The Embodiment of Colonial Strategy: Osteoarthritis in Ancient Nubia

The Egyptian Empire conquered and colonized Nubia, what is today northern Sudan, on multiple occasions. The colonization strategy employed was highly variable through time, ranging from the construction of militarized fortresses (Middle Kingdom 2,050-1,650 BCE) to an amicable co-existence approach (New Kingdom 1,550-1,050 BCE). Egyptian tactics also varied spatially, depending on several factors including a colonized community’s utility to the empire and the potential for revolt. Using a large dataset (n=540), this paper compares osteoarthritis between seven Nubian communities to (1) evaluate whether imperial strategy impacted physical activity, and (2) assess whether levels of activity differed between cotemporary colonized communities. Age-controlled ANCOVA analysis suggests there was significant variation in the frequency and severity of osteoarthritis throughout the empire. The Middle Kingdom C-Group, an indigenous Nubian population that lived outside the Egyptian built and occupied fortresses, displayed the highest rates of osteoarthritis for nearly all joint systems. Osteoarthritis then decreases during the post-colonial Second Intermediate Period (1,650-1,550 BCE) and again increases during the recolonization of the New Kingdom. However, there is significant variation of osteoarthritis at three New Kingdom sites, each of which experienced a differing colonization approach. This study suggests that the varying imperial strategies utilized by the Egyptian Empire may have impacted the physical activities and daily lives of Nubians and that these approaches were not equal throughout Nubia, but were tailored to communities. It is therefore difficult to discuss a singular outcome of colonization. Rather, these interpretations need to be nuanced with community-level archaeological context