Biete Gabriel-Rufael is an underground monolith rock-cut church located in Lalibela, Ethiopia. The Orthodox church was built during the Kingdom of Axum. [1] [2] It is part of UNESCO World Heritage Site at Lalibela. [3] Biete Gabriel-Rufael (House of the angels Gabriel and Raphael) is possibly a former royal palace, linked to a holy bakery. [4]
A monolithic church or rock-hewn church is a church made from a single block of stone. Because freestanding rocks of sufficient size are rare, such edifices are usually hewn into the ground or into the side of a hill or mountain. They can be of comparable architectural complexity to constructed buildings.
The Church of Saint George is one of eleven rock-hewn monolithic churches in Lalibela, a town in the Amhara Region of Ethiopia. Originally named Roha (Warwar), the historical and religious site was named Lalibela after the King Gebre Mesqel Lalibela of the Zagwe dynasty, who commissioned its construction. He is regarded as a saint by the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church.
Lalibela is a town in the Amhara Region of Ethiopia. Located in the Lasta district and North Wollo Zone, it is famous for its rock-cut monolithic churches. The whole of Lalibela is a large and important site for the antiquity, medieval, and post-medieval civilization of Ethiopia. To Christians, Lalibela is one of Ethiopia's holiest cities, and a center of pilgrimage.
The Rock-hewn Churches of Ivanovo are a group of monolithic churches, chapels and monasteries hewn out of solid rock and completely different from other monastery complexes in Bulgaria, located near the village of Ivanovo, 20 km south of Rousse, on the high rocky banks of the Rusenski Lom, 32 m above the river. The complex is noted for its beautiful and well-preserved medieval frescoes. The churches are inside Rusenski Lom Nature Park.
Wollo is a historical province of northern Ethiopia that overlays part of present day Amhara, Afar, and Tigray regions. During the Middle Ages this region was known as Bete Amhara and had Amhara kings. Bete Amhara had an illustrious place in Ethiopian political and cultural history. It was the center of the Solomonic Dynasty established by Emperor Yekuno Amlak around Lake Hayq in 1270, the original center of Amhara people, whose territorial reach extended from Lake Hayq and the Beshillo River in the north, the Afar and Argobba lowlands in the east, the Abbay River in the West, and the Awash River just south of modern Addis Ababa.
Lalibela ; regnal name: Gebre Meskel was Emperor of Ethiopia of the Zagwe dynasty, reigning from 1181 to 1221. According to Taddesse Tamrat, he was the son of Jan Seyum and brother of Kedus Harbe. Perhaps the most well-known of the Zagwe monarchs, the namesake monolithic rock-hewn churches of Lalibela are attributed to his reign. He is venerated as a saint by the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church on 19 June.
Lasta is a historic district in north-central Ethiopia. It is the district in which Lalibela is situated, the former capital of Ethiopia during the Zagwe dynasty and home to 11 medieval rock-hewn churches. Its original name in the Middle Ages was Begwena.
The architecture of Ethiopia varies greatly from region to region. Over the years, it has incorporated various architectural styles and techniques.
Tourism in Ethiopia accounted for 5.5% of the country's gross domestic product (GDP) in 2006, having barely increased 2% over the previous year. The government is proving its commitment and willingness to develop tourism through a number of initiatives. Tourism is a featured component of Ethiopia's Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper (PRSP), which aims to combat poverty and encourage economic development.
The Zamani Project is part of the African Cultural Heritage Sites and Landscapes Database. Zamani is a research group at the University of Cape Town, which acquires, models, presents and manages spatial and other data from cultural heritage sites. The present focus of the Zamani project is Africa, with the principal objective of developing “The African Cultural Heritage Sites and Landscapes Database”. Zamani comes from the Swahili phrase “Hapo zamani za kale” which means “Once upon a time”, and can be used to mean 'the past'. The word is derived from Arabic root for temporal vocabulary, ‘Zaman,’ and appears in several languages around the world.
Biete Amanuel is an underground Orthodox monolith rock-cut church located in Lalibela, Ethiopia. The edifice was built during the Kingdom of Axum. It is part of UNESCO World Heritage Site at Lalibela. Biete Amanuel is possibly the former royal chapel.
Biete Abba Libanos is an underground rock-cut monolith Orthodox church located in Lalibela, Ethiopia. It was built during the Kingdom of Axum. It is part of UNESCO World Heritage Site at Lalibela.
Biete Medhane Alem is an Orthodox underground monolith rock-cut church located in Lalibela, Ethiopia. It was built during the Zagwe dynasty. It is part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site at Lalibela. Biete Medhane Alem is home to the Lalibela Cross.
Biete Maryam is a monolithic rock-cut Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church in Lalibela, Ethiopia. It is part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site at Lalibela.
Biete Meskel is an Orthodox underground monolith church carved into rock. It is located in Lalibela, Ethiopia. The edifice was built during the Kingdom of Axum. It is part of UNESCO World Heritage Site at Lalibela.
Biete Qeddus Mercoreus is an underground Orthodox rock-cut monolith church located in Lalibela, Ethiopia. It was built during the Kingdom of Axum. It is part of UNESCO World Heritage Site at Lalibela. Biete Qeddus Mercoreus may be a former prison because of ankle shackles found there.
Biete Lehem is an underground monolith church carved into rock. It is located in Lalibela, Ethiopia. It was created during the Kingdom of Axum. It is part of UNESCO World Heritage Site at Lalibela. The name Biete Lehem is from Bethlehem Hebrew: בֵּית לֶחֶם.
Adadi Mariam is a rock-hewn monolithic church located approximately 66 km southwest of Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. A popular tourist destination, the site is believed to have been built in the 12th century.
The eleven Rock-hewn Churches of Lalibela are monolithic churches located in the Western Ethiopian Highlands near the town of Lalibela, named after the late-12th and early-13th century King Gebre Mesqel Lalibela of the Zagwe Dynasty, who commissioned the massive building project of 11 rock-hewn churches to recreate the holy city of Jerusalem in his own kingdom. The site remains in use by the Ethiopian Orthodox Christian Church to this day, and it remains an important place of pilgrimage for Ethiopian Orthodox worshipers. It took 24 years to build all the 11 rock hewn churches.
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