Old Dongola

Old Dongola was the capital of Makuria, the Christian Nubian kingdom that held the middle Nile for some six hundred years after the seventh century, and the site on the east bank carries the remains of churches, including one with granite columns, a large building identified as a throne hall that was later converted to a mosque, monastic complexes with painted walls, and a field of domed Islamic tombs from after the kingdom fell.

Background

The town stands on the east bank of the Nile, facing the Wadi Howar, and caravans left from here westward to Darfur and Kordofan. The archaeological site covers about 200 ha, and a Polish team has been digging here since 1964. The Church of the Granite Columns, perhaps the cathedral, had 16 granite columns with carved capitals. The throne hall, built in the 9th century on a rocky spur east of the fortress, measures 28 by 18 by 12 m and had two storeys. It became a mosque in 1317 and served as one until 1969, when it was made a historic monument. On the monastery walls, about 100 compositions date from the eleventh to the thirteenth century.

Source: Wikipedia, "Old Dongola"

What's there

• The throne hall - the large building later converted into a mosque.
• The church remains - including the granite columns of one of the main buildings.
• The monastery paintings - the wall decoration recovered from the monastic complex.
• The domed tombs - the Islamic-period qubbas across the site.

When to go

November to February is the cool season. March to May is extremely hot with no shade. Excavation seasons run in the cooler months.

Things to know

Much of the site is unexcavated or backfilled and interpretation is limited. There is no shade anywhere. Travel in Sudan requires arrangements made well in advance.

Nearby

Ghazali Monastery is southeast, and Kawa is north.

Key facts