Urban Metamorphosis of the community of a Medieval African capital city

Projektinformationen

UMMA

ID Finanzhilfevereinbarung: 759926

DOI

10.3030/759926

Projekt abgeschlossen

EK-Unterschriftsdatum 18 Oktober 2017

Startdatum 1 Juni 2018

Enddatum 31 Mai 2024

Finanziert unter

• EXCELLENT SCIENCE - European Research Council (ERC)

Gesamtkosten

€ 1 484 854,00

EU-Beitrag

€ 1 484 854,00

Koordiniert durch

UNIWERSYTET WARSZAWSKI
Poland

Periodic Reporting for period 4 - UMMA (Urban Metamorphosis of the community of a Medieval African capital city)

Berichtszeitraum: 2022-12-01 bis 2024-05-31

Zusammenfassung vom Kontext und den Gesamtzielen des Projekts

The UMMA project aimed to explore the historical transitions of the city of Dongola in present-day Sudan. The research focused on understanding the social, political, and religious transformations in Dongola from the 14th to the 18th centuries.
The project redefined the history of Dongola, illustrating its transition from the Makurian state to the Kingdom of Dongola, influenced by Mamluk invasions and eventual vassalage to the Funj Sultanate. It debunked the theory of a sudden collapse of the Makuria state, instead presenting a gradual transformation over centuries. Findings showed that the urban community of Dongola became increasingly diverse, with Arab tribes intermingling with Nubian elites, reflected in the material culture such as domestic architecture and pottery. The project documented continuity and change in lifestyle, evident from the study of artifacts, dietary shifts, and the persistence of traditional practices. The conversion to Islam in Dongola was a slow process, completed by the late 15th century, primarily driven by local Sufi teachers rather than foreign influence or violent imposition. Contrary to historical narratives, there was minimal immediate impact on religious architecture following conversion, with significant religious buildings appearing much later.
The project integrated advanced scientific methods such as Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) and laser ablation, to analyze the chemical composition of glass artifacts. Developed new excavation and recording manuals, enhancing the precision of archaeological data collection. Detailed mapping of Dongola's cityscape during its medieval period set new standards for African urban archaeology. Excavations revealed important religious structures and unique artifacts, including the Great Church of Iesu and wall paintings. Analysis of faunal and botanical remains provided insights into the diet and agricultural practices of historical Dongola communities. The project generated extensive academic outputs, including books, articles, and a publicly accessible database of excavation data. UMMA involved local communities and Sudanese scholars in the research, providing extensive training in heritage management and archaeology. The project’s approach fostered better protection of the site, evidenced by its security during ongoing military conflict in Sudan.
The project garnered international recognition, winning awards for its contributions to archaeology and public engagement such as Archaeology Magazine World’s Top 10 Discovery in 2023 and Public’s Choice Award in European Research Council’s Public Engagement with Research competition in 2022.

Arbeit, die ab Beginn des Projekts bis zum Ende des durch den Bericht erfassten Berichtszeitraums geleistet wurde, und die wichtigsten bis dahin erzielten Ergebnisse

So far we have carried out a non-invasive archaeological survey, augering tests, excavation of ca. 7000 m2 of the site, as well as initial material studies. Despite their preliminary character, the results allowed us to lay foundations for studies on the early modern Sudan and considerably contributed to the reconstruction of the African history in general. The major achievements thus far are the results of the non-invasive survey and progress in material studies. The survey delivered the first detailed urban layout of the early modern (16-18th cent) African city, which will now serve as a basis for spatial analyses, as well as comparative studies. We have also contributed to the development of non-invasive archeological survey methods by confirming the effectiveness of the ground-penetrating survey in sand-covered plateaus and densely occupied settlement sites in the Nile Valley.

The material studies allowed for preparation of typologies for the pottery, smoking pipes, glass beads and glass bangles that can be used by other researchers. The macroscopic study of beads suggests several origins of beads reaching Old Dongola: Europe (Venice, the Netherlands, Bohemia, and Bavaria), where the majority of beads were produced, as well as Hebron, Egypt and South Asia. There are several known glass production centers that manufactured bangles in the Ottoman period, including Hebron, Egypt, the Lebanese coast, India, and Yemen. European centers, in turn, were rather less likely sources of bangles found in Sudan. Research carried out on bangles housed in museum collections has not been able to offer dating spans more precise than a period between the 16th and 18th century. The well-stratified Old Dongola finds, combined with elemental analyses done at the Field Museum, Chicago, might shed new light on their chronology.

Fortschritte, die über den aktuellen Stand der Technik hinausgehen und voraussichtliche potenzielle Auswirkungen (einschließlich der bis dato erzielten sozioökonomischen Auswirkungen und weiter gefassten gesellschaftlichen Auswirkungen des Projekts)

Three crucial discoveries were made during fieldwork, and one was a result of desk-based research in the archive of the Polish Centre of Mediterranean Archaeology. These finds considerably contribute to our knowledge on the history of Sudan and can without exaggeration be called groundbreaking and spectacular. Two of the excavated finds are documents: a letter of King Kashkash, thus far known only from oral traditions collected at the beginning of the 19th century, as well as a document most probably mentioning the renowned Muhammad b. ’Isa (Suwar al-Dahab), the first qadi (Islamic law judge) of Old Dongola. The third field discovery is an enormous church in the middle of the city, which, due to its location and size, is likely the cathedral of Dongola, the most important church of medieval Nubia. Lastly, the archival search yielded a Judaeo-Arabic letter concerning a slave, which is still under study. It seems to indicate the involvement of the Jewish diaspora in the trade of slaves in 17th-century Sudan.

The main activity in the project is fieldwork, and by the end of the last season we started to excavate archaeological layers that are important for the project research questions, though not yet dated to the targeted transition period. In the coming season, we expect to acquire information regarding the religious and social metamorphosis that occurred after Dongola lost its status of capital city. Excavated material selected for archaeometric analyses is very likely to deliver a wealth of new information about the dating of the archaeological contexts, as well as about links of the Dongolese community with the outside world. We have also started to prepare space syntax analyses, which should allow us to investigate the spatial organization of the city, as well as perform a series of analyses based on the distribution of artifacts (identification of gendered spaces, etc.). Further excavations inside the cathedral, where dwellings were constructed in the Funj period after the building had lost its sacral function, may deliver information of utmost importance for the study of religious transition in Dongola. At the end of the project, we also expect to achieve a complete turnaround in relations between archaeologists, local communities and state-level stakeholders. If all the parties agree on the sustainable development plan based on the cultural values of the site, it may not only earn Old Dongola a UNESCO World Heritage Site nomination, but also set UMMA as a pilot project demonstrating how archaeology can contribute to the rebuilding efforts of new democratic authorities.

Open Day

Open Day

Results of GRP survey showing urban layout of Old Dongola in 17-18th cent.

Excavations

Visitors during Open Day