The vast expanse of the African desert has long been a source of intrigue and adventure. Ancient historians told legends of curious tribes amidst the merciless landscape and formidable armies...
By Julien Cooper /The Conversation The hyper-arid desert of Eastern Sudan, the Atbai Desert, seems like an unlikely place to find evidence of ancient cattle herders. But in this dry environment, my...
In the heart of the Sahara desert, an arid wasteland the size of the US, it seems nothing can survive. But there were some who mastered this most inhospitable of landscapes, and turned an empty land...
In 1235 AD, the Malian Empire emerged from the shadows of the fallen Ghanan Empire, its epic origins recounted in the oral tradition of West Africa. Sundiata Keita , the Lion King, plays a central...
In the vast expanse of the Sahara , a retired archaeology professor, Thierry Tillet, embarks on yet another expedition to trace the ancient routes of desert trade caravans . Unlike modern researchers...
Deep within the desolate expanse of the Sahara in Niger , the mystery of lost civilizations becomes tantalizingly tangible in the form of ancient ksars or fortified villages. Located in Fachi, among...
The salt mines of Mali have been in operation for centuries and offer a glimpse into a way of life that has remained largely unchanged for over a thousand years. The miners work tirelessly in the...
Koumbi Saleh was one of the most important economic centers in West Africa during its peak around the 9th century. This wealthy trade city was once a hub of economic activity, with trade, agriculture...
Tucked away in Mauritania, surrounded by the imposing, shifting dunes of the Sahara Desert, lies the Richat Structure. A spectacular rock formation of many names, the “Eye of the Sahara” has guided...
The Sahara Desert is the largest desert in the world. Covering over 3.6 million square miles (9.3 million square kilometers), it is more or less equal to the entire United States. However, ten...
In 2019, a team of scientists excavating in the scorched sands of ancient Egypt, far from the royal burial zone at Saqqara with its mummified animals and birds, uncovered the remains of a giant...
A new archaeological dating technique has been successfully applied to shards of pottery uncovered from a dig in East London’s Shoreditch. The “groundbreaking” new dating technique analyzes fatty...
In West Africa during the Medieval period, salt was traded for gold. This may seem astonishing as salt is a cheap commodity in today’s society. It may be added that salt is easily available today...
In 2014, a fresh analysis on a set of human remains dating back 13,000 years, which were found on the east bank of the Nile in northern Sudan , suggested the individuals were victims of an intergroup...
M’Zab valley is a deep, oasis located within the Sahara, consisting of five fortified towns 600 km (370 miles) south of Algiers, the capital of Algeria. M’Zab achieved UNESCO World Heritage status in...
One of the best-preserved Roman ruins in Algeria, Timgad can thank the sands of the Sahara for its survival. It is such a remarkable site to behold that some travelers have even gone so far as to dub...
During the Middle Ages, Sahara outposts often found themselves filled with travelers, traders, and pilgrims passing through with their differing tasks. The pilgrims in particular interest us here, as...
Tassili n'Ajjer has been described as the finest prehistoric open-air museum in the world. Set in a vast plateau in the south-east of the Algerian Sahara at the borders of Libya, Niger and Mali, and...
Timbuktu is a town in the West African nation of Mali on the southern edge of the Sahara Desert. It was once an intellectual and spiritual capital and a centre for the propagation of Islam throughout...
