Archaeologists from the Polish Centre of Mediterranean Archaeology have discovered Christian tattoo on a body recovered from a medieval Nubian cemetery during one of a series of expeditions to the area between 2012 and 2018, according to a press release issued on 18 October 2023. The Christian theme of the is not in itself surprising, as Christianity was the predominant religion in region at the time and the body was found in a cemetery associated with the Ghazali Monastery, which is about 20 km from the modern town of Karima in Northern State, Sudan. However, this is only the second tattoo known from medieval Nubia, making it a significant discovery. The body is of unknown sex at the current time, although thought likely to have been male, due to its proximity to the monastery, and is thought to have been between 35 and 50 years old when they died, sometime between 667 and 774 AD.
The tattoo comprises a Christogram, which was a symbol combining the Greek letters 'chi' and 'rho' used to indicate Christ, plus the Greek letters alpha and omega, the first and last letters of the Greek alphabet, a combination often used to imply God as the beginning and ending of all things. The location of the tattoo, on the upper part of the foot, may also be significant, as it images of Christ often have a nail driven through this location.
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