The basilica is symbolic of the history of Christianity in Ethiopia. Aizan, the first Christian king of the Aksumite empire was responsible for the creation of the large, five-aisled church of M?ry?m ??yon, sadly destroyed in 1535, and since then many hundreds of basilicas have been built in Ethiopia, many, including the UNESCO World Heritage site of Lalibela, literally 'hewn from the rock'. In this book, architectural historian and architect Mario di Salvo considers the unique architectural features of Ethiopia's basilicas and explains how they developed over time. Featuring almost 200 colour illustrations, this book is an attractive and comprehensive guide to some of Ethiopia's most inspiring religious buildings.
The basilica is symbolic of the history of Christianity in Ethiopia. Aizan, the first Christian king of the Aksumite empire was responsible for the creation of the large, five-aisled church of M?ry?m ??yon, sadly destroyed in 1535, and since then many hundreds of basilicas have been built in Ethiopia, many, including the UNESCO World Heritage site of Lalibela, literally 'hewn from the rock'. In this book, architectural historian and architect Mario di Salvo considers the unique architectural features of Ethiopia's basilicas and explains how they developed over time. Featuring almost 200 colour illustrations, this book is an attractive and comprehensive guide to some of Ethiopia's most inspiring religious buildings.
This landmark book is the first to integrate historical, archaeological, and art-historical evidence to provide a comprehensive account of Ethiopian Christian civilisation and its churches - from the Aksumite period to the 13th century.
"Ethiopia at the Crossroads celebrates the artistic traditions of Ethiopia from their origins to the present day, spanning over 1,700 years of history. Seated in the Horn of Africa between Europe and the Middle East, the country is an intersection of diverse climates, religions, and cultures. This landmark catalogue examines Ethiopian art as representative of the nation's notable history and demonstrates the enormous cultural significance of this often-overlooked African nation through the themes of cross-cultural exchange and the human role in the creation and movement of art objects. It features more than 250 images of objects including painted icons, illuminated manuscripts, coins, textiles, metalwork, and carved wooden crosses in addition to works by contemporary Ethiopian artists. Because the artistic production of Ethiopia is still relatively unknown to Western audiences, Ethiopia at the Crossroads provides an accessible overview of the history and culture of the region. The book includes a series of scholarly essays that expand upon the themes and historical moments of encounter between Ethiopia and surrounding cultures, as well as an illustrated checklist of objects in the exhibition and technical findings of the Walters conservation team"--
Drawing on rich ethnographic data as well as archaeological evidence, The Boundaries of Ancient Trade challenges long-standing conceptions of highly centralized sociopolitical and economic organization and trade along the Afar salt trail—one of the last economically significant caravan-based trade routes in the world. For thousands of years, farmers in the Tigray, Amhara, and Afar regions of Ethiopia and Eritrea have run caravans of nearly 250,000 people and pack animals annually along an eighty-mile route through both cold, high-altitude farmlands and some of the hottest volcanic desert terrain on earth. In her fieldwork, archaeologist Helina Solomon Woldekiros followed the route with her own donkey and camel caravan, observing and interviewing over 150 Arho (caravaners), salt miners, salt cutters, warehouse owners, brokers, shop owners, and salt village residents to model the political economy of the ancient Aksumite state. The first integrated ethnoarchaeological and archaeological research on this legendary route, this volume provides evidence that informal economies and local participation have played a critical role in regional trade and, ultimately, in maintaining the considerable power of the Aksumite state. Woldekiros also contributes new insights into the logistics of pack animal–based trade and variability in the central and regional organization of global ancient trade. Using a culturally informed framework for understanding the organization of the ancient salt route and its role in linking the Aksumite state to rural highland agricultural and lowland mobile pastoralist populations, The Boundaries of Ancient Trade makes a key contribution to theoretical discussions of hierarchy and more diffuse power structures in ancient states. This work generates new interest in the region as an area of global relevance in archaeological and anthropological debates on landscape, social interaction, and practice theories.
