Black Pot
This gift is a black pot decorated with carved lines and dots. It has an incised abstract emblem that indicates the typical graphic expression of the Meroitic Period of Sudanese art. These non-pictorial elements were common of the Meroitic Period (270 BC – 400 CE).
Meroё, an ancient city during the Meroitic Period, was on the east bank of the Nile, near Shendi, Sudan and was the city capital for the Kingdom of Kush. There was much development in this region and rivals a similar development in Ancient Egypt, and was part of the Egyptian Kingdom at times. The city even has more than 200 pyramids classified as Nubian pyramids. Their development became independent as part of the Meroitic Period and accordingly the Egyptian hieroglyphics that had been previously used in the area were change to Meroitic script as well as deities replaced, from Egyptian to local gods such as Apeddemak, the lion god. Today, Meroe is the largest archeological site in the Sudan. In June 2011, the archeological sites of Mero? were listed by UNESCO as World Heritage Sites.
The gift is from the Government of the Republic of the Sudan to the United Nations.