Fig. 09: Termitary suggesting more humid environmental conditions in the alluvial plain.	Fig. 10: Graves of undetermined date

Our efforts during the present campaign will be concentrated on the excavation of a huge Mesolithic site located on top of a dune along the western bank of the White Nile. This settlement (10-X-6) is only one of the many sites located along the bank of the river and, as others, it is in a great danger of destruction for the increasing expansion of El Salha village, a southern extension of Omdurman. With our work, mainly oriented toward the study of the most ancient human societies that prospered in this African region, we aim safeguarding the cultural heritage of the country and the most ancient traces of human activities in the area.

Fig. 11: Tethering stone	Fig. 12: Marl substrate along the Nile

There is an ongoing discussion among the local authorities how to protect from an uncontrolled urbanisation this strip of land along the bank of the Nile, where many and large Mesolithic and Neolithic sites are concentrated.
The stratigraphic excavation of a Mesolithic settlement is particularly difficult and slow due to the complexity of the stratigraphic sequence but also for the uneasy reading of the soils that are not, apparently, very much differentiated from a chromatic point of view. Only a very fine trowel and brush-work allow us to recognise these tenuous chromatic variations and, guided also by soil consistency, to distinguish the different levels. This work brought to light the many episodes of anthropic sedimentation or of natural erosion which contributed to built up the archaeological deposit and to give it the standing conformation.

Fig. 13: The beginning of the excavation at the Mesolithic site 10-X-6	Fig. 14: Archaeologists sieving the soil.

Concentrated particularly on the study of the ancient population and the ideological sphere embedded in burial practices we started in these days the photographic and graphic mapping of a cairn made of Nubian sandstone blocks. The cairn is one out of 20 in a cemetery located two years ago around thirty km in the interior, at the foot of the Jebel Baroka, the highest morphological relief of the area. In these days we will start the excavation of the burial structure from which we expect, with a little bit of lucky and without getting stacked in the sand, precious chronological and cultural information.

Fig. 15: The archaeological team.	Fig. 16: The first archaeological level under the gravely surface

As everybody in a Muslim country we also stop working on Friday. Urged by our curiosity and the desire to know better and better this country and its archaeological treasures, we become tourist travelling for hundred kilometres to visit prestigious and famous archaeological sites. Careless of tiredness, the last Friday we did not hesitate to organise with Italian and Sudanese friends a visit to Musawwarat es Sufra, where a group of German archaeologists is restoring the temple dedicated to the Lion God (Apedemak) of the 3rd century BC.

Fig. 17: Erosion and anthropic cuts.	Fig. 18: Excavation of the most recent layers

The site, of Meroitic period, is also consisting of other excavated but not yet restored temple complexes and still preserves the remains of a great water basin.
The cultural journey continued to reach Meroe, the capital of the Meroitic Kingdom where the pyramids of the Black Pharaohs were erected. An enchanted place in a nowadays completely desert environment. It is not far from the ancient city of Meroe where the British archaeologist J. Garstang excavated, many years ago, among other, a temple dedicated to the Egyptian God Amon. In the next days we will come back to tell you news and progress of our work which just now is entering the most important phase.

Fig. 20: The cairn selected for a preliminary testing excavation.	Fig. 21: Problems in the sands.