Some economic historians have dated the beginning of complex commercial activities to the ancient Egyptians, which has created the impression that the Nubian kingdoms only became affluent and prosperous after the collapse of Egypt. This is not entirely correct. The Nubians were already a prosperous civilization not only during the existence of ancient Egypt but even farther before the unification of Egypt in 3100 BCE. In his analysis of the discoveries on the A Group period in Nubia, [1] —a Pre‐​dynastic Egypt culture from c. 3800 BCE to c. 3100 BCE that derived its power from trade—historian N.M. Sherif described evidence that points to a much earlier and more prosperous civilization in Nubia:

The copper tools (the earliest metal tools so far discovered in Sudan) and the pottery of Egyptian origin unearthed from A‐​Group graves show the flowering of the culture to have been contemporary with the first dynasty in Egypt (—3100). This culture is denoted, as are also some other Nubian cultures, by a letter of the alphabet because it was nonliterate, no specific references to it exist on the part of literate peoples, nor can it be associated with any particular place of discovery or important centre. Yet it was a period of prosperity marked by a considerable increase in population.” [2]

The A Group benefited from the gold deposit and carnelian from the Nubian desert. They traded with the Egyptians and sailed in large vessels to kingdoms along the Red Sea and Mediterranean coasts in ebony, olive oil, ivory, and incense—the dominant commodities in the ancient world. [3] From the early A Group to the foundation of Kush, the Nubians were commercially inferior to the Egyptians while Egypt was their main foreign market. Meanwhile, Kush was a colony of the New Kingdom of Egypt. The abundance of highly sorted resources in Nubian territories (especially gold, semi‐​precious stones and ebony) always fascinated the ancient Egyptians. It was perhaps the urge to control trade in Nubia that made Egyptian Pharaohs annexed the southern territories. Their dominance soon stretched across almost all aspects of Nubian life. The Pharaohs of the Egyptian Middle Kingdom built imposing and heavily fortified fortresses in the occupied territories across Nubia administered by governors. [4] Despite the mightiness of the Pharaohs, things did not always go their way. When the 20th dynasty of the New Kingdom was in disarray, the southern Nubian kingdom of Kush seized the moment to free themselves from colonial rule and mounted an invasion in 732 BCE. Nubian forces under the command of King Piye of Kush annihilated an allied force of Egyptian Pharaohs and commanders including Tefnakht of Sais, Peftjaubast, Iuput II of Leontopolis and Osorkon IV of Tanis. Following the conquest, Piye became the first Nubian Pharaoh of Egypt, and he established the 25th dynasty. The Nubians created one of ancient history’s largest economy through the unification of Lower Egypt, Upper Egypt, and Kush. Egypt’s’ 25th dynasty of Black Pharaohs lasted less than a century before it was conquered by Assyria in 671 BCE.

This brief interaction left a huge Egyptian influence on Kushite culture. Discoveries such as the engraved gold plaque, unearthed during an excavation of Meroë —capital of Kush from c. 1069 BCE — c.350 CE after the sack of former capital, Napata in 590 BCE—revealed that Meroitic kings worshiped the Egyptian god of the Sun, Re. The Meroitic god of procreation, Sebiumeker, was associated with the Egyptian creator god, Atum, and many of the pyramids in Kush were built along the design of those in Egypt. Besides the cultural similarities, both civilizations also shared trade routes along the Nile River. The Egyptian territories were further north and Kush stretched through the Nubia desert and into southern Egypt. Because the pharaohs refuses to tolerate trade competition from key routes in the South, the south they frequently encroached directly on Kushite lands in Nubian territories to secure strategic routes in the gold trade and the mines in Darahib, Qareiyat, and Umm Nabardi. [5]

Meanwhile, in Kush, the shortage of fertile land caused problems. The winter cultivation season (shitwi) depended on the irrigation from the Nile River and spending enormous resources to create formidable water networks. During the summer (sifi), farmers (who were often women) collected water in buckets to from the shadoof, a counterpoise lift also used by the ancient Egyptians. [6] This was a major contributor to the growth of commercial communities across Nubia. However, the commercial strength of the Nubians started to decline starting around the fifth century before our era. As noted by A.A Hakem, “this area suffered from droughts and the encroachment of sand, which indicates ecological changes which reduced the grazing area of the hinterland.” [7]

Kush itself had always remained relevant in the international trading system as early as the third century BCE—one century after the sack of Egypt by Alexander the Great in 323 BCE. Trade was at the heart of the Kushite state, as was the case in the development of early states across Sudanic Africa. Besides its traditional exchange of gold for Egyptian wheat, Nubia also served as the melting point and probably the only channel of contact between Egypt and inner Africa. Its merchants controlled the supply of goods including ivory, ostrich feathers, and wood to Egypt. The Kingdom was so prominent that many kingdoms of the ancient world depended on it for the supply of incense and gold. [8] In fact, historians believe that most of the gold mined during this period in human history came from Kush. The Kushites traveled as far as the Persian Empire for trade. These high commercial activities fueled by a great demand for gold inspired the production of commercial grade iron tools in East Africa and perhaps similar innovations throughout sub‐​Saharan Africa.