An
Archaeological Study Tour
Ethiopia
November
13- 28, 2009
Led
by Professor
Ori Z. Soltes
Linked
to the Ancient Near East by three thousand years of
recorded history, Ethiopia, the fabled Land of Punt,
has fired the imagination of travelers for hundreds
of years. The Kingdom of Axum, traditionally founded
by descendants of King Solomon and the legendary Queen
of Sheba in Yemen, where much of Ethiopia’s
culture originated, was one of the oldest empires
of Africa. Incense, ivory and spices were traded via
the ancient port of Adulis across Southern Arabia
into India, Ceylon and Rome during the Classical and
Early Christian periods, establishing its wealth and
power as an equal to Rome and Byzantium. Later, as
Axum’s power waned, a usurping dynasty was installed
at Lalibela, where, in the late 12th or early 13th
century, the enormous project of carving out a series
of churches from the solid rock was undertaken. Finally,
after several wars with Muslim states, which destroyed
many of the Christian cultural monuments, descendants
of the royal line recovered the kingdom and built
the castles and churches of Gondar.
Untainted by colonialization, Ethiopia has preserved
a distinct form of Orthodox Christianity. We will
see its extraordinary pageantry and unique variations
of church architecture, as well as traditional lifestyles
in the countryside, where ancient agriculture and
pastoral nomadism continue. Our tour will expose us
to the enigmatic remains of the region’s great
historical periods as we travel through breathtakingly
beautiful mountains, the lushly cultivated islands
of Lake Tana and the stark desert landscapes pierced
by the bright waters of the Blue Nile. This visual
feast, together with the diversity of religions, languages
and tribal traditions, make Ethiopia an intriguing
and exciting place to visit.
Friday,
November 13: Depart
New York on Lufthansa Airlines via Frankfurt.
Saturday,
Sunday, November 14 & 15: ADDIS ABABA: We
will arrive into Addis Ababa Saturday evening and
transfer to the luxurios Sheraton Hotel. Sunday, we
begin our touring at the University, which houses
both the National Archaeological and Ethnographic
Museums, and continue to St. George Cathedral and
its museum and the capital built by Emperor Menelik
II, including Entoto Hills and Menelik’s Palace.
Meals: Breakfast, 1 lunch & 1 dinner
Monday,
November 16: MEKELE: This
morning we will fly to Mekele, the region’s
capital. In this region, known as Tigray, numerous
rock-hewn churches have been built from about the
10th to the 15th centuries. Most of these churches
are hewn out of remote cliff faces in a style evolved
from hermit’s caves. Some are elaborately decorated
while others are little more than a room cut into
the rock. Among the churches we will visit is the
10th-century Abraha Atsbeha church, renown for its
lovely 17th- and 18th-century murals depicting saints
and biblical scenes. The church also contains many
valuable artifacts including a prayer cross said to
have belonged to Frumentius, the first Bishop of Ethiopia.
We will also visit the tiny Dugem Selassie nestled
within a newer church. We return to Mekele and spend
the night in the comfortable Hilltop Hotel.
Meals:
Breakfast, lunch & dinner
Tuesday,
November 17: AXUM: Our drive to
Axum will be via Adwa, the site of the decisive battle
that saved Ethiopia from colonization. We will venture
into the Danakil Desert, where we might see caravans
of Afar nomads bring slabs of salt from the Danakil
Depression. We will spend the next four nights at
the Yeha Hotel, situated above the town, giving us
a marvelous view of the towering stelae scattered
below. These great granite stelae, some decorated
with doors, windows and beams to resemble multistoried
palaces, rank among the largest stones ever used by
man in building. They marked the royal cemetery, where
the tombs of the kings are still being excavated.
Meals:
Breakfast, lunch & dinner
Wednesday,
Thursday, Friday, Nobember 18, 19 & 20: AXUM:
These
full days will be spent touring in and around Axum.
We will explore the small Archaeological Museum, Calub’s
Palace, as well as the quarry from which the stelae
were carved. Here we will find an interesting relief
known as the Lion of Gobedra. Lastly, we will visit
an area of new excavation and explore tombs and other
monuments that abound in the fascinating area around
Axum. Our touring will include a day trip to Yeha
to visit the ruins of a Sabaean city reminiscent of
architecture seen in Yemen. The so-called temple,
which now encloses a church, is built of huge sandstone
blocks, some of which have been reused in the nearby
church and are inscribed with Sabaean inscriptions
and a relief of ibexes, a sacred animal of southern
Arabia.
Meals: Breakfast, lunch & dinner daily
Saturday,
November 21: GONDAR: Our
full day’s drive through the Simien Mountains
to Gondar will be memorable for spectacular vistas
and breathtaking landscapes. According to Homer these
mountains were so beautiful that they became the playground
of the gods. We will reach Gondar in the late afternoon.
Ghion Goha Hotel.
Meals: Breakfast, lunch & dinner
Sunday,
November 22: GONDAR: Gondar,
formerly Ethiopia’s capital, was the site of
great building of castles and churches by the emperors
of the 17th and 18th centuries. Today we will visit
the the imperial precinct, which contains five castles
with battlements, observation towers and connecting
tunnels all surrounded by high stone walls.The oldest,
Castle of Fasilades, built in the mid-17th century
reflects Axumite, Portuguese and Indian influences.
Our touring will continues at the Church of Debre
Nirhan Selassie which is beutifully decorated with
paintings by the 17th-century artist Haile Meskel.
Our last visit of the day will be to a small village
recently inhabited by Falasha Jews.
Meals: Breakfast, lunch & dinner
Monday,
Tuesday, November 23 & 24: BAHIR DAR: Drive
to new Gorgora. There we will board a boat for a full
day on Lake Tana, visiting several islands and their
distinctive round churches constructed of mud, wood
and reeds woven into intricate patterns and decorated
with colorful paintings. We disembark in Bahir Dar.
Tuesday morning we will visit the impressive Tis Isat
Falls and stop near one of Haile Selassie’s
palaces, where we can see the source of the Blue Nile.
There will be time to relax and enjoy our lovely lakeside
hotel. Tana Hotel.
Meals: Breakfast, lunch & dinner daily
Wednesday,
Thursday, November 25 & 26: LALIBELA: A
wonderful flight over vast desert and mountain landscapes
into Lalibela, where we will spend two days exploring
the unique churches that recall the ancient Axumite
architectural tradition. These buildings of varying
size and shape, along with the maze of tunnels, were
carved from the living rock by the kings of the Zagwe
dynasty from the 13th to the early 14th century. These
fabulous churches are decorated wit extravagant murals
and contain artistic and religious treasures. We will
drive into the countryside to visit Ne’akuto
Le’ab Church, built into the side of a cliff.
Roha Hotel.
Meals: Breakfast, lunch & dinner daily
Friday, Saturday, November 27 & 28: ADDIS ABABA:
A
midday flight brings us to Addis Ababa. The afternoon
will be at leisure to visit the market or museum before
our farewell dinner at the hotel. Then we will transfer
to the airport for our Lufthansa flight via Frankfurt,
arriving into New York on Saturday. Sheraton Hotel.
Meals: Breakfast & dinner
