Clothing the Elite? Patterns of Textile Production and Consumption in Ancient Sudan and Nubia
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.23858/FAH31.2018.006Keywords:
archaeology, ancient Sudan and Nubia, Meroe, textiles, costumes, social displayAbstract
The Kingdom of Meroe (300 BCE-350 CE) developed a truly unique textile tradition, represented by hundreds of preserved fabrics, tools and iconographic representations. Together, this vast body of historical data provides a great opportunity to study patterns of textile production and consumption in the Meroitic society. This paper will first focus on restoring textile implements to their archaeological locations in order to identify the different contexts and scales of textile manufacturing, primarily spinning and weaving. Far from homogenous, the Meroitic textile industry reflected the social complexity and the ethnic diversity of the kingdom. The paper’s second part will thus relate the settlement data on textile production to the finished products – fabrics and clothing – discovered in graves and depicted on reliefs and statues, thereby linking the textiles to the individuals using them. The role of the administrative and religious elite will particularly be discussed, both as commissioners and consumers of specific textile goods, as well as official relays in a state-controlled industry.
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