After their defeat in 666 B.C., the Kushites and the Egyptians rapidly adopted the new iron technology.

The coming of the Iron Age to Africa meant the production of better weapons and tools.

Better weapons provided safety from hostile foes and protection from ferocious beasts.

Better axes meant that man could live in densely forested regions where he had not been able to live before.
Better farm implements meant that more food could be grown with less work, this again encouraged the development of denser population centers.
By 300 B.C., Kush had become an important iron-producing center.

Its capital, Meroe located on the upper Nile, developed into a thriving commercial and industrial city.