posted 26 January 2004 10:59 AM            

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The programme explores the enigmatic central Saharan society which once spanned the entire north African continent. We unravel their tale through the story of the discovery of the black mummy, Uan Muhuggiag. It soon becomes obvious that these people were responsible for an extraordinary array of innovations which later became famous under the Egyptians. Their presence re-writes the history of Egypt and of the entire continent of Africa.

The background: the lost society of the central Sahara and the rise of ancient Egypt
The origins of ancient Egypt are archaeology’s greatest unsolved mystery. What prompted this remarkable culture to develop such distinctive rituals as mummification? Where did they get their ideas? As far as we know, Egypt was only preceded by one great civilisation: Mesopotamia. Although Mesopotamia is a far older culture – there is no evidence to suggest that these people had developed any similar funerary practises. But if Egyptian innovations did not come from earlier known civilisations – where did they come from?

The answer has come from an unlikely quarter – the barren Sahara desert. In the last few decades evidence has been mounting that the Egyptian civilisation was not the first advanced society in Africa. At the same time as Mesopotamia rose in the near east, another culture thrived in Africa. Although few people have heard of it – this central Saharan culture is providing evidence for the invention of ritual activity which had previously been attributed to the Egyptians.

The first clue for archaeologists was the abundant rock art found all over the central Sahara from Libya to Egypt to Mali. The rock art depicts animals like crocodiles and rhinos – which do not live in deserts. It also shows scenes of hunting and rituals involving men wearing animal masks. All of this art was a firm clue that this area was once a hive of activity. It spurred archaeologists to dig and over the past fifty years they’ve uncovered an entire unknown society.

The society was nomadic – groups of animal herders wandered all over the region and eventually spread their uniform culture throughout the continent of north Africa. They lived in huts and had time to make art and invent rituals. By the time the culture reached its pinnacle around 6ooo years ago these people had invented rituals which indicate a fairly complex world view. They were communicating with the heavens and using funerary rituals like mummification to treat their dead.

But all of this evidence indicated an Eden-like place – one with trees, grasses and abundant running waters. And yet nothing could be further from this picture than the Sahara today. Although archaeologists had already assembled the clues, the science of climatology solidly confirmed what all had suspected: this area was once a lush savannah landscape. Changes in the tilt of the earth’s axis had caused drought in the Sahara and brought this thriving society to an end. But with the demise of the central Saharan culture, people wandered all over northern Africa in search of greener pastures. The Nile valley was an obvious destination. Around 6000 years ago central Saharan ideas arrived in the Nile valley – adding mummification and other rituals to the potent mix which was to become the Egyptian civilisation.
The mummy and archaeology in Libya:
An Italian team of archaeologists first explored the Libyan Sahara almost fifty years ago. In 1958 they struck gold. Professor Fabrizio Mori discovered the black mummy at the Uan Muhuggiag rockshelter. The mummy of a young boy, Uan Muhuggiag was destined for controversy. He was older than any comparable Egyptian mummy and his mere existence challenged the very idea that Egyptians were the first in the region to mummify their dead. Although the Italian team from the university of Rome “La Sapienza”, has since discovered other mummified tissue, they have not yet discovered another complete mummy in the region. But Uan Muhuggiag was no one off. The sophistication of his mummification suggested he was the result of a long tradition of mummification. Investigations in the area continue under the direction of Dr Savino di Lernia and Professor Mario Liverani.

Climatology:
Professor Mauro Cremaschi of CIRSA (University of Milan and University of Rome “La Sapienza”) heads the Italian Climatology team which focuses on the Acacus area of Libya. Dr Kevin White (Reading University) heads an English team focussing on the nearby Fezzan region. Both teams are using the latest satellite technology to clarify our picture of climate in the central Sahara over the past several hundred thousand years.
Another lost Libyan civilisation:
The Fezzan project, headed by Professor David Mattingly (University of Leicester) focuses on the Garamantes civilisation which thrived from 1500bc-500ad. The Garamantes were known by the Romans as barbarians but evidence from the Sahara shows a large, sophisticated civilisation. Remains show substantial architecture and a complex society replete with numerous luxuries. Almost 100,000 tombs litter the Fezzan escarpment – to date these bodies are the most concrete testimony to this little-known people.
further reading
Mummies, Disease and Ancient Cultures by A and E Cockburn & T Reyman l Ancient Egypt: Life, Myth and Art by J Fletcher l Rock Art of the Sahara by H Hugor & M Bruggman l Holocene Settlement of the Egyptian Sahara by F Wendorf l Archaeology of Sub Saharan Africa by J Vogel l Archaeology and Environment in the Libyan Sahara by B Barich l Garamantes of the Fezzan by Charles Daniels
interesting links
Www.cru.uea.ac.uk <http://www.cru.uea.ac.uk/>Http://i-cias.com/e.o/fezzan.htm <http://i-cias.com/E.O/FEZZAN.HTM> Www.countryreports.org/history/libhist.htm <http://www.countryreports.org/HISTORY/LIBHIST.HTM>

