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THE SACRED CITY
OF THE
ETHIOPIANS
By the same Author.
THE RUINED CITIES OF MASHONA-
LAND: being a Record of Excavation and
Exploration in 1891. With a Chapter on the
Orientation and Mensuration of the Temples, by
R. M. W. SWAN. With Map, 13 Plates, and 104
Illustrations in the Text. Crown 8vo. 7s.60.
London : LONGMANS, GREEN, & CO.

การขอ
SACRED PICTURE FROM THE CHURCH OF THE SAVIOUR OF THE WORLD, ADOUA—(vide p. 132).
THE SACRED CITY
79563
ETHIOPIANS
OF THE
BEING A RECORD OF
TRAVEL AND RESEARCH IN ABYSSINIA IN 1893
BY
am
J. THEODORE BENT, F.S.A., F.R.G.S.
AUTHOR OF (THE RUINED CITIES or MASHONALAND' ETC.
WITH A CHAPTER BY PROF. 'H. D. MÜLLER
ON THE INSCRIPTIONS FROM YEHA AND AKSUM, AND
AN APPENDIX ON THE MORPHOLOGICAL CHARACTER OF THE
ABYSSINIANS, BY J. G. GARSON, M.D., V.P.A.I.
LONDON
LONGMANS, GREEN, AND CO.
AND NEW YORK : 15 EAST 16th STREET
1893
All rights reserved
PREFACE
THE FOLLOWING PAGES stand as a record of a four
months' journey, which my wife and I made in
Abyssinia at the beginning of this year; Aksum, the
sacred city of the Ethiopians, and the ancient capital
of the country, being the object towards which our
steps were directed.
Thanks to the kindly collaboration of Professor
D. H. MÜLLER of Vienna, the archæological results
prove of the highest interest, and present us with
another chapter in the early history of what German
writers speak of as proto-Arabian enterprise; a
history, which research is only just now beginning to
unfold, and which will, I feel confident, as discovery
follows discovery, place before our view a rast,
powerful, and commercial empire, almost outside the
limits of the then known world, contemporaneous
with the best days of Egypt, Phænicia, Greece, and
Rome--an empire which extended its discoveries to
parts of the world which are now only being re-
viii
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
discovered, and possessing a commerce which sup-
plied the ancient world with its most valued luxuries-
spices, rare woods, ivory, gold and precious stones.
These products came not from Arabia itself, but
were collected at various centres by the enterprise
of the merchants of Sabaa.
The impressions of inscriptions which we took,
and the photograplis of the ruins, now place the
Sabæans of Arabia by incontrovertible documentary
evidence in the heart of Abyssinia as early as the 7th
or 8th century B.C., whilst at the same time they show
that paganism continued as the national religion
down to a much later epoch than is supposed, and
that the Judaic influence in that country and the
early conversion to Christianity may be relegated to
the chapter of myths, as far as this portion of
Ethiopia is concerned.
I have endeavoured to set out our experiences in
the country in as simple a narrative form as possible,
giving special attention to the religious observances
of the primitive church, which we came across on
our way, and the manners and customs of every-
day life.
Our most unbounded thanks are due to the
Italian authorities in their Red Sea colony, pic-
turesquely called “ Eritrea' after the Erythræan Sea.
Without their aid we should have experienced in-
PREFACE
ix
surmountable difficulties in the present anarchical
condition of the Abyssinian Empire, and without
their prompt intervention, a fate, which has befallen
so many European travellers who have penetrated
into Ethiopia, might have been ours. ·
The illustrations in this volume are from photo-
graphs taken by my wife on the spot, from photo-
graphs of the objects we brought home, and which
are now in the British Museum, and from sketches
of my own, which appeared in the Illustrated
London News.
J. THEODORE BENT.
13 GREAT CUDIBERLAND PLACE :
Noveinber 1893.
CONTENTS
CHAP.
PAGE
I. ARRIVAL IN ETHIOPIA
1
II.
STAY AT ASMARA
18
III. EXPEDITION TO THE MONASTERY OF BIZEN
44
IV. JOURNEY NORTHWARDS
66
V. ON THE ROAD TO ADOUA .
85
VI. THE PORTUGUESE EPISODE
103
VII. STAY AT ADOUA.
115
VIII. EXPEDITION TO YEHA AND ITS ARCHÆOLOGICAL RESULTS 134
IX.
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS.
152
X.
ON THE ANTIQUITIES OF AKSUM
175
XI.
ON THE RETURN JOURNEY
198
.
