Africa Timeline

Paintings in charcoal, ochre and white pigments of such animals as zebras and rhinoceroses, found on portable stones in domestic debris in the Apollo 11 cave in Namibia, are the oldest datable rock paintings in Africa. Read more...

Rock-carvings of large animals are created by hunter gatherers during the Bubalus antiquus period and are the oldest known example of rock art in Africa. Read more...

The earliest pottery made in Africa, in the form of utensils and figurines, is produced in the Sahara region. Read more...

Rock paintings made in North Africa during the Pastoral period, as represented by scenes of cattle herding and vignettes of daily life at Tassili N'Ajjer in Algeria, reveal an increased sense of naturalism and mastery of colour over rock art of earlier times. Read more...

The paintings of boats, animals, hunting and combat scenes, as well as the scene of a hero holding back two lions, that decorate the walls of Tomb 100 at Hierakonpolis are among the most important monuments of Egypt's Predynastic and Early Dynastic periods. Read more...

Considered ancient Egypt's first great work of art, the large schist Narmer Palette celebrates the glory of King Narmer, shown smiting his enemy. Read more...

The first monumental structure built entirely of stone is a six-stage stepped pyramid designed by the architect Imhotep for King Djoser at Saqqara, Egypt. Read more...

King Cheops orders the construction of the Great Pyramid at Giza, the largest pyramid ever constructed and originally 146 metres tall. Read more...

The Great Sphinx at Giza depicts in stone the head of the Egyptian King Khafre atop the body of a reclining lion. This monumental statue guards the roadway to Khafre's pyramid tomb. Read more...

Multi-chambered tombs at the Egyptian necropolis of Beni Hasan are carved from living rock, requiring great skill and effort. Painted scenes from daily life on the walls of the tombs provide an invaluable glimpse into the common concerns and activities of the upper classes at the time. Read more...

Kerma, the site of a Kushite town in Sudan, produces finely made pottery vessels. While most are black-topped red wares, some containers are elaborately painted and others are decorated with appliquéd or incised markings. Read more...

Queen Hatshepsut, one of ancient Egypt's three female rulers, constructs a massive and imposing funerary temple at Deir el-Bahri as part of an extensive campaign using art and architecture to glorify her reign. Read more...

Ancient Egyptian glassmakers make lively-looking small bottles for scented oils and cosmetics in a variety of shapes and with multiple colours. These core-formed vessels are made by applying and working molten glass on a rigid interior base. Read more...

This famous painted limestone bust of Queen Nefertiti celebrates the unique status and privileges granted to her by her husband Akhenaten, as she is depicted in the same royal style as he is in his official portraits. Read more...

King Tutankhamun is buried in a lavish tomb, furnished with magnificent jewellery, textiles, throne, gold chariots and a coffin made of gold inlaid with glass and semi-precious stones. The sumptuousness of the grave goods attests to the pharaoh's wealth and power in life, and the rich symbolism of the ornamentation reveal his beliefs about the afterlife. Read more...

Ancient Egyptians bury finely illustrated manuscripts, known as Books of the Dead, in their tombs to provide guidance to the deceased in the trials that take place in the afterlife. Read more...

A wide variety of burial urns and tomb furnishings maintained at the Sanctuary, or Tophet, of Tanit, Carthage's primary goddess, illustrate the city's religious concerns and practices, including for a time the sacrifice of young children. Read more...

Sculptors in Nok, Nigeria produce terracotta heads, probably for religious purposes, that seem highly animated, although their features are exaggerated so that they appear slightly caricatured. Read more...

A one-roomed temple is developed in Nubia, presumably to accommodate local rituals. One of the earliest examples is the shrine built by King Arnekhamani and dedicated to the lion-headed god Apedemak. Read more...

Nubian sculptors ornament temples, palaces and tombs with relief scenes of the king and his family paying tribute to the deities. Read more...

Nubian potters of the Meroitic period create ceramic containers that have eggshell-thin bodies, refined finishes and lively painted or stamped decoration. Read more...

During the period of Roman rule, mummies in Faiyum, Egypt are capped with highly lifelike painted portraits of the deceased, introducing a new level of realism into Egyptian art. Read more...

The Severan theatre in the Roman town of Sabratha on the Libyan coast is built as the most sophisticated example of its type and remains the best-preserved Roman theatre in North Africa. Read more...

Monumental stone obelisks are hewn at the Ethiopian city of Aksum to serve as funerary markers for the uppermost members of society. These stelae, the largest of which is a towering 33.5 metres tall, are carved to resemble the surfaces of buildings. Read more...

The earliest known clay figures in South Africa, found at Lydenburg, are a series of fired ceramic heads that are thought to have been used as part of initiation rituals. Read more...

