A detailed study of the Romano-Meroitic trade in Lower Nubia

Before understanding the scale of the Romano-Meroitic trade in Lower Nubia, it is important to establish the existence of trading networks in the area and the transportation systems available during the period examined. A major factor is that these two cultural groups occupied territories with common borders, both on land and along the River Nile. Geographically, Lower Nubia lay along these borders, which also correspond to the modern borders between Egypt and Sudan. Communication would have been efficient along the River Nile, even though cataracts and rapids, floodwater and strong currents would have made sailing upstream quite a challenge. Land communication networks were also likely.

Land transportation through the desert seems to have existed in Lower Nubia at that time. According to archaeological evidence, camels were present in Egypt and, more generally, in North Africa before the beginning of the dynastic period (Ripinski, 1985, 135), even though some scholars argue that they became extinct and were reintroduced from Asia at a later date (Robinson, 1936, 65-66). The earliest evidence of domesticated camels in Lower Nubia comes from Qasr Ibrim. More specifically, camel dung recovered from the settlement was dated by radiocarbon methods to the early first millennium BC (Rowley-Conwy, 1988, 246). Unfortunately, we neither know the scale of desert transportation during the Roman period, nor the distances covered by commercial caravans. However, the practice of crossing the desert with camels seems to have been known to the Kushites at least from the period of the Assyrian invasion of Egypt in 654 BC (Arkell, 1961, 128).

Several studies stress the importance of horses in the Kushite economy. Assyrian texts mention large numbers of Kushite horses imported into the Middle East, though further archaeological evidence is required to substantiate this claim. Horsemen of the Kushite army are often noted on inscriptions; however, reliefs show that these soldiers were often mounted on donkeys (Welsby, 1998, 155). Wheeled vehicles appear in several reliefs at Meroe, but their use is interpreted as rather ceremonial, associated with the transportation of royal coffins and sacred barks (Yellin, 1990, 364). Furthermore, the only known human-made road in Kush has been discovered far to the south of Qasr Ibrim, at Jebel Barkal (Welsby, 1998, 171).

The availability of waterways would always have affected the cost of trade in the ancient world, particularly in heavy and low-value goods (Peacock, 1977; Peacock, 1982; Peacock & Williams, 2007). There is no reason to doubt that similar criteria affected trade in Lower Nubia (Welsby, 1998, 170). Pliny mentions that the 'Ethiopians' transported their traded goods to Aswan by sailing the River Nile, and similar activities are also recorded on Greek inscriptions at Philae (Török, 1984, 51-53). Scholars note that the economic importance of Lower Nubia relied mainly on trade, since control over the Middle Nile was equivalent to control of the main transportation route between the North and the South (Welsby, 1998, 12).

River transportation became less important during the Hellenistic and Roman periods as naval trade across the Red Sea and the Indian Ocean grew. This large naval trade is recorded as having taken place on 'Roman' ships, while no evidence suggests that the Meroites had their own merchant fleets to conduct similar naval trade (Villiers, 1952; Juma, 1996; Tomber, 2008). In the case of Meroitic Lower Nubia, nothing suggests that Roman trade along the Nile was interrupted, even though the two nations were officially in constant conflict. On the contrary, ceramic evidence indicates that Romano-Meroitic connections persisted as the Egyptian wine trade into Nubia increased, which was transported in heavy, relatively poor-quality vessels (Adams, 1981 & 1986a). Welsby (2002, 190) notes that during the medieval period, river transport from Debba to Aswan was feasible, except in the cataract districts at low water. Given the proximity of settlements along the waterway, even though pottery can be extremely fragile, transportation across long distances may have been viable by using the settlements as middle stations (Welsby, 2002, 190). Similar transportation may have existed during Meroitic times, even though some traded goods would have probably travelled by land for at least part of the journey (Welsby, 1998, 171).

According to the ceramic evidence, large quantities of Egyptian vessels prove that various agricultural products reached as far as Wadi ben Naqa (Vercoutter, 1962). These exports were mainly olive oil, wine and honey (Welsby, 1998, 174). It is also possible that at the borders with Egypt, some sort of foodstuff trade may have existed, even though it has been suggested that such trade never operated on a large scale (Welsby, 1998, 175). Utilitarian pottery was also imported into Kush in large quantities, mostly used for water transport. These vessels were of low value, and they were traded mostly between the First and the Second Cataract (Welsby, 1998, 174). It seems that the Second Cataract was the southern limit for trading low-value goods, probably because of the higher transportation costs of shipping vessels further downstream (Adams, 1973, 192).

According to the evidence above, Qasr Ibrim's strategic location appears to have made it an important trade station. Goods from the North of Kush and the South of Egypt would have reached the local market through the Nile, while other products from the heartlands of Kush were possibly transported through a combination of waterways and land networks. In the case of Romano-Egyptian trade, Lower Nubia was one of the Egyptian export markets, especially for products from the Aswan region. More generally, Egyptian trade in the Roman period was well established through a large transportation network, and trading activity has been recorded both historically and archaeologically (Peacock, 1977; Peacock, 1982; Peacock & Williams, 2007; Villiers, 1952; Juma, 1996; Tomber, 2008). The question remains whether the Meroites employed similar trade patterns.