XII. THE RUINED CITIES NEAR THE COAST
215
XIII. INSCRIPTIONS FROM YEHA AND AKSUM, BY DR. DAVID
HEINRICH MÜLLER
231
APPENDIX
ON THE MORPHOLOGICAL CHARACTERS OF THE ABYSSINIANS, BY
J. G. GARSON.
286
INDEX
. 297
ILLUSTRATIONS
FULL-PAGE ILLUSTRATIONS
PAGE
.
SACRED PICTURE FROM THE CHURCH OF THE SAVIOUR OF THE
WORLD, ADOUA
Frontispiece
GENERAL MESHSASHA STARTING FOR THE WAR To face p. 171
RUDEST MONOLITHS, AKSUM.
184
MONOLITH WITH BANDS
184
TALL STANDING MONOLITH, AKSUM
184
INSCRIPTION FROM AKSUM No. 1
240
No. 2,
254
No. 3
259
No. 4 .
To face p. 264
02
0
73
99
ILLUSTRATIONS IN TEXT
PAGE
3
8
0
10
13
ABYSSINIAN GIRL
CASINO AT SAHATI
FITAURARI (GENERAL) JOHN .
IN A QUOLQUOL FOREST
RAS ALULA'S PALACE, ASMARA
EARPICK AND HAIRPIN
ANKLET, EARPICK, CHILD'S NECKLACE
NECKLACE
WOMAN'S DRESS
19
20
AND CROSS, WOMAN'S
21
23
xiv
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
PAGE
WICKER GOBLET, WOODEN PILLOW, HORN GOBLET, AND ABYS-
SINIAN LYRE
25
26
27
28
THE CHERA MASANKO
IMBILTA (FLUTE), GUN-REST, AND MALAKET (TRUMPET)
RATTLE OR SISTRUM
ABYSSINIAN UMBRELLA
FESTIVAL IN HONOUR OF A LION SLAYER, A.SMARA
CHURCH AT ASMARA
29
32
38
40
ABYSSINIAN CHURCH BELLS
CUTTING OFF ST. JOHN'S HEAD, ASMARA CHURCH
42
.
ABYSSINIAN BOOKS AND CASES
50
MONASTERY OF BIZEN
52
0
.
SILVER CROSS, WOODEN CRUTCH, AND MITRE .
55
PAINTINGS OUTSIDE THE CHURCH AT ADDI RAS
61
WOMAN BATHING IN THE SACRED STREAM
63
PRIEST'S FLY-FLAP .
64
CROSS ON CHURCH OF AMBA DERHO; CHURCH WINDOWS
68
CHURCH OF AMBA DERHO
69
MULE COLLARS (BRASS AND SILVER)
70
ABYSSINIAN GAME .
73
Rock CHURCH, DEBRA SINA
75
BLACK AND WHITE TOMBS OF BOGOS
77
ABYSSINIANS WINNOWING GRAIN
91
THE MOUNTAINS OF ADOUA, FROM GUNDET.
93
FITAURARI (GENERAL) MANGASHAH
96
THE TOWN OF ADOUA
100
HORN FOR RED PEPPER; WRIST BASKET FOR RED PEPPER; DISH
COVER OF STRAW; STRAW BASKET
118
LEATHER WATER JUG AND SILVER SEAL .
121
.
0
.
ABYSSINIAN JEWELS
124
.
BRASS HAIR-COMB
125
CATHEDRAL OF ADOUA
126
TOMB OF BISHOP KYRILLOS, ADOUA; PORCH OF THE CHURCH OF
THE SAVIOUR OF THE WORLD, ADOUA
127
CHURCH OF THE SAVIOUR OF THE WORLD, ADOUA
129
.
ILLUSTRATIONS
XV
PAGE
.
ENTRANCE TO THE HOLY OF HOLIES, CHURCH OF THE SAVIOUR
OF THE WORLD, ADOUA
131
VIEW OF YEHA
136
PLAN OF TEMPLE, YEHA; TEMPLE AT YEHA
138
MONOLITHS BEFORE THE TEMPLE AT YEHA
139
ALTAR AT BASE OF MONOLITH, YEHA
140
FRAGMENTS FROM YEHA
141
CHURCH AT AKSUM
162
.
164
.
SILVER NECKLACE WITH CHARM CASES.