Www.fordham.edu/halsall/ancient/herod-Libya.htm <http://www.fordham.edu/HALSALL/ANCIENT/HEROD-LIBYA.HTM>
credits l narrator: kerry shale l exec prod: tracey gardiner l prod: gillian mosely l dir: chris hooke l ed: benedict jackson & sue outlaw l research: sophie mautner l head of prod: martin long l prod manager: sandra leeming l prod co-ord: donna blackburn l

sales enquiries l please contact martin long, head of production l t 020 7689 4248 l f 020 7490 0206 l e info@fulcrumtv.com <mailto:info@fulcrumtv.com>
http://www.fulcrumtv.com/blackmummy.htm

posted 07 February 2004 12:46 AM            

quote:

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Originally posted by somdweller:
this topic is of great interest to me. the fulani are of great interest to me. i hope the west african portion of the sahara is included in this program. but it does'nt matter because the fula stretch from senegal to ethiopia. some of the last great cattle herders of africa. (respect the dinkas!). as the savannah became dryer they had to move further south to what would become the sahel. the tamashek don't herd cattle.
this program could change the concept of "sub-saharan" when people realize blacks have a history in the sahara just as much as berbers do. (respect the tamashek!)

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I can't wait to see that programme!! All I could say is that this mummy must have had ALL of the STREOTYPICAL TRUE PURE NEGRO skull characteristic for them to call it "BLACK". Nose index isn't wide enough- opps sorry not black....hair a little wavy-oppss sorry not black........

posted 07 February 2004 08:29 AM            

what do you guys think?

p.s. are "arabs" really in control of north africa. in algeria and morocco the kids would rather speak french than arabic.

i'm a black american with various ethnic backrounds, yet i am still black.

what happened to the city dwellers of north africa. it seems the desert nomads are the only berbers who remember who they are. am i right?

posted 07 February 2004 09:00 AM            

You do realize there are still black people living in Magreb like the Haratin in Southern Morocco and the Tibbu in Fezzan Libya. The Sahara was never a barrier.

Algerians are known as Kaybele and Moroccans are known as Riffian,Shueleh,and Souss. Haratin live in the Oasis areas of Southern Morocco and Algeria.

Right know the Amazigh in Algeria are fighting for representation and indepedence. I would say most Northern African Amazigh know who they are.

posted 07 February 2004 09:47 AM            

The other ''white'' Berbers like the Kaybele,Riffi,and others have probally been there for a while. Egyptians in their reliefs depict the Libyans as two different phenotypes:the Tamahou with fair skin and red hair,and the Technou with dark brown skin.

Speakers of Amazight go back 7000 years. They are the Imazigen
of Ta Mazgha (Berbers of North Afrika). Amazight is an Afrikan
language of the Afro-Asian group. The Afro-Asiatic linguistic
phylum developed somewhere between the south-eastern Sahara and
the Horn and began splitting at least 8000 years ago.

Branches and probable date of split:
Kushitic - 8th millenium BCE
Egyptian - before the 7th millenium BCE
Omotic - 7th millenium BCE
Hausa - 7th millenium BCE
Semitic - 6th or 5th millenia BCE
Amazigh - 6th or 5th millenia BCE
(I. M. Diakonoff, Afrasian Languages, Moscow 1988)

Herodotus described Libyans as indigenees of Afrika. Egyptian
records list Libyans or Lebou of two types, the Tehenou and the
Temehou (people created light/white skinned). This is simply
recognizing that there was no uniform phenotype in ancient
Tamazgha. It is not saying there was only one phenotype among
the Lebou.

Tehenou and Tamahou were not the same ethnic type. The first
Lebou people that the Egyptians refered to were the Tehenou.
In color paintings they are dark brown. They were the local
blacks of Libya. They were not Nilotics nor Bantu nor Sudanese.
They were a local Libyan ethnic group. (G. Moller, Die Aegypten
und ihre libyschen Nachbaren, ZDMG, Liepzig 1924 pg 78.)

Oric Bates who wrote on the Eastern Libyans records Afrikoid
features. He says that before 12th dynasty Egyptians colored
Tehenou dark brown. The Eastern Libyans, London 1914, pp 43-45.

C. M. Daniels makes a similar report in The Garamantes of
Southern Libya, Wisconsin 1970, pg 27.