Candace Amanishakheto on a mural
Great women are often left out of history. Rarely do we hear or read about African queens. It is already hard enough to read about great African men and leaders in history books, but as for African women… it is more like impossible. How many have heard of the great warrior queen of Nubia, Amanishakheto, who defeated a Roman army? Who has heard of this great queen whose pyramid/tomb was leveled to the ground by an Italian treasure hunter, Giuseppe Ferlini, in 1832? Who has heard of this woman who led her people with a strong arm, and built pyramids in Meroë? Who has heard of this great candace, whose daughter Amanitore, also queen of Nubia, is mentioned in the Bible (Acts 8:27) … yeah the Queen of Sheba is not the only African queen mentioned in the Bible!
Pyramid N6 of Amanishakheto in Meroe, before its destruction
Well, let me tell you about the great Candace (Kandake or queen) of Nubia (present day Sudan), Amanishaketo (also written Amanishaket, or Amanikasheto or Mniskhte in meroitic hieroglyphs) who reigned from around 10 BC to 1 AD. Candace Amanishaket was an extremely wealthy and powerful queen. She succeeded to Candace Amanirenas who was also a great warrior queen (and will be the subject of another post). She built considerable pyramids and temples at Wad Ban Naqa, where she was buried with great treasures. Her residence and several temples were based there. Her palace is one of the largest treasures identified at Wad ban Naqa. It was 61 m long, and covered an area of 3700 m2 with the ground floor made up of over 60 rooms. The palace originally had a second floor as indicated by the remains of columns found on the ground floor, and may have contained an atrium or other structure. Inside Amanishakheto’s grave, the Italian treasure hunter Ferlini discovered an amazing quantity of golden artifacts such as armlets, necklaces. The treasure found (or what has been recovered) contained ten bracelets, nine shield rings, sixty seven signet rings, two armbands, and an extraordinary number of loose amulets and necklaces, especially made for queen Amanishakheto created by Nubian artists from her kingdom. Some of her treasures (stolen by Ferlini) are now on display at the Egyptian Museum of Berlin, and at the Egyptian Museum of Munich.
Bracelet of Amanishakheto from the Egyptian Museum of Berlin
Amanishakheto defeated a Roman Army sent by the first emperor of the Roman empire, Augustus, (who broke a peace treaty) to conquer Nubia. She was a strong, and powerful woman, and a great pyramid builder. Her tomb at Meroë was one of the largest ever built. She is often depicted on pyramid murals as a massive, powerful woman, covered with jewels, elaborate fringed, tasseled robes, and carrying weapons in one hand, preparing to lead her army against others. Enjoy the video below on Amanishakheto, the great warrior queen of Nubia, and do not forget to check out The Treasures of Queen Amanishakheto.
Amazing information: this type of incredible herstory has been intentionally overshadowed by both biblical and roman stories. A feeling of empowerment has surfaced in my veins – a legacy of powerful women of African Heritage
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By: Kleopatra Yemanje on January 10, 2013
at 9:55 pm
Absolutely true… and it is so important to know that history, to know that: African women were and are powerful, and that some even led very powerful kingdoms who defeated the Europeans, is quite empowering. Thanks for reading.
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By: humilityjoy on January 11, 2013
at 4:24 am
[…] all weaklings, but we had real kings and real leaders like Samori Toure, Behanzin, Ranavalona I, Amanishakheto, Beatrice of Congo, and Nzingha who fought the foreign invaders for the freedom of their people. […]
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By: Queen Nzingha: Great Queen of Angola | African Heritage on March 18, 2013
at 1:38 pm
[…] textile industry, as can be seen on images on pyramids at Meroë, and images of the great queen Amanishakheto, as well as those of pharaoh Piye. Later on, as several civilizations flourished throughout […]
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By: History of African Fabrics and Textiles | African Heritage on May 17, 2013
at 4:06 am
[…] like to tell you about yet another great queen of Africa, this time in West Africa. Just like Amanishakheto of Nubia, Nzingha of Angola, or Ranavalona I of Madagascar, Amina was a strong queen who loved her […]
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By: Queen Amina of Zazzau: the Great Hausa Warrior Ruler born to Rule | African Heritage on January 17, 2014
at 7:26 pm
[…] Kingdom of Meroe.” Learn more by visiting http://wysinger.homestead.com/nubian102.html https://afrolegends.com/2012/06/19/amanishakheto-warrior-queen-of-nubia/ […]
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By: 2/10/14 Black History Hero: Nubian Queen Amanishaketo | Conversations with the Queen on February 10, 2014
at 7:32 am
Reblogged this on The Darkness in the Light.
