From the 5th to the 14th century, Old Dongola was the capital of the Kingdom of Makuria, one of the most important states of the African Middle Ages. It was located in the historical region called Nubia, in present-day Egypt and Sudan. Its location at the end of Wadi Howar - an important sub-Saharan communication route - contributed to its development.

Remains of food storage containers are commonly found during excavations at this site, they are present in almost every household. Despite numerous archaeological studies conducted in Old Dongola, no comprehensive archaeobotanical analysis, i.e. studies of the remains of plants consumed by the inhabitants, was conducted until recently.

It was now conducted by an international team of archaeologists working as part of the PCMA UW project. The results, which concern the Funj period (14th-18th centuries CE), were published in the journal African Archaeological Review (https://doi.org/10.1007/s10437-025-09622-y). The first author of the publication is Mohammed Nasreldein, PhD, from Eberhard Karls University in Tübingen.

The samples used in the analysis were collected during excavations conducted in the winter of 2021–2022. Scientists identified a total of over 29,000 seeds.

The study shows that the most abundantly represented plant is cowpea (Vigna unguiculata), a species from the legume family, whose grains constituted 29 percent of the identified seeds. The other common plants are: common barley (Hordeum vulgare) - 28 percent, sorghum (Sorghum bicolor Moench.) - 17 percent, common wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) - 10 percent, wild radish (Raphanus raphanistrum) - 10 percent and field pea (Lathyrus sativus), constituting 6 percent.

'These plants are referred to as the savannah package, resistant to drought, which started to affect Sudan already in the early Holocene. Their migration north, towards Egypt, took place mainly along the Nile', explains one of the authors of the publication and head of the excavations in Old Dongola, Professor Artur Obłuski from the Polish Centre of Mediterranean Archaeology of the University of Warsaw.

Based on data on current grain consumption in Sudan, the researchers estimated that approximately 149 kg of grain per person per year was consumed in Old Dongola during the Funj period. The majority were sorghum (106 kg), millet (28.6 kg) and wheat (14.4 kg).

Meat, especially beef, lamb, goat and camel meat, as well as wild game (gazelle and antelope) and Nile fish, were important components of the Funj diet in Old Dongola. However, as we read in the publication, the inclusion of the above-mentioned plants probably shifted the proportions of consumed macronutrients towards a higher share of carbohydrates.

'Although precise estimation of caloric values is difficult due to limited data, the presence of sorghum, wheat and barley in significant quantities suggests that these cereals were probably the primary source of carbohydrates during the Funj period', Obłuski describes.

For example, kisra was made from sorghum - flat bread baked on ceramic plates. Another dish present on the tables was asida, a dough with a consistency resembling tofu. Similarly to today's Sudanese dishes, wheat and barley could be used to prepare gurassa, a thick pancake, or madida, a dish resembling porridge, made of flour with the addition of fenugreek.

The structure of houses from the Funj period in Old Dongola indicates that each household had its own food storage. Most often, houses had pantries located behind the living room, differing in size and capacity. This was often the most hidden place, for storing the most valuable things. The storage vessels were supposed to be sufficient to meet the needs of 5 to 17 adults, i.e. quite a large family.

The storage rooms where grains were found provide researchers with valuable information about the strategies of managing agricultural resources and storing food in households in Old Dongola.

One of the rooms that served as a pantry in the living space was destroyed by a fire in the mid-16th century, which led to the collapse of the roof and walls. However, this preserved large accumulations of burnt grains and legumes. The presence of large storage containers indicates that the crops were intentionally stored in this room.

Further storage facilities were found in the open space of one of the home courtyards. There were also tools used for food processing, including millstones. Their presence indicates a complex system of food storage and processing. The finding of only partially cleaned sorghum grains there raises questions about their purpose - for consumption, long-term storage or perhaps as seed material.

'Storing unhulled grains could have been a deliberate strategy to extend the shelf life or preserve the ability to germinate, or to use them as feed', Obłuski comments.

PAP - Science in Poland, Ewelina Krajczyńska-Wujec (PAP)

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