The National Museum of Sudan or Sudan National Museum, abbreviated SNM, is a two-story building, constructed in 1955 and established as national museum in 1971.
Established | 1971 |
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Location | El Neel Avenue, Khartoum, Sudan |
Coordinates | 15°36′22″N 32°30′29″E / 15.606°N 32.508°E |
Type | Archaeological collection of different epochs of Ancient Sudan and Ancient Egypt |
Website | Sudan National Museum |
The building and its surrounding gardens house the largest and most comprehensive Nubian archaeological collection in the world, including objects from the Paleolithic through to the Islamic period, originating from every site of importance in Sudan. A significant catalyst for the museum's creation was the large number of relocated artefacts as a result of the International Campaign to Save the Monuments of Nubia.
In particular, it houses collections of these periods of the history of Sudan: Paleolithic, Mesolithic, Neolithic, A-Group culture, C-Group culture, Kerma Culture, Middle Kingdom of Egypt, New Kingdom of Egypt, Napata, Meroë, X-Group culture and medieval Makuria.
The museum is located on Nile Avenue in Khartoum in al-Mugran area, close to the confluence of the White and the Blue Nile.
During the 2023 Sudan conflict between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces, the National Museum of Sudan was the scene of heavy fighting, resulting in damage and looting.
The objects of the museum are displayed in four areas:
Highlights of the collections include:
In the museum garden are some rebuilt temples and tombs relocated from the submerged area of Lake Nasser.
In 1964, the Aswan High Dam, built across the Nile River in Egypt, created a reservoir in the Nubian area, which extended into Sudan's territory threatening to submerge the ancient temples. During the UNESCO Salvage Campaign the following temples and tombs were re-erected in the museum garden according to the same orientation of their original location, surrounded by an artificial stream of water symbolic of the Nile:
Outside the museum building are set up two granite unfinished colossal statues from the ancient temple of Tabo on Argo Island. As inscriptions are missing, they cannot be assigned to any precise origin, but show Roman stylistic influence.
The lane leading from the museum car park to the exhibition halls is flanked with Meroitic statues of 2 rams and 6 dark sandstone man-eating lions from Basa village site. The lions are from the first century BCE, as shown by the two cartouches from king Amanikhabale engraved on the first lion on the right.
After decades of excavations by foreign archeological teams in the first half of the 20th century, Sudanese archeologist were gradually trained and included in these excavations and subsequent research. At the end of 2022, The Guardian reported about a new generation of Sudanese archeologists, including a large number of young women. Trained at the Department of Archeology of the University of Khartoum, this new generation represents a growing number of professionals for Sudan’s National Corporation of Antiquities and Museums, who are adding their contemporary perspective on the heritage of Sudan to foreign-led research and studies.
The National Museum of Sudan was the scene of heavy fighting during the 2023 Sudan conflict between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces. Archaeologists monitoring the site noted fire damage on the building during the fighting. On 2 June 2023, the museum was taken over by the RSF. Exhibits, among them ancient mummies, were destroyed or damaged. The Continent magazine commented these events as follows: "The war in Sudan is destroying not just the country's future, but also the country's past."
15°36′22″N 32°30′29″E / 15.606°N 32.508°E
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