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Between c. 300 BC and AD 350, the Meroitic kingdom dominated the Middle Nile Valley; following its breakdown, it was replaced by a series of smaller successor polities. Explanation for this change centres on socio-political and economic instability. Here, the authors investigate the role of climate and environment using stable carbon and oxygen isotope analyses of human and faunal dental enamel from 13 cemeteries. The results show increasing [delta][sup.18]O values towards the end of the Meroitic kingdom and in the postMeroitic period, combined with less negative [delta][sup.13]C values. These trends suggest a shift towards more arid conditions associated with changes in agricultural practices and land use that may have contributed to the kingdom's dissolution. Keywords: Sudan, Upper Nubia, Meroitic kingdom, isotope analysis, climate change, collapse, Introduction Kush was one of several early states that formed along the Middle Nile, flourishing for centuries until its fall towards the end of the Meroitic period (c. 300 BC-AD [...]

New excavations at the Jebel Moya cemetery in Sudan reveal previously unknown, continuous burial activity from the third millennium BC to c. 2000 years ago. Radiometric dates, archaeobotanical analyses and new approaches to the pottery sequence reveal a long-lasting and vibrant community in what was previously dismissed as a marginal environment in south-central Sudan. Keywords: Sudan, Jebel Moya, Sahel, agropastoralism, mortuary, Introduction Jebel Moya is the largest known cemetery in the southern Gezira plain of south-central Sudan (Figure 1). Between 1911 and 1914, Henry Wellcome removed 3135 human burials in his [...]

Published by Cambridge University Press, 26 October 2018.In the article by Brass et al. (2018), the affiliation and funding information supplied for Iwona Kozieradzka-Ogunmakin was incorrect. The correct affiliation is [...]