Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
True believers say all work was completed in 23 years and this was possible because
every night the earthly workforce was replaced by a celestial one. However, regardless of
angelic masonry skills, the buildings are so different from each other in style, artisanship
and state of preservation that they surely span a far longer period than even Lalibela's
reign. It's also unlikely they were all originally churches.
Long a victim of the usual 'it can't be African' chauvinism, a few people now insist
that the Knights of Templar were the real builders, but there's no evidence to suggest this.
In fact, exceptional masonry skills had been refined during the days of Aksum, and indeed
most of the churches show clear Aksumite characteristics; in particular, the doors and
windows.
One of the many local legends about the site's origin states that the king wanted to
make a new Jerusalem so pilgrims didn't have to make the long, dangerous journey to the
real one. Another claims that Lalibela was poisoned by his brother (or half-brother, or
half-sister) and while in a coma he went on a journey to heaven where God commanded
him to return to Ethiopia and re-create the holy city of Jerusalem there. A multitude of
sites, from Calvary to the Jordan River, have taken names from the Holy Land and local
tradition also has decided that the northwestern group represents the real Jerusalem while
the southeastern group is the 'heavenly' Jerusalem.
Sights
Rock-Hewn Churches
Lalibela's
rock-hewn churches
(admission for 5 days Birr1000, personal video cameras
Birr300; 6am-noon & 2-6pm)
, all built below ground level, aren't just carved into the
rock but freed from it. And the carving, both inside and out, is exceptionally refined. Al-
though time has treated most with gentle gloves, Unesco has built protective roofing. For-
tunately, despite the intrusive design, this won't detract much from your enjoyment.
