Axum

Axum (or Aksum if you prefer) is one of the most important Christian sites as the home of the arc of the covenant. The fact the arc is held out of public sight and on the rate occasion it is paraded it remains covered by a shroud brings out the sceptic in me.  I prefer my attractions more tangible. 

A good road got us into town with time & plenty of daylight to spare.  The opportunity of a wander through the market in any town is always a rich source of photo opportunities.

Axum market

Axum market

We maintained a tail of at least 2 or 3 boys throughout the afternoon, eventually they gave up after a juice bar stop for an incredible concoction of avocado and mango.

avacado & mango

tour guide - Bazam

Final stop for the day we followed a sign to Bazam, not having any idea what it really meant. The kids earlier had kept mentioning it, along with the church, so the clues were pointing towards some kind of tourist attraction. It turned out to be a precursor to Sunday's sightseeing with a small monolith and 5 underground tombs. Led around by an old chap who, one can only imagine, spends most of his days sat alone by the gate. 

Sunday morning's truck tours started at Stela park, a collection of obelisks (more correctly termed stela as they do not end in a pyramid). 

Stela

These stela mark burial chambers, the largest of which of course are royal tombs. This practise stopped on the 4th century following the conversion of King Ezana (& ethiopia) to Christianity. On this site there are 3 main stela. The largest was never erected as it fell & broke as the vase was not large enough to support such a structure. The smallest of the  three has been standing for 700 years, although it is now leaning and supports put in place. The most controversial of the three was broken onto three parts and shipped to Rome in 1937 during the brief period of Italian rule in Ethiopia. Following a number of broken promises it was finally return in 2003 and redirected five years later. It's a good job the Brits don't follow this lead or the British museum would just be a shell of a building. 

Ezana enscription

Stop 2: the Ezana inscription 

In the 4th century King Enza, used the stone to record his military successes in 3 languages; Greek, Sabean and Geez. The so called Ethiopian equivalent of the Rosetta Stone, despite none of the languages being lost. The stone was discovered in 1981 by local farmers, although unlike the terracotta warriors in Xian none of them were there to sign books. 

Stop 3: some tombs

Tombs

Stop 4: the Queen of Sheba baths, no sign of a queen just a naked man having a wash

Queen of Sheeba baths

Axumite palace foundations

Final stop for the morning, Axumite palace foundations 6th century, that would have supported 2 floors. While many claim this to be the Palace of the queen of Sheba it is too late a construction, although it is thought she had a palace in the nearby hills. However within the foundations, recently discovered fragments have been dated from 985BC, the time of the queen.