Early Art of the African Continent #2 Ancient Egypt’s Mighty Rival-- Nubia/Kush: Ignored by

Scholars of the Past

Sharon Williams

In-person and Zoom

10:00 – 11:30 a.m.

11/5, 11/12, 11/19, 12/3, 12/10, 12/17
NO CLASS 11/26

What have recent scholars learned about Nubia/Kush that scholars of the past got wrong? Why was Nubia/Kush not given credit for its contributions to civilization? Those are a few of the questions we will ponder as we follow the development of the ancient history and art of inhabitants of the Nile Valley. The earliest inhabitants of the Nile Valley lived side by side, eventually uniting to create Egypt north of Aswan and what later became known as Nubia or Kush in the south. For years, Euro-centric scholars concentrated on Egypt, teaching that Egypt’s culture had been established by people from the East of Africa, not by inhabitants from within Africa. Egypt was thus included in the history of Western civilization rather than with the history of Africa. Early archeologists also taught that the Nubian/Kushite culture they found below Egypt had been produced by Egyptians, not by black-skinned inhabitants of that area. In this Study Group, we will look at recent information about Nubia/Kush that reveals a different story. Nubia/Kush became an independent highly advanced, ancient African civilization that rivaled ancient Egypt in wealth, power, and cultural development. Their art solidifies that story. We will even see that Kushites ruled as Pharaohs of Egypt for almost a century during the 25th Dynasty and left their artistic mark in Egypt. Because the art and history from Nubia/Kush and Egypt are so intertwined, we will be reviewing the art and history of Egypt as we go along.

Reading Materials:  Each week, Sharon will send members of the group optional reading materials and will post on the OLLI Downloads the art for that week.

Facilitator: Sharon is a graduate of Illinois Wesleyan University, and a State of Illinois licensed Interior Designer who was co-owner of a furniture and design business for over 35 years. She has an interest in investigating art history and hopes to share her knowledge and learn from other OLLI members. Presently, she is a member of the OLLI Advisory Council where she serves as Liaison to the Marketing Committee. She has participated in numerous study groups and courses and has facilitated over 25 art history study groups.