Ancient civilizations were forgotten

For many people, ancient history is a trio show - Egypt, Rome and Greece. That's why it's easy for people to get the impression that apart from these 3 civilizations, the ancient world map is mostly gaps. But in fact there were many brilliant and charming civilizations that existed.

Aksum

The Kingdom of Aksum (or Axum) is the subject of countless legends. Regardless of whether it is the home of the mysterious character Prester John, the lost kingdom of Queen Sheba or the last place of the Ark of the Covenant, Aksum has long been in the imagination of Westerners.

Location of the kingdom of Aksum.(Photo: mathildasanthropologyblog.wordpress.com)

This kingdom in Ethiopia is not a myth, it was really a commercial power. By reaching both the Nile and the Red Sea trade routes, Aksum's trade was thriving, and in early AD, most Ethiopians were under the rule of Aksum. The power and prosperity of Aksum allowed them to expand into Arabia as well. In the 3rd century, a Persian philosopher wrote that Aksum was one of the four largest kingdoms in the world, alongside Rome, China and Persia.

Aksum accepted Christianity shortly after the Roman Empire and continued to flourish throughout the early Middle Ages. If not because Islam was expanded, Aksum would have continued to dominate East Africa. After the conquest of the Arabian Sea of ​​the Red Sea, Aksum lost its main trade advantage to its neighbors. Of course, they can only blame themselves. Only a few decades earlier, the king of Aksum allowed followers of Saint Muhammad to refuge, thus enabling a religion to destroy its own empire.

Kush

Known by ancient Egypt sources for having a lot of gold and other valuable natural resources, Kush has been conquered and exploited by his neighbors in northern Egypt for almost half a century. the year (about 1500 - 1000 BC). But Kush's origins are far more profound - ancient traces from 8000 BC were discovered in the capital of Kerma, and in the early 2400 BC, Kush had a complex society. and connect highly with agriculture on a large scale.

The Kush pyramid.(Photo: forums.graaam.com)

In the 9th century BC, instability in Egypt allowed the Kush to regain their independence. And one of the most spectacular fortunes of history, Kush conquered Egypt in 750 BC. In the following century, a series of Kush's pharaohs ruled a much larger territory than their Egyptian predecessors. It was Kush's rulers who restored the construction of the pyramids and brought them to Sudan. The Kush was finally swept away from Egypt by the invasion of the Assyrians, ending centuries of Egyptian and Kush cultural exchanges.

The Kush people fled south and reestablished their country in Meroe on the southeastern bank of the Nile. At Meroe, the Kush people escape from Egypt's influence and develop their own writing, now known as the Meroitic. This typeface is still a mystery and has not been deciphered, carrying the shadow of much of Kush's history. The last king of Kush died in 200 AD, although the reason why his kingdom went down and collapsed still had no answer.

Yam

The Kingdom of Yam probably existed as a trading partner and rivaled the ancient Egyptian Kingdom, but its exact location was still hard to tell apart from the myth of the Atlantis continent. Based on the words written on the tomb of Egyptian explorer Harkhuf, Yam seems to be a land of ' incense, ebony, leopard, ivory and boomerang'.

Painting Yam people.(Photo: westshore.hs.brevard.k12.fl.us)

Despite Harhuf's statement about land trips lasting more than seven months, Egyptologists have long identified the land of boomerangs only a few hundred miles from the Nile. The common understanding is that there is no way the Egyptians can cross the harsh strip of Sahara desert. There are also questions about what people find on the other side of the Sahara. But perhaps it underestimated ancient Egyptian merchants, since recently discovered hieroglyphs about 700km southwest of the Nile confirmed the existence of trade between Yam and Ai. Update as well as indicate Yam's position is north of the Chad Plateau.

Exactly the Egyptians had crossed thousands of miles in the desert before the wheels were born and only with the donkeys were still confusing. But at least their destination is no longer hidden in secret.