🇬🇧 [1976-1986] El-Kadada: rescue of Neolithic and Meroitic necropolises near Shendi
Under the direction of Francis Geus
Team: Jacques Reinold, Patrice Lenoble, Yves Lecointe, Pascal Ginailhac, Daniel Connoioux, René-Pierre Dissaux, Pierre Vandeplanque, Denis Piponnier, Annick Duflos, Paul Koren, Max Schvoerer, Claude Ney, Anne Rouannet, Florence Thill, Paul De Paepe, Sid Ahmed Kamier, Mohamed Hassan Basha, Khalil Mohamed Khalil, Salah Omer es Sadiq, Khider Adam Eisa, Damri Mohamed Abdel Latif, Amum Tor Akayding, Salah Mohamed Ahmed, Gamal el Din Mohamed Idriss

Discovered in 1976, el-Kadada is one of the few known Neolithic sites in the Shendi region.
The earliest evidence of occupation consists of ceramic vessel sherds decorated with wavy lines, indicating settlement during the Khartoum Mesolithic, although no actual sites from this period have yet been discovered. The subsequent transitional phase is marked by dotted wavy line sherds found at a small settlement in el-Kudra, located less than 200 meters away. However, there is no evidence of occupation during the Khartoum Neolithic period, dated to the fifth millennium BC. Prehistoric settlements from this era appear to have shifted to the site of el-Ghaba, situated 700 meters further south.

The decoration of the ceramics found in the tombs at el-Ghaba closely resembles that of the vases from esh-Shaheinab, the eponymous Neolithic site in Khartoum. The discovery of Neolithic tombs at el-Kadada has confirmed the hypothesis proposed by English archaeologist A.J. Arkell—who defined the Khartoum Mesolithic and Neolithic periods—of a distinct late prehistoric phase. From the fourth millennium BC onwards, the Neolithic populations at el-Kadada developed a complex culture, evident in the refinement of their ceramic decorations, innovative vessel forms, the sophistication of their lithic tools, and the richness of their burial goods.
El-Kadada also contains a large number of historical cemeteries, from the Napatan period to the post-Meroitic period, from the eighth century BC to the sixth century AD. The funerary material and ritual of the pre-Christian tombs reveal that the Meroitic funerary religion did not end with the “end of Meroe” but with the beginning of Christianization in the sixth century AD.

Basic Bibliography:
- P. Lenoble, “Enterrer les flèches, enterrer l’Empire. II, Les archers d’el-Kadada et l’administration de l’imperium méroïtique”, CRIPEL 20, 1999, pp. 125-144.
- J. Reinold, “Les fouilles françaises et franco-soudanaises : el-Kadada”, in B. Gratien et F. Le Saout (éd.), Nubie. Les cultures antiques du Soudan, Lille, 1994, p. 51-66.
- P. Lenoble, “Trois tombes de la région de Méroé : la clôture des fouilles historiques d’el-Kadada en 1985 et 1986”, Archéologie du Nil moyen 2, 1987, p. 89-119.
- J. Reinold, “Le nécropole néolithique d’el-Kadada au Soudan central, quelques cas de sacrifices humains”, in M. Krause (éd.), Nubische Studien, Mayence, 1986, p. 159-169.
- J. Reinold, “La nécropole néolithique d’el-Kadada au Soudan ; les inhumations d’enfants en vase”, Mélanges J. Vercoutter, Paris ADPF, 1985, p. 279-289.
- F. Geus et P. Lenoble, “Évolution du cimetière méroïtique d’el-Kadada : la transition vers le postméroïtique en milieu rural méridional”, Mélanges J. Vercoutter, Paris ADPF, 1985, p. 67-92.
- F. Geus, Rescuing Sudan Ancient Cultures, A Cooperation between France and the Sudan in the Field of Archaeology, Khartoum 1984.
- F. Geus, “El-Kadada ; une civilisation du 4e millénaire sur les rives du Nil soudanais”, Archéologia n° 170, p. 24-33.
- F. Geus et J. Reinold, “Fouilles de sauvetage à el-Kadada (Soudan). I. La campagne d’avril 1976 », CRIPEL 5, 1979, p. 7-157.
OpenEdition vous propose de citer ce billet de la manière suivante :
sfdas (5 novembre 2024). 🇬🇧 [1976-1986] El-Kadada: rescue of Neolithic and Meroitic necropolises near Shendi. SFDAS Khartoum. Consulté le 13 février 2026 à l’adresse https://sfdas.hypotheses.org/5642