ILLUMINATED CHARM ,
166
GENERAL MESHSASHA WITH HIS SPEAR AND SHIELD BEARERS
. 171
183
· 185
186
187
188
BACK VIEW OF THE DECORATED MONOLITH, AKSUM
ALTAR AT BASE OF TALL DECORATED MONOLITH, AKSUM
ALTAR AT BASE OF A MONOLITH, AKSUM
SHAM DOOR OF FALLEN MONOLITH, AKSUM
FRONT OF FALLEN MONOLITH, AKSUM
TOP OF FALLEN MONOLITH, AKSUM
FRAGMENT OF THE LARGEST MONOLITH AT AKSUM
ANCIENT SPOUT, AKSUM
FRAGMENT OF MONOLITH, AKSUM .
OUTLINE OF LIONESS CARVED ON ROCK
. 189
191
192
193
.
195
ABYSSINIAN CHAIR .
208
.
PEASANT'S CAP,
. 216
THE DAM AT KOLOE
219
221
COLUMN AT KOLOE
CAPITAL OF COLUMN, ADULIS
228
THE SACRED CITY
OF THE
ETHIOPIANS
CHAPTER I
ARRIVAL IN ETHIOPIA
OUR object in visiting Abyssinia was primarily
archæological—to study what is left of Aksum, the
ancient capital of Ethiopia, and still the centre of
religious feeling throughout the realms of the Ethio-
pian emperor. We had, however, several objects of
subsidiary interest in view; a study of the Abys-
sinian people themselves, their quaint Christianity,
their customs, and their surroundings, would natu-
rally be to us of deep interest; then, again, in the
coming partition of Africa, Abyssinia will naturally
play an important part. To what European power
will the ancient empire of Ethiopia eventually
belong ? Will the Italians succeed in extending the
firm footing they have gained on the Red Sea ? or
will the French put in a claim from the side of
B
2
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
Obock? Problems such as these are of the highest
interest for those of us who try to live in the future
as well as the past.
The difficulty which was to follow us during the
whole of our Abyssinian tour confronted us before
even we set foot on shore at Massowah. Whilst on
the steamer we heard that hostilities had broken out
again between the two rival chiefs in Tigrė, the
district which we wished to visit, and that for the
present the country was closed to Europeans. The
Italian governor, Colonel Barattiere, paid us, a visit
on board, and with him we seriously discussed the
advisability of abandoning altogether our prospective
journey; but he advised us to adhere to our plans to
spend a few weeks in the Italian colony, which in-
cludes the Abyssinian districts of Hamasen and
Okule Kasai, where Abyssinian life and character
could be studied with quite as much profit, and
infinitely more safety, than in the realms of King
Menelek; and then, if matters in Tigré took a more
favourable turn, we could proceed to cross the fron-
tier to Adoua and Aksum, the goal of our desires.
This struggle between Ras Alula and Ras Manga-
shah for the lordship of Tigrè will have to be fre-
quently alluded to in these pages; consequently, it will
be as well to explain in a few words the condition
of Abyssinian politics which has led to this dispute.
During the reign of the Emperor John, whom our
expedition of 1868 placed on the Abyssinian throne,
Alula, a man of no royal birth, but great ambition,
made himself conspicuous for his bravery and his

ARRIVAL IN ETHIOPIA
victories; he conquered the Dervishes who threat-
ened Abyssinia on the north ; he fought hard against
the Italian occupation of the northern portion of the
country; he was cruel and treacherous, but, being
brave and successful, was beloved by all.
During the lifetime of the Emperor John, Alula
was Viceroy of Tigrè, and obtained the rank of Ras,
or prince, though he was never crowned king. The
Emperor Menelek II., however, when he succeeded
ABYSSINIAN GIRL
to the empire, was jealous of the almost independent
power possessed by this Ras; he summoned him to
resign, and appointed Ras Mangashah, a son of the
Emperor John, as his successor as Viceroy of Tigrè,
and intended eventually to bestow on him the vacant
crown. Naturally, Alula resented the appointment
of a much younger man over him, and, feeling him-
self strong in the number of his friends, at once took
up arms, retired to his mountain in Tembien, and
B 2
4
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
was prepared to offer every resistance to the usurpa-
tion of his power. The Italians, of course, sided with
the nominee of the Emperor Menelek against their
old enemy, Ras Alula. This naturally introduced a
new element into Abyssinian politics. The pages of
Abyssinian history are full of struggles similar to
that which is now going on between Ras Alula and
Ras Mangashah, but this is the first time that a
European power has had anything to say to them,
and the results will be interesting. Unfortunately,
Italy is not strong enough or rich enough to put
her foot down and dictate terms; if she were, there
could be no question about the ultimate submission
of Abyssinia to Italian rule. She has spent an enor-
mous sum of money and many lives in the consoli-
dation of her power in the provinces allotted to her,
and as at present there are no tangible returns for
this outlay the home government is naturally chary
of interfering in the present crisis.
