National Museum of Sudan
The National Museum of Sudan or Sudan National Museum, abbreviated SNM, is a two story building constructed in 1955 and established as a museum in 1971. The building and its surrounding gardens house the largest and most comprehensive Nubian archaeological collection in the world including objects from the Paleolithic through to the Islamic period originating from every site of importance in the Sudan. In particular it houses collections of these periods of the History of Sudan: Paleolithic, Mesolithic, Neolithic, A-Group culture, C-Group culture, Kerma Culture, Middle Kingdom of Egypt, New Kingdom of Egypt, Napata , Meroë, X-Group culture and medieval Makuria. The museum is located on the El Neel (Nile) Avenue in Khartoum in Al-Mugran area near the spot where the White and the Blue Niles meet. Collection. The objects of the museum are displayed in four areas: The ground floor. Key highlights of the collections include: The museum garden. Relocated temples. In the museum garden are some rebuilt temples and tombs relocated from the submerged area of Lake Nasser. In 1964, the Aswan High Dam, built across the Nile River in Egypt, created a reservoir in the Nubia area, which extended into  Sudan's territory threatening to submerge the ancient temples. During the UNESCO Salvage Campaign The Tabo colossi. Outside the museum building are set up two granite unfinished colossi from Tabo of the Argo Island. Due to missing inscriptions they cannot be assigned to any person but they have Roman influence. The Monumental Alley. The lane leading from the museum car parking to the exhibition halls is flanked with meroitic statues of 2 rams and 6 dark sandstone men-eating lions. The lions are from the first century BCE, as shown by the two cartouches from king Amanikhabale engraved on  the first lion on the right. As well as the frogs the lions were brought from Basa and represent the warlike lion-god Apedemak.