UNESCO Ancient Civilizations of Africa (Editor G. Mokhtar)

Ancient Civilizations of Africa
had a decisive influence on agriculture, especially in Dongola, as this wheel
lifts water 3 to 8 metres with much less expenditure of labour and time than
the shadHf, which is driven by human energy; the saqiya, on the other hand,
by buffalo or other animals.
Even the southern parts of the country, at least at the end of the sixth
century before our era, were predominantly pastoral if we can believe
Herodotus, who describes the Island of Meroe as inhabited mostly by cattlebreeders
and the agriculture as rather underdeveloped. 38 Archaeology
seems to substantiate this view since in the B-level in Gebel Moya, dating
from the Napata period and later, sixth to fifthcenturies before our era,
no traces of agricultural activity were found. 39
With the gradual shifting of the empire's centre southward and the increase
of acreage of irrigated land the situation changed. At the height of
the Meroitic kingdom the Island of Meroe was intensively cultivated. The
network of canals and hafirs, irrigation basins, bears witness to this. One
of the emblems of Meroitic kings and priests at this time was a sceptre
in the form of a plough, or perhaps a hoe, similar to that widely used in
Egypt.
The main cereals cultivated were barley, wheat and, above all, sorghum
or durra of local origin, and also lentils, Lens esculenta, cucumbers, melons
and gourds.
Among technical crops the first place belongs to cotton. It was unknown
in ancient Egypt but there are many indications that its cultivation in
the Nile valley started in the empire of Kush before the beginnings of our
era. Evidence from earlier times is scanty but about the fourth century
before our era the cultivation of cotton and the knowledge of its spinning
and weaving in Meroe reached a very high level. It is even maintained that
the export of textiles was one of the sources of wealth of Meroe. 40 The
Aksumite King Ezana boasted in his inscription that he destroyed large
cotton plantations in Meroe. 4 '
Our sources are silent about the forms of land tenure and land exploitation,
but since the village community continued its traditional existence
well into the nineteenth century we can assume that it existed in the same
form in the Napatan and Meroitic periods. The king was considered the
sole owner of the land. This was a characteristic common to many ancient
societies and gave rise to various forms of land tenure. So the system of
land tenure throws no useful light on the relations between the king, as
owner, and the cultivators of the soil.
An important branch of agriculture was the cultivation of fruit in
orchards and grapes in vineyards. Many of these belonged to temples and
were cultivated by slaves.
38. Herodotus, III, 22-3.
39. F. S. A. Addison, p. 104.
40. J. W . Crowfoot, 1911, p. 37, Memoir No. 19.
41. E. Littmann, 1950, p. 116.
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