Archaic Nile Valley, Africa

Lower Nubia A-Group and C-Group
(from c. 3500 B.C.)

	1. A-Group so-called "eggshell" vessels from Faras decorated with red ochre (London: British Museum). 15.4 and 12.2 cm high. Following the Khartoum neolithic, there emerged the related cultures of Kemet (Badarian) and Lower Nubia (A-Group). A-Group agricultural society extended from the 1st cataract south, past the second cataract. It emerged in about 3500 B.C. and declined in the face of dynastic Kemet's expansion south to the second cataract.
	2. Sandstone stelae over C-Group graves in a cemetery at Aniba in Lower Nubia. The C-Group culture marked a shift toward a more settled cattle-herding economy in Lower Nubia. The kings of Kemet dealt with C-Group chiefs gingerly because they needed access to goods from the powerful ruler of Kerma from the Dongala Reach in Upper Nubia to the South (between the 3rd and 4th cataract), who in turn had access to the Sudanese luxury trade to their South. The C-Group emerged late in the 3rd millenium B.C., and in time established a monarchy over Wawat, Irtjet and Satju, which was modeled on Kemet's kingship.
	3. Necklaces and foot-shaped pendant from C-Group graves of early second millenium Faras (London: British Museum).
	4. C-Group polished incised-ware bowl from Faras, Lower Nubia (London: British Museum). 8.1 cm. high. The pattern probably derives from basketwork designs. This culture is influenced by both Kemet to the North and Upper Nubia to the South.
	5. C-Group pottery from cemetery at Faras, Lower Nubia, early second millenium B.C. (London: British Museum). Polished incised ware bowls and a coarse redware jar.

Pre-dynastic Kemet (to 3050 B.C.)

	1. Late pre-dynastic pot with a boat and arcs painted in red. From Nag' el Deir, ca. 3100 B.C. (Berkeley: Lowie Museum of Anthropology).
	2. Late pre-dynastic pot with incised bull, from El Ahaiwah (Berkeley: Lowie Museum of Anthropology). This is typical of African art from the Afro-Asiatic linguistic sphere.