Mummification Pre-Egypt - Long Lost Secrets of Libya's Black Mummy (ANCIENT HISTORY DOCUMENTARY)

Mummification Pre-Egypt - Long Lost Secrets of Libya's Black Mummy (ANCIENT HISTORY DOCUMENTARY)

The programme explores the enigmatic central Saharan society which once spanned the entire north African continent. We unravel their tale through the story of the discovery of the black mummy, Uan Muhuggiag. It soon becomes obvious that these people were responsible for an extraordinary array of innovations which later became famous under the Egyptians. Their presence re-writes the history of Egypt and of the entire continent of Africa.

The background: the lost society of the central Sahara and the rise of ancient Egypt. The origins of ancient Egypt are archaeology's greatest unsolved mystery. What prompted this remarkable culture to develop such distinctive rituals as mummification? Where did they get their ideas? As far as we know, Egypt was only preceded by one great civilisation: Mesopotamia. Although Mesopotamia is a far older culture -- there is no evidence to suggest that these people had developed any similar funerary practises. But if Egyptian innovations did not come from earlier known civilisations -- where did they come from?

The answer has come from an unlikely quarter -- the barren Sahara desert. In the last few decades evidence has been mounting that the Egyptian civilisation was not the first advanced society in Africa. At the same time as Mesopotamia rose in the near east, another culture thrived in Africa. Although few people have heard of it -- this central Saharan culture is providing evidence for the invention of ritual activity which had previously been attributed to the Egyptians.