Meroë, Sudan

The ancient Kushite city of Meroë was the capital of the Nubian Kingdom of Kush from 591 BCE to 350 CE. During the course of its history, Nubian emperors and nobles were buried in pyramids, modeled off their Egyptian counterparts.

Meroë had 200 pyramids within three groupings; however after years of tomb raiding and destruction, only several are intact today. Italian treasure hunter Giuseppe Ferlini destroyed many n the 1830s while looking for gold and jewelry, blowing many of their tops off with explosives.

Today, Meroë feels almost forgotten in time. While many of its ruins have been partially restored, it still lacks anything close to the crowds seen in Egypt. Rather, Sudan’s pyramids remain spectacularly isolated and quiet— the largest threat to their continued existence is the rapid desertification in northern Sudan, resulting in significant wind and sand damage to the stones.