The Kushite trade is difficult to evaluate because there was no structured monetary economy in Egypt at that time. Given the similarities in political organisation between Kush and Egypt, it is reasonable to assume that some form of production existed to create a surplus, which is necessary to maintain the royal family, the administrative machine, and the army. Concerning the Meroitic Empire, opinions are quite diverse. Some scholars suggest that the local economy functioned on a redistributive basis. Agricultural surplus was produced, then collected through taxation, and finally redistributed by the authorities and the king (Welsby, 1998, 173). Other scholars argue that such a system never existed. They suggest that the populations worked their land at a subsistence level, and no contribution or other form of obligation existed towards the state (Adams, 1981, 9).

Among the Meroites, there were certainly populations that could not be food producers. Welsby (1998, 173) suggests that these included priests, members of the army, members of the administration, potters, builders, architects, and other artisans, even though some of these professions could have been practised temporarily alongside agricultural work and animal husbandry. Unfortunately, there is no direct evidence of how these populations maintained themselves or were paid for their services. However, the quantities of fine pottery and other luxury goods, both local and imported, indicate that a large portion of the population could afford them (Welsby, 1998, 173). The largest quantities of luxurious grave goods are found in North (Lower) Nubia, which also happens to be the area with the least efficient agricultural production in the Meroitic Empire (Welsby, 1998, 173). This suggests that wealth circulated through trade, given Lower Nubia's strategic position and its close connections with the Egyptian trade centre of Aswan.

Welsby (1998, 173) stresses that in modern societies, wealth in poor areas can result from migration, and Vantini (1981, 129-131) notes that similar examples of wealth were brought into Lower Nubia by mercenaries who served in the Fatimid armies in Egypt during the medieval period. It is possible that during the Meroitic period, Nubian immigrants could have travelled to Egypt to work there, bringing back various luxurious items (Welsby, 1998, 173). Jackson (2002, 136) suggests that during the Roman period in Egypt, equivalent to the Late Meroitic period in Kush, the population of Dodekaschoinos reached its peak because the Romans exploited the gold mines and granite quarries at Qertassi on a large scale (Jackson, 2002, 136). According to archaeological evidence from the area, inscriptions naming various emperors, such as Antoninus Pius, Marcus Aurelius, Caracalla, and Gordian, indicate that exploitation continued for a long period (Adams, 1977, 344). This makes it quite possible that Meroitic immigrants may have worked in Egyptian quarries.

Török (1989, 63) notes that the temples of Dakka and Philae were visited by a large number of Kushite pilgrims from Lower Nubia, who presumably could purchase luxurious items of Egyptian origin. Apart from the high-quality imported pottery at Qasr Ibrim, similar imported items are usually recovered in Nubian graves. However, the majority of these graves have been heavily looted, so the absence of other luxurious items, such as gold, makes it difficult to reconstruct wealth in Meroitic Lower Nubia (Welsby, 1998, 174).

Edwards (1996; 2004) and Welsby (1998) suggest that Meroitic long-distance trade was probably controlled by the state, since large quantities of ostraca found in Lower Nubia may be related to trade activity and organised trading networks. Many of the ostraca relate to accounts and record-keeping, usually associated with literate members of the population who worked within an extensive administrative network (Edwards, 2004, 161-162). Adams (1981, 9) suggests that the main exported products of the Kushites were gold, ivory, slaves and possibly exotic goods from the tropics. However, the quantities of these exports are difficult to estimate (Welsby, 1998, 175).

During the Napatan period, most trade contacts probably operated within a sort of 'embassy trade' system, where members of the local elite exchanged various goods as gifts. This practice was quite popular in the Mediterranean world at that time. It is certain that these diplomatic contacts continued during the Meroitic period, as various textual evidence indicates that Kushite ambassadors linked the Meroitic Empire with the Ptolemies and the Romans in Egypt (Edwards, 1996). Funerary texts from eight Meroitic settlements north of the Second Cataract mention the title ‘Apote’ (meaning ‘envoy’) and sometimes more specifically ‘Apote Aromelis’ (‘envoy to the Romans’). This title has been suggested to refer to diplomatic and trading duties, and it seems to indicate regular contact between the Meroites and the Romans (Edwards, 2004, 161-162; Haycock, 1974, 69).

Edwards (2004, 167-168) suggests that there is no direct historical evidence of private or commercial trade between these nations. On the contrary, most of the evidence refers to long-distance exchange, mostly of items found in burials, such as wine and oil containers (amphorae and bottles), glassware, lamps, jewellery, metal vessels and others. It has been suggested that the distribution of foreign materials indicates that most imports were channelled through elite or royal networks (Edwards, 2004, 167-168).

From the above, it is clear that Meroitic trade remains poorly understood. Even though Egyptian and Meroitic products travelled within both lands, it is difficult to say whether free trade ever existed between the two nations. Diplomatic connections that included exchanges of various goods between the members of the Meroitic elite and the Roman administration may have indeed existed. As for other citizens of the Meroitic Empire, it appears likely that they could travel, earn money, and purchase items from the Egyptian market, which they would then introduce back into Nubia. In both cases, it can be agreed that the populations of Lower Nubia were located in an area where contacts between the Meroites and the Romans were much more frequent.