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Excavations in and near Agordat in central Eritrea yielded the remains of an ancient pre-Aksumite civilization known as the Gash Group. Ceramics were discovered that were related to those of the C-Group (Temehu) pastoral culture, which inhabited the Nile Valley between 2500–1500 BC. Some sources dating back to 3500 BC. Shards akin to those of the Kerma culture, another community that flourished in the Nile Valley around the same period, were also found at other local…

The Land of Punt (Egyptian: pwnt; alternate Egyptological readings Pwene(t)) was an ancient kingdom. A trading partner of Egypt, it was known for producing and exporting gold, aromatic resins, blackwood, ebony, ivory, and wild animals. The region is known from ancient Egyptian records of trade expeditions to it. At times, the ancient Egyptians called Punt Ta netjer, meaning "God's Land". This referred to the fact that it was among the regions of the Sun God, that is, the…

Dʿmt was a kingdom located in Eritrea and northern Ethiopia that existed during the 10th to 5th centuries BC. Few inscriptions by or about this kingdom survive and very little archaeological work has taken place. Given the presence of a large temple complex and fertile surroundings, the capital of Dʿmt may have been present day Yeha, in Tigray, Ethiopia. At Yeha the temple to the god Ilmuqah is still standing. The kingdom developed irrigation schemes, used plows, grew millet…

Excavations at Sembel, in the Maekel Region of Eritrea,found evidence of an ancient pre-Aksumite civilization in greater Asmara. This Ona urban culture is believed to have been among the earliest pastoral and agricultural communities in the Horn region. Artifacts at the site have been dated to between 800 BC and 400 BC, contemporaneous with other pre-Aksumite settlements in the Eritrean and Ethiopian highlands during the mid-first millennium BC. Additionally, the Ona culture…

Matara (Metera) is an archaeological site in Eritrea. Situated a few kilometers south of Senafe, it was a major city in the Dʿmt and Aksumite kingdoms. Since Eritrean independence, the National Museum of Eritrea has petitioned the Ethiopian government to return artifacts removed from the site. However, the efforts have thus far been rebuffed. The archaeological site already has yielded evidence of several levels of habitation, including at least two different major cities…

Qohaito, also known as Kohaito,قوحيتو was an ancient city in the southern Debub region of Eritrea. It was a pre-Aksumite settlement that thrived during the Aksumite period. The town was located over 2,500 meters above sea level, on a high plateau at the edge of the Great Rift Valley. As of 2011, Qohaito's stone ruins have yet to be excavated. The ancient port city of Adulis lies directly to the east. Rock art near Qohaito appears to indicate habitation in the area since the…

Adulis or Aduli is an archeological site in the Northern Red Sea of Eritrea, situated about 30 miles south of Massawa in the Gulf of Zula. It was the port considered part of the Kingdom of Aksum, located on the coast of the Red Sea. However recent excavation uncovers artifacts that predates the Axumite civilization. These civilization is now known as Adulitarian. Adulis Bay is named after the site. It is thought that the modern town of Zula may be the Adulis of the Aksumite…

The Kingdom of Aksum (Tigrinya: መንግስቲ ኣኽሱም also known as the Kingdom of Axum, or the Aksumite Empire) was an ancient kingdom located in what is now Tigray Region (northern Ethiopia) and Eritrea. Axumite Emperors were powerful sovereigns, styling themselves King of kings, king of Aksum, Himyar, Raydan, Saba, Salhen, Tsiyamo, Beja and of Kush. Ruled by the Aksumites, it existed from approximately 100 AD to 940 AD. The polity was centered in the city of Axum and grew from the…

The Ethiopian Empire, also known as Abyssinia (derived from the Arabic al-Habash), was a kingdom that spanned a geographical area in the current states of Eritrea and Ethiopia. It began with the establishment of the Solomonic dynasty from approximately 1270 and lasted until 1974, when the ruling Solomonic dynasty was overthrown in a coup d'état by the Derg. The Solomonic dynasty was a bastion of Judaism and later of Ethiopian Orthodox Christianity. The dynasty's members claim…

Medri Bahri was a medieval semi-unified political entity in the Horn of Africa. Also known as Marab(Merab) Melash was situated in modern-day Eritrea, it was ruled at times by the Bahri Negus (also called the Bahri Negasi or Bahr Negash) and lasted from the 15th century to the Ethiopian occupation in 1879. It survived several threats like the invasion of Imam Gran and the Ottoman Red Sea expansion, albeit Medri Bahri irretrievably lost its access to the Red Sea due to the…