THE INTERNATIONAL SOCIETY FOR NUBIAN STUDIES

Founded in 1972 in Warsaw, the Society provides a focus for those interested in the archaeology and history of Nubia and Sudan.

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About ISNS

Modern Nubiology was born in the early 1960s, when an international salvage campaign was launched by UNESCO to save the monuments of Lower Nubia being flooded by the construction of the Aswan High Dam and the creation of Lake Nasser. This campaign brought together scholars from over 25 countries from around the world and revealed the richness and cultural diversity of Nubian civilisation.

Blogs

This page hosts the personal and project blogs of members of the International Society for Nubian Studies. Here you can find the latest results of research conducted in the Middle Nile Valley.

Abasseya Project The Abasseya archaeological site, nowadays a plaza within a neighborhood of Karima, is located north-west from Jebel Barkal. The structures found in Abasseya would form of a Meroitic religious complex dated in the Second century BC.

Old Dongola Expedition Dongola lies on the eastern bank of the Nile, halfway between the Third and Fourth Cataracts. It functioned for more than 1500 years, from the erection of the citadel at the end of the 5th century to the abandonment of the area in the 20th century. It was the capital of the kingdom of Makuria, and a seat of mekk of Dongola in the Funj Period.

Soba Expedition Soba was a large city on the bank of the Blue Nile, with churches, monasteries, fine houses, beautiful gardens, and a district inhabited by Muslims. It was the capital of the Kingdom of Alwa (approx. 5th/6th century to the beginning of the 16th century).

News

10.12.2024

SAfA Faro 2025 Session on ‘Archaeological Insights to Apiculture in Africa’

Dear Colleagues, The following may be of interest to you. Please address any queries to the conference organisers. Best wishes Julie A session on apiculture in African contexts will be held at the Society of Africanist Archaeologists (SAfA) in Faro, Portugal (21st to 26th July 2025). Should you be interested in delivering a paper on evidence […]

09.12.2024

Christian Inscriptions from Egypt and Nubia

Dear Colleagues,The following publication has just appeared and may be of interest to you.Please address any queries to the publisher and/or authors. All the best, Julie—————————- Alain Delattre, Jitse Dijkstra & Jacques van der Vliet, Christian Inscriptions from Egypt and Nubia. A Critical Bulletin (2012-2022) = Papyrologica Bruxellensia. 43. Bruxelles, Association Égyptologique Reine Élisabeth [diffusion: Peeters, Leuven], 2024, […]

09.12.2024

16th ISNS Conference 2026 – Save the date!

Dear Colleagues,We are please to announce that the 16th International Conference forNubian Studies will be held in Munich from Sept. 7-12th 2026. A firstcircular with more information will be sent in December.All the best Julie

13.11.2024

Martin Krause 1930 – 2024

Dear Colleagues, It is my sad duty to inform you that Martin Krause, esteemed Coptologistand founder of the Chair of Coptic Studies in Muenster (Germany) passedaway at the age of 94. His broad conception of Coptology also led him toresearch Nubia in late antiquity, and he co-organised the 5thInternational Conference of Nubian Studies in Heidelberg […]

Events

27.07/2021

15th International Conference for Nubian Studies – 29th August – 4th September 2022

The Polish Centre of Mediterranean Archaeology, University of Warsaw will host the 15th International Conference for Nubian Studies in Warsaw from August 29th to September 4th, 2022. Every four years, the ICNS conference brings together archaeologists, epigraphists, historians, and other scholars working on the ancient and modern history of Sudan and Nubia, from prehistory to […]