Such was the state of Abyssinian politics when
we landed on January 2, 1893, at Massowah.
The Italians are fond of comparing Massowah to
Venice, and hope to make her ere long the Queen of
the Red Sea. The town is built on three coral islets
close to the mainland, Massowah, Taulud, and Sheikh
Seid. During late years a considerable number of
Italian buildings have arisen amongst the ruins of
the Egyptian occupation; the white Egyptian palace,
built by the unfortunate Arakel Pasha, who fell at
Gudda Guddi, fighting against the Abyssinians on
December 16, 1875, is now the residence of the
ARRIVAL IN ETHIOPIA
5
too
Italian governor; adjoining it is a very pretty mili-
tary club with an open-air theatre; water surrounds
you on every side, and steamy, enervating heat
makes life a burden to those who have just come
from more bracing climes ; yet, strange to say,
Massowah is by no means unhealthy; fevers are
rare ; bugs, fleas, and other vermin—alas !
common on the high plateau—are unknown here;
there is no vegetation to decay and cause malaria,
and doubtless the steamy atmosphere is greatly im-
pregnated with salt, which acts as an antiseptic to
germs which would otherwise produce epidemics.
The only difficulty with which the Italian officers
have to contend is debility and anæmia, which is at
once removed by a residence of a few weeks on the
high plateau, or a few montlıs' leave in Europe; in
fact, they say that Massowah is healthier than many
of their military stations at home.
If Massowah is infinitely inferior to Venice in its
internal appearance, it is infinitely more beautiful in
its surroundings. The miglity Abyssinian mountains
approach quite close to the coast-line at this point,
and form a stupendous and lovely background to
the little town; quaint Arab dhows are moored to
its quays ; half-naked natives from all sorts and
conditions of tribes from the interior give an air
of wildness to its narrow streets and dirty bazaars
and naturally excite the interest of those about to
proceed inland. The sea, as seen from the causeway
which joins the island of Massowah to that of Taulud,
is alive with small fish of rare forms and colours,
1
6
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
which black urchins catch all day long from the
quay, ever and anon plunging themselves into the
clear water, despite the fact that from time to time a
shark will make a selection from amongst them for
its meal. Curious fishermen on four planks tied
together, forming a sort of unstable raft, ply hither
and thither amongst the ships selling their wares ; and
if you plunge into the dark streets you come across
many an interesting fragment of Egyptian archi-
tecture, such as windows with Mushrabiah, tombs of
saints, and so forth, relics of the Egyptian occupa-
tion of this place before the Italians established
themselves here seven years ago.
We spent five days at Massowah to purchase
mules and collect our staff of men for the interior;
our Greek servant, Manthaios, who had already made
nine journeys with us, was to be our right-hand man.
As interpreter we obtained the admirable services of
an Abyssinian rejoicing in the name of Werka Terha,
who had spent several years at Athens, and spoke
Greek fluently. He told us that in Greece he had
always been called Marko, and as Greek was to be
the language of communication in our domestic
department, we soon abandoned our efforts to call
him by his more high-sounding name, and knew him
as. Marko. As to our muleteers, they formed a
heterogeneous mass of idle, troublesome fellows, in
whom we could get up little or no interest, and at
the end of our time we parted much more regretfully
with our mules than with them. Owing to the un-
certainty of our being able to enter Abyssinia just
.
7
ARRIVAL IN ETHIOPIA
then, we left a sum of money with Cavaliere Castel-
lani, the governor's secretary, and son of the Signor
Castellani, of British Museum fame, who kindly un-
dertook to forward us the necessary presents for
the Abyssinian chiefs if occasion should require.
The Italians have lately run a light line of rails
for 27 kilometres in the direction of the mountains,
which is an inestimable boon to the traveller into the
interior. That dreadful strip of country known as
the Samhar, on the horrors of which previous
travellers have loved to dwell, we crossed in the
train. We hurried past Otumlo, a village in a sea
of sand, a collection of round huts inhabited by a
tribe of Shohos, made of every imaginable scrap of
rubbish, old oil tins, mats, and rags; past Moncullo
with the Swedish mission-house standing out con-
spicuously amongst a similar collection of huts ;
past low, undulating hills covered with wait-a-bit
thorn clinging to arid and sterile rocks; past Dogali,
celebrated in Italian annals as the scene of their
hard-won victory over Ras Alula, who had de-
scended from his mountain fastnesses to give them
battle there and drive them into the sea. The
Italians here lost 500 men, to whom monuments
are erected on an adjoining hill, whereas Ras Alula
lost his thousands, and retired vanquished across
the Mareb. Finally, the train deposited us and our
baggage at Sahati, the terminus of the little line
at the foot of the Abyssinian mountains. At Sahati
were hospitably entertained by the Italian
officers, as, indeed, we were at all their forts in the
we
8
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
8
colony, and given a delightfully cool abode made of
matting, through which fresh breezes struggled, to
which we had been strangers during our stay at
Massowah.
