The birth place of mankind, Africa experienced a complex pattern of development in more recent periods. For three millennia from 3000 BC, the Egyptian civilization dominated the north east of the continent, while other important cultures, such as the kingdom of Aksum in Ethiopia, flourished to the south. South of the Sahara Desert, the Bantu peoples introduced metal working and agriculture. They also founded the kingdoms of East and West Africa discovered by European explorers from the 15th century.
