Nubians
From 3000 BC onwards the wild tribes of Upper and Lower Nubia continually attacked the southern borders of Egypt. They were numerous and brave if not well organised, and posed a serious threat to the areas they raided. While the Old, Middle, and New Kingdom Egyptians seem to have had little trouble defeating Nubian incursions in open battle it is interesting to note that they also took them into their armies as auxiliaries in large numbers. During the post New Kingdom period (around 750 BC) the Nubians finally overwhelmed parts of Egypt and set up their own Kushite kingdom based on a fanatical devotion to Egyptian Gods.
There were two main groupings of Nubians: those of the Egyptian borders (Lower Nubia), named the Wawat, who were lighter skinned and more akin to the Egyptians; and the more distant Kush of Upper Nubia, who were more Negroid in appearance. Apart from details like hairstyles they were very similar in general appearance and fighting style. The Egyptians drew their Nubian mercenaries from the nomadic Medjay tribe of Lower Nubia, who could be distinguished by their carefully decorated hair set with mud.
Our Nubians were sculpted by Michael and Alan Perry. Click here for more historical information by Adrian Garbett.
Read more about Biblical Age Wargaming by Nigel Stillman.
