Addis Amba Mädhané Aläm: the Uncommon Troglodytic Heritage of Ethiopia

Ethiopia is one of the few African countries that have preserved the antiquities of early and medieval Christianity. The cave church of Addis Amba Mädhané Aläm (the church of Saviour of the World), is one of the little known troglodytic heritages found in Mäqét, North Wällo. This study aims to uncover the historical, architectural and artistic values of the cave church that has unique cultural testimonies.Data for the study were collected through fieldwork, interviews, and archival consultations. The cave is believed to have been excavated by Musé, the second bishop of Ethiopia. The church has six different caves cut into a rock face. Five of them are chapels, treasuries and gusting rooms. This paper discusses the cave which is the church of Mädhané Aläm. It has a complex layout compartmented into chanting room, holy and sanctuary. The holy and sanctuary form the nave which is rock-hewn monolithic feature detached from the main rock except on its roof and base. This planning is uncommon in the rock cave church tradition of Ethiopia because the nave is monolithically carved within a cave that should not be confused with churches built under a natural cave. The old enough canopy, a large artistic processional umbrella permanently projected over the chanting place also distinguishes this cave church. This is an indigenous piece of handcraft crafted locally from the bark of a tree. It is painted with different symbols and saint icons. The cave is also home to archaic mural paintings

Heritage valuing and the challenge of remoteness: The case of the rock-hewn church of Nazugn Mariam, Meket District, Northern Ethiopia

AbstractThis study aims to explore the values and conservation threats of Nazugn Mariam monolithic rock-hewn church, a typical instance not only show the country’s long forgotten, ill-considered and endangered ancient rock-hewn churches in the rural areas but also its underdeveloped heritage management system. The study employed both primary and secondary sources which were collected through field observation, interviews and review of written sources. The result of the study showed that the monolithic rock-hewn church of Nazugn Mariam entails significant environmental, spiritual, historical, and architectural values which are not known due to its remoteness. However, this important hypogeum is continually deteriorated due to natural agents such as torrential summer rainfall at one time and sunlight at the other time. Besides, locally practiced repairing works are unwise which neither restore lost architectural features nor effective in sustaining the hypogeum in its current situation. New retrofitted materials like concreted basaltic stone are completely uninformed interventions that not only could not have restored lost values but also endangering this important hypogeum, calling for urgent collaborated restoration work. The conservation problems of this hypogeum attest the country’s poorly developed cultural heritage management system that couldn’t reach out cultural heritage in the remote areas

Ethno-nationalists anachronistic tendencies in deconstructing the Ethiopian past and the role of the past in unifying the people

This paper assesses the persistent backache and intransigent ethnicization of the Ethiopian past and shows the role of heritagizing the past as a common heritage for unity. Formerly introduced by colonial agents, ethnicization and abusing the past was practiced since the 1960s Students' Movement. The movement against the imperial regime assumed consolidation in subsequent rise of ethnonationalist armed fronts of the 1970s and 1980s. Thus, 1991 only marked the capture of state power by few ethno political coalitions led by TPLF. Anachronistically, Ethiopians' interactions and coexistence, state formation pro- cess, epidemic diseases and the EOTC have been subjected for ambitious ethno-political or secessionism intrigues. The country's past is distorted and devaluated as a mythical construction. Injustices are primarily advocated, causing ethnic conflicts. However, our past is a resource that can be valorized as a shared heritage to bring better harmonious relationship and mutual development for its burgeoning population. In regard to this, Ethiopia is best placed to improve the life and unity of its people than battling over it. The empire formation process, which many ethno nationalist writers propagate as all too negative, can- not be seen in the "scramble for Africa" perspective. The process took three main phases. Being well flourished as a result of continuous agricultural and commercial activities and settlement process of its preceding periods, the Aksumite period took the first phase and the second continued following the shift of the Ethiopian state into Lasta and Shewa since the 10th century A.D. The rise of Emperor Tewodros II in 1855 marked the beginning of the last phase and completed under Menelik II. The foundation of Addis Ababa as the empire's center in 1886 was mainly linked with its role during the medieval period. Its cultural legacies needs valorization, the opening of Menelik's palace as "Unity Park" for tourists is a worthy instance to heritagize and communalizes the Ethiopian past

Däbrä Aron: A Rock-cut Monastic Church, Mäqet District of Northern Ethiopia

This study aims to explore Däbrä Aron, a least known monastic rock-cut church of the 14th century of Christian Ethiopia. Däbrä Aron is named after abba Aron, a famous Ethiopian monk, the founder and hewer of the monastery, which is established at Däbrä Daret, a mountain situated along the upper course of Täkkäzze River. It is a monastery that integrates troglodytic and mountainous monastic landscapes. Like Däbrä Gol, where Aron experienced his monastic life, Däbrä Daret was centre for coenobitic monastic life and opposition against immoral practices ofSolomonic kings who in different times exiled Aron and other monastic men. The church is excavated in to a white soft tuff rock and it is one of the few instances for the declining rock-church tradition of the Solomonic period. Expansion works are made internally by using gudəb, abba Aron’s ax-like excavation tool which is still preserved in the church. It has a complex layout constituting different parts – elongated anteroom, aisles, nave, tripartite sanctuary and compartmented chapels – separated by unevenly shaped columns with rough capitals and arches. This caveis unique largely by its səqurät, aperture of the cave’s roof opened into the sky. The nave’s səqurät, rectangular in shape, allows, except rainfall droplets, entrance of sunlight into the church. The reputation of Däbrä Aron is partly associated with the acceptance of this feature as icon of the architectural excellence and spiritual devotion of abba Aron by whom many Christians were attracted into his monastic life. The cave also has an engraved processional cross decorated with symbolical trifoliate motif