Sudan sits across the Red Sea from Saudi Arabia. Sudan is an interesting African nation because of its history. During the Age of exploration, in the 1430’s, the area was taken by the Portuguese who then exploited the area by stealing gold and people- selling both to the highest bidders. During this time, the Christian Church and its missionaries were still prominent in the nation. In the 1500’s, the area became entrenched in a war of religions between Christians and Muslims.
While this war raged on, the Portuguese, and their powerful navy, did their best to collect as many Christian artifacts and as much Sudanese gold as possible. The war raging in the Red Mediterranean Seas prohibited the Portuguese from returning home quickly with their bounty, so they sailed it- the long way- around the world and a number of items were stashed at other Portuguese colonies. It is possible to find Sudanese gold in the Indian and Pacific oceans and this gold should date back to the plundering of the area in the 1500’s.
