Letter: Africans constructed tall buildings while Europeans lived in caves

I STUMBLED on Dr Charles Bonnet and his team at Kerma by chance 12 years ago while making my way by Land-Rover around this fascinating part of the world ('Ancient African kingdom discovered in Sudan', 23 August).

His team were digging out the sand which had blown into their excavations during the 'off' summer season, cursing the need to waste half the short time they could spend at Kerma each year.

Dr Bonnet had drawn two conclusions:

1. Egypt was still the fashionable place to work while no one was seriously interested in Sudan;

2. Africa's long-forgotten history had originally been of African people, and that the comparatively recent arrival of the Egyptians (some 3,500 years ago) has all but obliterated the ancient native cultures.

The key to Africa's history is Sudan, the great meeting point of east-west trade routes where the two Niles connect north and south. Dr Bonnet's hitherto unpublicised discoveries help to reveal some of the real history of this forgotten continent whose people were erecting tall buildings while Europeans still dwelt in huts and caves.

Nick Worrall

Moscow