Nubia in the Old Kingdom

Egyptians are already well attested in the Old Kingdom at some places at Nubia (Buhen). There are several expeditions to places in Nubia described in biographies of Egyptian officials, especially of the Sixth Dynasty (about 2300-2181 BC). Already for king Snefru is recorded a campaign to Nubia (Fourth Dynasty, about 2600 BC). One of the main attractions must have been access to raw materials such as gold and copper. There is little evidence for people living in Old Kingdom Lower Nubia, while in the Upper Nubia the Kerma culture is attested. The absence of evidence for people living in the region has been explained in several ways: there may have been immigration to the south through pressure from the Egyptian state, or the inhabitants do not appear in the archaeological record, because of their poverty or different patterns of settlement (they may have been more nomadic), or different burial customs.

Buhen, an Old Kingdom trading post in Nubia