"Churches of Ethiopia" Narga Sellase's monastery sits on a tiny islet in the middle of Lake Tana, the great body of water in the centre of the Ethiopian plateau near to the imperial city of Gondar. Founded in 1748, Narga Sellase is one of the constellation of monasteries on the lake. They are the expression of a civilization which since the 4th century has known the Christianity on which its identity is founded. The extraordinary beauty of the natural surroundings and the concentric space of the monastic complex enclose the holiness of the sanctuary, making Narga Sellase a strikingly suggestive place. The church is one of the masterpieces in the multi-millenial Ethiopian civilization-- an ancient but extant Christian enclave in Africa--, and is noted not only for the superb quality of the paintings which completely cover the walls of the "maqdas," the "sancta sanctorum," but also as a testimony to imperial devotion, as expressed by the prostrate figure of Queen Mentewwab, the foundress, depicted at the feet of the Majesty. Narga Sellase plays an important part in the history of 18th century Ethiopian art, when European, Islamic, and Indian influences gathered into an artistic form which maintained its fundamental Ethiopian features, not only in the magnificent paintings but also in the decoration, well-integrated into the architecture, and the architecture itself. Stanislaw Chojnacki introduces the historical and background references which characterize and distinguish Gondar's imperial court in the 18th century and its effect on art. Mario Di Salvo fits the Lake Tana region into the story of Ethiopia's civilization, describes the architecture of Ethiopian churchesin their rich topographical variety, and leads on to illustrate the monastic complex of Narga Sellase, its structure, its architectural, decorative and pictorial components. Osvaldo Raineri presents, finally in a systematic way, the sources of the paintings, derived both from canonical texts and from Ethiopian tradition, and the new translation of an 18th century manuscript, written in "ge'ez "(Classical Ethiopian) of the "Story of Narga." Stanislaw Chojnacki: founder and curator of the University College Museum (1952-63), then of the Museum of the Institute of Ethiopian Studies at Addis Ababa and co-director of the "Journal of Ethiopian Studies" (1963-75). In 1966 he founded the Committee for the Preservation of Old Ethiopian Paintings. He is the author of numerous highly authoritative essays on Ethiopian painting and his annotated catalogue of the icons of the Museum of Addis Ababa is soon to be published. Mario Di Salvo: architect; he guided the expedition to Narga in 1997. The author of numerous essays on the anthropological evolution of the territories of various countries, as well as of different publications on various expressions of contemporary art. Osvaldo Raineri: professor of Ethiopian Language and Ethiopian Institutions at the Pontificio Istituto Orientale in Rome, and also assistant at the Biblioteca Apostolica Vaticana. He is the author of numerous publications and critical editions of texts on Ethiopian history and classical literature.
The XVth International Conference of Ethiopian Studies took place in Hamburg in July 2003. More than 400 scientists from over 25 countries participated. 130 contributions from the program were selected for this volume. They are mostly written in English and deal on the regions of Ethiopia and Eritrea and cover the span from the 4th Century to the present. The volume is divided into the following chapters: Anthropology (20 Articles), History (25), Arts (10), Literature and Philology (10), Religion (5), Languages and Linguistics (25), Law and Politics (10), Environmental, Economic and Educational Issues (10).
Surrounded by steep escarpments to the north, south and east, Ethiopia has always been geographically and culturally set apart. It has the longest archaeological record of any country in the world. Indeed, this precipitous mountain land was where the human race began. It is also home to an ancient church with a remarkable legacy. The Ethiopian Church forms the southern branch of historic Christianity. It is the only pre-colonial church in sub-Saharan Africa, originating in one of the earliest Christian kingdoms-with its king Ezana (supposedly descended from the biblical Solomon) converting around 340 CE. Since then it has maintained its long Christian witness in a region dominated by Islam; today it has a membership of around forty million and is rapidly growing. Yet despite its importance, there has been no comprehensive study available in English of its theology and history. This is a large gap which this authoritative and engagingly written book seeks to fill. The Church of Ethiopia (or formally, the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church) has a recognized place in worldwide Christianity as one of five non-Chalcedonian Orthodox Churches.As Dr Binns shows, it has developed a distinctive approach which makes it different from all other churches. His book explains why this happened and how these special features have shaped the life of the Christian people of Ethiopia. He discusses the famous rock-hewn churches; the Ark of the Covenant (claimed by the Church and housed in Aksum); the medieval monastic tradition; relations with the Coptic Church; co-existence with Islam; missionary activity; and the Church's venerable oral traditions, especially the discipline of qene-a kind of theological reflection couched in a unique style of improvised allegorical poetry. There is also a sustained exploration of how the Church has been forced to re-think its identity and mission as a result of political changes and upheaval following the overthrow of Haile Selassie (who ruled as Regent, 1916-1930, and then as Emperor, 1930-74) and beyond.
The basilica is symbolic of the history of Christianity in Ethiopia. Aizan, the first Christian king of the Aksumite empire was responsible for the creation of the large, five-aisled church of M'ry'm ?yon, sadly destroyed in 1535, and since then many hundreds of basilicas have been built in Ethiopia, many, including the UNESCO World Heritage site of Lalibela, literally 'hewn from the rock'. In this book, architectural historian and architect Mario di Salvo considers the unique architectural features of Ethiopia's basilicas and explains how they developed over time. Featuring almost 200 colour illustrations, this book is an attractive and comprehensive guide to some of Ethiopia's most inspiring religious buildings
This book is the most complete, accessible, and up-to-date resource for Ethiopian geography, history, politics, economics, society, culture, and education, with coverage from ancient times to the present. Ethiopia is a comprehensive treatment of this ancient country's history coupled with an exploration of the nation today. Arranged by broad topics, the book provides an overview of Ethiopia's physical and human geography, its history, its system of government, and the present economic situation. But the book also presents a picture of contemporary society and culture and of the Ethiopian people. It also discusses art, music, and cinema; class; gender; ethnicity; and education, as well as the language, food, and etiquette of the country. Readers will learn such fascinating details as the fact that coffee was first domesticated in Ethiopia more than 10,000 years ago and that modern Ethiopia comprises 77 different ethnic groups with their own distinct languages.
