CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- They don't get the same press as the Egyptians, but the rich and powerful Nubians reigned long before their flashy neighbors on the Nile River. Treasures from the kingdom that thrived more than 5,000 years ago are on brilliant display at the Clay Center's visiting exhibit.

"Lost Kingdoms of the Nile" features more than 200 objects on loan from the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston. The exhibit, which continues through April, made only one other stop on this tour -- at the Michael C. Carlos Museum in Atlanta.

"Everyone thinks the Egyptians are the greatest thing ever. You don't hear as much about the Nubian people," said Clay Center curator Barbara Racker.

"I didn't know a whole lot about Nubia, and now I do. That's why I was really excited to get this exhibit."

The Nubians settled in Africa, south of Egypt on the Nile River. Nubia was not professionally excavated until 1913, partially because Nubia is not easily accessible by river. It's six treacherous sets of rapids upriver from Egypt. Many of the sites were lost or destroyed when the river flooded.

"We are just now putting together the pieces of the Nubian culture. After they were excavated, many of the objects went to Boston and Harvard, where they stayed," Racker said. "The first major Nubian exhibit was not until 1990."

Located in modern-day Sudan, Nubia was the gateway to the African interior. Nubians and Egyptians later traded goods and influence. Egyptians valued Nubian goods such as gold, ivory, ebony and exotic animals. Nubians invented pottery and the concept of kingship. They were skilled goldsmiths.

"Lost Kingdoms of the Nile" features imposing stone statues, intricate gold and silver jewelry, hand mirrors, pottery and stone vases and pitchers, oversized historic photos and a wealth of pieces associated with the afterlife.

A colorful sarcophagus dominates one room, while the accessories of burial add to the display. There's an alabaster vessel that held the deceased's organs, a replica of an ivory inlaid bed on which the deceased would have been carried, shawabtis, or statues, that were buried with the dead to represent the servants they'd need on their journey to the afterlife and gold tips that covered the ends of their fingers and toes. The statues were a big improvement over the actual servants who were buried with earlier rulers in the Kerma Period.

The Clay Center staff constructed a templelike entrance to the exhibit as well as special display cases for the artifacts. Creative services manager Bridgett Turley copied ancient wall paintings and hand-painted them on the exhibit walls.

Staff members developed student and adult programming and activities to showcase and to maximize the exhibit's impact for visitors. The handlers from Boston who came to install the exhibit were so taken with the displays that they might rent them for future displays, said Judy Wellington, president and CEO of the Clay Center.

"This is one of the most significant exhibits we've ever had," Wellington said. "People talk about blockbusters. This is clearly a blockbuster. People come specifically to see this exhibit."

"A Closer Look" tags on various displays were written by Clay Center staff members to encourage small group or family discussions. Written in a lighthearted style, the labels propose questions that often present the antiquities in modern perspective. The tag on an exhibit of ancient game pieces asks, "What game would you take to the afterlife?"

CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- They don't get the same press as the Egyptians, but the rich and powerful Nubians reigned long before their flashy neighbors on the Nile River. Treasures from the kingdom that thrived more than 5,000 years ago are on brilliant display at the Clay Center's visiting exhibit.

"Lost Kingdoms of the Nile" features more than 200 objects on loan from the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston. The exhibit, which continues through April, made only one other stop on this tour -- at the Michael C. Carlos Museum in Atlanta.

"Everyone thinks the Egyptians are the greatest thing ever. You don't hear as much about the Nubian people," said Clay Center curator Barbara Racker.

"I didn't know a whole lot about Nubia, and now I do. That's why I was really excited to get this exhibit."

The Nubians settled in Africa, south of Egypt on the Nile River. Nubia was not professionally excavated until 1913, partially because Nubia is not easily accessible by river. It's six treacherous sets of rapids upriver from Egypt. Many of the sites were lost or destroyed when the river flooded.

"We are just now putting together the pieces of the Nubian culture. After they were excavated, many of the objects went to Boston and Harvard, where they stayed," Racker said. "The first major Nubian exhibit was not until 1990."

Located in modern-day Sudan, Nubia was the gateway to the African interior. Nubians and Egyptians later traded goods and influence. Egyptians valued Nubian goods such as gold, ivory, ebony and exotic animals. Nubians invented pottery and the concept of kingship. They were skilled goldsmiths.

