Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Early excavations revealed that Ta'akha Maryam (enter from the north) was a magnificent
palace, probably dating from the 6th century AD or earlier. Covering a vast area of some
120m by 80m, Ta'akha Maryam is bigger than Dungur and would have been far larger
than medieval European palaces of the time. Today there's little more than piles of rubble
and a couple of dressed stone blocks strewn on either side of the road that the Italians cut
straight through, but the families who had built homes here have been relocated and a
long-awaited excavation is set to begin. The Archaeological Museum has a model of how
it may have looked.
Just to the north is
Enda Semon
, another palace ruin with even less to see. Excavation
is also due to begin here.
Gobodura Hill
A site known as Wuchate Golo is one of the four ancient quarries of Aksum, the birth-
place of the famous stelae. Several stelae (all unmarked) were almost completely freed
from the rock, but then abandoned. Mystery still surrounds the exact tools that were used
by the master craftsmen of Aksum, but here you can see clearly the process by which they
cut the hard stone from the rock. After the intended break was mapped out, a row of rect-
angular sockets was cut. Then, perhaps, dry wooden wedges were inserted into the sockets
and made to expand by the use of water.
Just as interesting is the
Lioness of Gobodura
. It was here that the Archangel Mikael
fought a tremendous battle with a fierce lioness. The fight ended when the saint hurled the
beast into a massive boulder with such force that its outline is still visible today. Or an ex-
ceptionally talented artist carved a very lifelike relief. Its age is unknown, but it probably
dates back no further than the 3rd century AD since that's when people began adding
carvings to the stelae.
The parking area is signed 3km west of Aksum off the Shire road. It's quite a rough
walk from the road over boulders and through scrub, and you'll need a guide to help you
find anything. It's typically a one-hour circular trip, but it's a beautiful spot for walking
and some choose to wander here for hours.
HILL
Basket Market
Offline map
( 8.30am-2.30pm Sat)
Aksum has two interesting markets that burst to life on Saturday;
both are best between 10.30am and noon. This one takes place under the massive fig tree
shading the heart of the piazza. It's absolutely huge at festival time when visiting Ethiopi-
ans stock up on high-quality Tigrayan workmanship.
MARKET