Among the earliest surviving Christian icons is the depiction of the Virgin and Child Enthroned with SS George and Theodore, painted using the encaustic technique. Read more...

The sensitive painting of St Anne is one of the earliest images painted on the walls of the cathedral of Faras, which is the source of the best-known examples of Byzantine painting in Nubia. Her enormous eyes and simplified features continue Egyptian traditions and are characteristic of the early Faras images. Read more...

Expansion begins on the Great Mosque of Kairouan in Tunisia. This religious centre in the western part of the Islamic world stands as a model for other mosques in the region. Read more...

Highly accomplished smiths at Igbo-Ukwu in Nigeria fashion elaborately decorated bronze containers and ritual implements that are among the earliest items made of copper alloy in western Africa. Read more...

The mosque of al-Hakim is constructed by the Fatimid caliphate to accommodate the entire population of Cairo for worship and grand ceremonies. Read more...

Massive stone walls are built in Great Zimbabwe, forming the largest ancient structure in sub-Saharan Africa. The biggest walls, some of which tower 11 metres tall, form the Great Enclosure.  Read more...

Life-size portrait heads made of terracotta or bronze at Ife in Nigeria are strikingly naturalistic and are pierced with holes that may have allowed the attachment of crowns and facial hair.. Read more...

Artistic interchanges between different parts of the Almoravid domain can be seen in the Qubbat al-Ba'diyyin, the surviving ablution centre of the primary mosque in Marrakesh. Ribbed domes and intersecting horseshoe arches from Andalusia are combined with local Moroccan architecture.. Read more...

Twelve churches are cut from the living rock at Lalibela in Ethiopia. Their architecture is derived from wooden buildings, no longer extant, in the region. Read more...

Artisans in the inland Niger River delta fashion equestrian figures from ceramic, metal and wood to depict mythological figures and important political individuals. Read more...

Ife smiths cast in copper the half-life-size statue of a seated man known as the Tada figure. The figure's posture and proportions, as well as his animated facial expression, are exceptionally realistic. Read more...

Mamluk sultan Qala'un builds a grand complex in Cairo that includes a madrasa (school), hospital, mausoleum and minaret, and is part of a larger programme of public and private construction. Read more...

Illustrated copies of the Gospels are produced in Tigray province in Ethiopia that reveal the region's ties with the Byzantine Empire and close relationship with the Eastern Mediterranean. Read more...

The Dogon people of Mali carve some of the most accomplished and oldest surviving figural wooden statues in Africa. While most figures are stylized to some degree and emphasize geometric forms, sculptures of women often include children and thereby underscore their maternal role in society.. Read more...

The Great Mosque is Timbuktu is built, probably at the order of King Mansa Musa, who had just returned after making a pilgrimage to Mecca. The building is reportedly designed by an Andalusian poet-architect al-Saheli. Read more...

During their 'Golden Age', the Swahili of East Africa build stone tombs for the wealthy that are highly unusual and distinctive. Read more...

Sultan Sha`ban II of Egypt commissions several large and sumptuously illuminated copies of the Koran that include double-page frontispieces, chapter headings and page margins richly decorated in gold, lapis lazuli and red. Read more...

Ivory-carvers of Sierra Leone are commissioned by Portuguese traders to fashion intricate salt-cellars that incorporate European and African forms and motifs. Read more...

Benin kings of the Edo people wear finely carved ivory pendants of revered deceased ancestors. While somewhat stylized, these carvings are portraits of specific individuals. Read more...

Upon his coronation, each king (oba) of Benin must commission within his first year of rule the production of a brass commemorative head of his father, the former king, to be placed on an altar. While not realistic portraits, these images are individualized and are meant to represent the actual person. Read more...

The painting of Michael the Archangel in the Church of Debre Sina is indicative of the new painting style developed in Gondar, the capital of Christian Ethiopia, and reveals the characteristic bright palette and long-faced figures. Read more...

A king of the Kuba dynasty in Zaïre commissions a representation in wood of the founder of the royal family Shyaam aMbul aNgoong and another of himself. Henceforth, each king has a commemorative statue of himself made. Read more...

Europeans become aware of Asante kente cloth, which involves a complex weaving process and is linked in mythology to the spider god Ananse. Read more...

The Yoruba develop the tradition of making wooden Gelede masks for large festivals that celebrate the power of the tribe's elderly women. Read more...

King Gozo has the walls of his palace in Abomey decorated with figural scenes depicting events important to his people as part of a programme to use art for political purposes. Read more...

Several sculptors, identified as the 'Buli Master', carve wooden bowl-bearers, stools and statues in the Congolese town of Buli, which are naturalistic and have highly expressive faces. Read more...

Kongo carvers, working closely with spiritual advisers, make power figures, called minkisi, for use in divination rituals to consult the spirits. Read more...