriguing carvings.

They depict kushite rulers
making offerings to the gods

With lines and lines of
a mysterious kushite language.

These are sacred steles once
belonging to a kushite pyramid.

So what are these kushite
artifacts

Doing on the floor
of a christian church?

♪

To investigate,
pearce paul creasman explores

A temple on the island
of kalabsha in aswan.

On a wall of the temple,
he finds a carving that

Could explain
the end of the kingdom of kush.

It depicts silko,
a king of what was kush.

He wears roman armor
and sits astride a horse.

Creasman: What we can see in
the iconography here is change.

This is silko adopting something
like roman-type regalia,

And then looking up
in the corner,

Anointing this king is something
that looks very familiar to us.

Look at the wings on his back.

We'd call that an angel.

This is very early
christian iconography.

It's a major shift
from the kushite world

To the christian world.

Narrator: Rome invades kush
in the 1st century a.D.

The kush become romanized.

When the roman empire
becomes christian

In the 4th century a.D.,

Its client kings, like silko,
become christian too.

Creasman:
If silko represents the
introduction of christianity

After the fall of kush,
it helps to explain why we see

At all of these kushite sites
reuse of the kushite monuments

And blocks being built
into new christian churches.

By the time that silko lived
and ruled, kush was no more.

Narrator: As christianity sweeps
through africa,

The sacred pyramids of kush
are ransacked and abandoned.

Many of the iconic structures
stand for thousands of years,

Yet today, they lie in ruins.

What finally destroys these
once-proud monuments?

Over thousands of years,

Sandstorms erode
the weaker pyramids,

But a hidden force
must be responsible

For the destruction
of the remaining structures.

At his quarry workshop,
adel kelany looks for clues

Among the photographic archives
of meroe.

Curious marks on sandstone
blocks found among the pyramids

Could be evidence
of malicious human activity.

The two rows of opposing
holes suggest

That this game
is played for centuries.

To investigate, adel chisels
out a sandstone block.

Mancala is a game known to be
played by soldiers

On expeditions to sudan
in the 19th century.

Their presence could be proof

That the pyramids of meroe
are looted.

On an expedition in 1834,

Italian treasure hunter
giuseppe ferlini

Is known to have visited meroe
with a unit of soldiers.

His excavation notes reveal
a scandal that many believe

Leads to the obliteration
of the final pyramids at meroe.

In search of gold,

Ferlini destroys the top of
queen amanishakheto's pyramid

And finds nothing.

Then he discovers a tomb
beneath the pyramid and,

Inside it, the queen's body,
covered in gold.

After looting the treasure,
ferlini sets up a false trail,

Declaring that he found gold
in the pyramid itself.

Treasure hunters rip down
the remaining pyramids,

Destroying a 2,000-year-old
necropolis.

The pyramids of meroe
are a window on their creators,

A people who build
a great civilization

And conquer all of egypt.

Naunton: The kingdom of kush
is a hugely powerful kingdom,

Important politically,
mighty militarily,

Great in building achievements.

It really deserves
to be much better known.

Narrator: The people of kush
are master engineers

Who build a landscape
of mysterious pyramids

Funded by a pioneering
gold trade.

Through a dramatic relationship
with ancient egypt,

They become rulers
of the greatest civilization

On the planet
as the black pharaohs of egypt.

The kushites: Africa's great
lost civilization.

♪

♪

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