"Lost Kingdoms of the Nile" features imposing stone statues, intricate gold and silver jewelry, hand mirrors, pottery and stone vases and pitchers, oversized historic photos and a wealth of pieces associated with the afterlife.

A colorful sarcophagus dominates one room, while the accessories of burial add to the display. There's an alabaster vessel that held the deceased's organs, a replica of an ivory inlaid bed on which the deceased would have been carried, shawabtis, or statues, that were buried with the dead to represent the servants they'd need on their journey to the afterlife and gold tips that covered the ends of their fingers and toes. The statues were a big improvement over the actual servants who were buried with earlier rulers in the Kerma Period.

The Clay Center staff constructed a templelike entrance to the exhibit as well as special display cases for the artifacts. Creative services manager Bridgett Turley copied ancient wall paintings and hand-painted them on the exhibit walls.

Staff members developed student and adult programming and activities to showcase and to maximize the exhibit's impact for visitors. The handlers from Boston who came to install the exhibit were so taken with the displays that they might rent them for future displays, said Judy Wellington, president and CEO of the Clay Center.

"This is one of the most significant exhibits we've ever had," Wellington said. "People talk about blockbusters. This is clearly a blockbuster. People come specifically to see this exhibit."

"A Closer Look" tags on various displays were written by Clay Center staff members to encourage small group or family discussions. Written in a lighthearted style, the labels propose questions that often present the antiquities in modern perspective. The tag on an exhibit of ancient game pieces asks, "What game would you take to the afterlife?"

An adult evening lecture series explores Nubian customs, cultures, stereotypes, pharaohs, queens and traditions.

"Mummies: Secrets of the Pharaohs" opens Nov. 7 as a giant-screen film that follows explorers as they journey through the royal tombs of ancient Egypt.

In the Exploration Station downstairs, students and children design hieroglyphic nametags, play African instruments and color pictures of cow skulls like the painted one displayed upstairs. Decorated cow skulls were frequently found in tombs.

Clay Center staff members have been working together to develop the activities and displays for at least a year.

"The exhibit has rejuvenated the staff," said Lewis Ferguson, director of art and science education. "Everyone has worked together for a common purpose, and now it's coming to life."

Adult lecture series:

"The Mummies of Ancient Nubia: Dead and Loving It" by Dr. Dennis Van Gerven, 6 p.m. Oct. 29 in the Art Gallery: Can the dead tell us how they lived? For the last 30 years, Dr. Van Gerven and his students have been studying the remains of some 400 Nubian mummies. Read clues and discover the tales that their bodies have to tell about life and death in ancient Nubia.

"Lions and Crocodiles and Nubians -- Oh My! Ethnic stereotypes, cultural entanglements and the emergence of Nubia as a power in Africa and the Near East" by Dr. Stuart Tyson Smither, 6 p.m. Nov. 17 in the Art Gallery: Once characterized as barbarians, Nubians proved to be more rivals than dependants of Egypt. Find out how archaeology shows that Nubians forged a powerful society that eventually dominated Egypt.

"The Nubian Pharaohs and their Rule in Egypt" by Dr. Robert Ritner, 6 p.m. Jan. 20 in the Art Gallery: Nubian rulers were once formal pharaohs of Egypt for a century. Uncover the fascinating details of the dynasty's rule and how its adoption of Egyptian traditions led to more royal pyramids in Nubia than in Egypt itself.

"Nubia: A Black Legacy" by Edmund Barry Gaither, 6 p.m. Feb. 18 in the Art Gallery: Explore the symbolic legacy of the ancient Nubian civilization as Gaither discusses his belief that Africa's contributions to history and culture have been devalued, misrepresented and denied throughout the New World.

"Nubian Queens in the Nile Valley" by Dr. Carolyn Fluehr-Lobban, 6 p.m. March 16 in the Art Gallery: Nubian women played a valuable role in Kushite culture. Discover their influence on Nubian culture, and learn how they helped establish who was going to be the next king or queen.

"Nubian Pyramids and Royal Cemeteries" by Dr. Peter Lacorvara, 6 p.m. April 7 in the Art Gallery: Increased contact with Egypt resulted in progressive adoption by the Nubians of Egyptian funerary practices. Learn about the pyramids that ancient Nubians continued building for nearly 1,000 years after the Egyptians.

Reach Julie Robinson at jul...@wvgazette.com or 304-348-1230.