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By: thefirstdark on April 5, 2014
at 7:35 pm
[…] her African values. Somehow, I never heard of Queen Nzingha, or Ranavalona I, or Queen Amina, or Amanishakheto kneeling down to anybody. In fact, Queen Nzingha had one of her servant form a human bench so […]
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By: A few words on Joyce Banda’s Exit | African Heritage on June 6, 2014
at 12:17 am
[…] https://afrolegends.com/2012/06/19/amanishakheto-warrior-queen-of-nubia/ […]
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By: #305 | The Mental Evolution Of "Black" People on August 25, 2014
at 9:01 am
Reblogged this on Kushite Kingdom and commented:
A little history lesson you might like.
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By: Kushite Prince on October 11, 2014
at 11:47 am
Reblogged this on revealingartisticthoughts and commented:
Okay this is what I like to see and read about. I will be checking this site out even more thanks for reblogging so I could find this gem.
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By: acj13 on October 15, 2014
at 2:29 pm
I can’t believe it took me this long to find but I’m glad I did, so much to learn
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By: nidotopianwarrior on October 22, 2014
at 5:41 am
Love this! Thanks for sharing this. I enjoy learning about powerful women from our history.
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By: Thomasena Farrar on November 4, 2014
at 4:30 pm
So great you enjoyed this article Thomasena on Amanishakheto, the warrior queen of Nubia. Thanks for visiting the blog. Please share with others.
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By: humilityjoy on November 5, 2014
at 3:11 am
With a name like Amanishakheto it’s no wonder she became as fierce as she was. Great post.
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By: Akinyi on November 8, 2014
at 2:18 pm
Thanks for visiting the blog Akinyi
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By: humilityjoy on November 10, 2014
at 4:09 am
[…] https://afrolegends.com/2012/06/19/amanishakheto-warrior-queen-of-nubia/ […]
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By: Top 10 African Queens | Sincere Ignorance on December 30, 2014
at 6:08 pm
[…] textile industry, as can be seen on images on pyramids at Meroë, and images of the great queen Amanishakheto, as well as those of pharaoh Piye. Later on, as several civilizations flourished throughout […]
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By: The History of African Prints | Felicia's Seamstress Services on July 4, 2016
at 10:06 pm
[…] Amanishakheto spirit shall descend upon her Nubian daughters reminding them of the beauty and originality they’ve suppressed for ages, the shame often felt due to the false standards of Eurocentric beauty imposed on them shall not matter anymore. Black is beauty, black is divine. […]
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By: Woman is a KING – She Afro on February 8, 2017
at 7:11 am
Thanks for reblogging this article and for visiting the blog.
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By: Dr. Y. on February 8, 2017
at 7:29 am
[…] We are Queens […]
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By: We are Queens – Colour Me Coloured on March 21, 2017
at 4:34 am
you always have been;
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By: dreemeagle on May 28, 2017
at 3:46 pm
[…] it. Specifically, they took inspiration from the Nubian warrior queen, Amanishakheto. She fiercely fought off the Roman army led by Augustus while she reigned, driving them back for three years until Augustus admitted defeat […]
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By: Beyoncé & Blue Ivy’s Matching Gold Gowns Are The Mommy-Daughter Outfits You Could Never Afford – Ketepaultals – Blog,News,Business,Health on March 20, 2018
at 8:03 am
[…] Dr. Y, “Amanishakheto, Warrior Queen of Nubia”, African Heritage, 6/19/2012 […]
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By: Early African History - Anti-Social Studies on April 29, 2018
at 8:03 am
Reblogged this on African Heritage and commented:
Queen Amanishakheto of Nubia defeated the Roman army sent Emperor Augustus. Today, vestiges of her palace can still be seen at Wad ban Naqa, and her jewelry which had been plundered by the Italian explorer Ferlini, are now displayed at ththe Egyptian Museum of Berlin, and at the Egyptian Museum of Munich.
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By: Dr. Y. on August 30, 2019
at 12:24 am
This is great information. Thanks for sharing about this warrior queen.
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By: ospreyshire on August 30, 2019
at 4:37 am
[…] what happened after the deaths of Anthony and Cleopatra. It was thus I was introduced to Queen Amanisha . She is known by another name here – Queen […]
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By: Nubia | anthonyhowelljournal on September 30, 2019
at 2:38 pm