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The northern Ethiopia ancient city of Axum, regarded
as the cradle of Ethiopian culture and Christianity,
is the country's oldest extant urban settlement. From
around 200 BC to 700 AD, Axum was the seat of an
empire that extended across the Red Sea to Arabia,
traded with India and China, had its own alphabet and
notational system, constructed great engineering works
and dams was reckoned by the 4th century, Persian
historian Mani to be one of the four great powers of
the ancient world, along with China, Persia and Rome.
After its conversion to Christianity, early in the
fourth century, Axum also emerged as an important
religious centre, site of the country's most important
and revered Church of St Mary of Tseyon, which,
according to Ethiopian tradition, is the repository of
the biblical Ark of the Covenant.
The visitor can see stelaes made of single blocks of
granite, including the tallest stood over 33 metres
high-the largest monolith in the world, the tombs and
castles of Kings, Axum museum, inscriptions and the
16th century of St. Mary of Zion church, built on the
site of Ethiopia’s first church and it is a chapel of
the holiest Christian sanctuary in Ethiopia, and
Ethiopians believe that the church houses the Ark of
Covenant, containing the tables on which Moses wrote
the ten commandments.
A visit to Axum can be extended to take in the 800 BC
pre-Axumite temple at Yeha, 55 km east of Axum and a
little further, the 7th century monastery at Debre
Damo. (Women are not allowed to enter the latter, and
the only access is by rope.) And the historical town
of Adwa is among the several attractive sites that can
be covered within a day excursion. |
