Between 860 BC, when the first tombs appeared at Kurru, and 250 BC, when the capital of the Nubian state moved to Meroe, Napata was the capital of Nubia.
During this time Egypt broke up into small states which were overcome by the rulers of Napata between 750-660 BC, creating the largest state to exist along the lower Nile prior to modern times. The city of Napata has only been partly excavated on a very small scale, but, as at Meroe, there were clusters of square palaces with temples nearby.
The Napatan kings fought campaigns in Egypt, but also with the nomadic Blemmyes to the east and the Aadadas to the south east.
The Napatan kingdom was based on the Nile, and the semi-desert and savannah lands away from the river were beyond Napatan control. In Lower Nubia animal-driven waterwheels, 'saquias', enhanced the agricultural productivity of the flood plains.