As I sat next morning making a sketch of the
massive
us,
with the Italian casino in the
foreground, I could not help pondering over the past,
present, and future of Ethiopia. There it really was
range before
INDIA
ITALIAN CASINO AT SAHATI
at the top of that gigantic wall which has so effectu-
ally shut it off for all generations from intercourse
with the outer world. Here, as Gibbon says, "the
Ethiopians had slept for near a thousand years, for-
getful of the world by whom they were forgotten.
Its past for us is one mass of legend concerning by-
gone grandeur almost impossible for us to unravel;
its present is one of absolute misery and degradation ;
2
ARRIVAL IN ETHIOPIA
9
its future depends entirely on external circumstances
and into whose hands it will eventually fall.
It is curious that, in ages far gone by, Greek
influence was here paramount; from the days of
the Ptolemies to the days of the Alexandrian monks,
who converted it to Christianity, Greek was the only
influence from without; then came the thousand
years of which Gibbon speaks, and a Latin influ-
ence fell upon Ethiopia. The Portuguese travelled
through it, almost converted it, and then had to
abandon it. The Portuguese Alvarez, in 1520, was
the first to leave a reliable account of his travels, to
which work we shall have constant occasion to refer
in these pages. Now, again, another Latin influence
in the shape of the Italians is upon it, and the success
of their enterprise is still problematical.
There stood before me the home of the mystic
Prester John, or rather the man whom the Portuguese
believed to be Prester John, the home of a Christian
Church which had separated itself from the rest of
the world after the Council of Chalcedon, and was
Christian still. There were the valleys which had
inspired Dr. Johnson with his story of Rasselas ; for,
as Lord Stanley of Alderley points out in his preface
to his translation of Alvarez, Dr. Johnson borrowed
largely from the descriptions of Alvarez, and Dr.
Johnson had once made 51. by translating the travels
of Father Lobo in Abyssinia, and was therefore well
up in Abyssinian lore. Furthermore, it appears to
me that not only did Dr. Johnson borrow his descrip-
tions from this source, but also the name of his hero,

10
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
for Ras Sela, half-brother of the emperor, figures
largely in all the Portuguese annals. Thoughts such
as these ran through my mind as we contemplated
the task before us from Sahati.
FITAURARI (GENERAL) JOHN
The mules and most of the servants had travelled
on foot.
A short ride from Sahati to Sabargouma was all
we accomplished on the first day of our journey ;
the mules were troublesome to load, it was exceed-
ingly hot, and we were all thoroughly tired when,
ARRIVAL IN ETHIOPIA
11
after a three hours' ride over a succession of little
plains, one higher than the other, we reached
Sabargouma. On our way we met a cavalcade going
in the direction of Massowah, headed by a person
who interested us much; his name is Fitaurari
(General) John, a fine, handsome man, though dark,
towering several inches above lis Abyssinian fellow-
countrymen; his horse-trappings were of silver; his
handsome skin cloak at once showed him to be a
man of distinction. To our surprise, he addressed
to us a few words of English, and we learnt that his
father was a European gentleman, who had passed
some time in Abyssinia something like fifty years ago.
General John is a great man in Tigrè, an ardent
supporter of Ras Mangashah, and was now on his
way to Massowah on an embassy from the Ras to the
governor of the Colonia Eritrea.'
In the neighbourhood of Sabargouma is a village
of Abyssinians who have fled from the high plateau
to escape from the famine and misery which has
ruined the country during late years. Formerly very
few Abyssinians were to be seen off the high plateau ;
now there are many encampments of them on the
lower ground near Massowah. Civil war, famine,
and an epidemic of cholera have, within the last
decade, played fearful havoc in Abyssinia ; villages
are abandoned, the land is going out of cultivation,
and the wretched survivors betake themselves to the
lowlands in the hope of finding employment and some
means of subsistence. It is scarcely possible to
realise, without visiting the country, the abject misery
12
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
.
and wretchedness which has fallen upon the Ethiopian
empire during late years. Besides internal troubles,
they have to contend with Dervish raids from the
north, Galla raids from the south; bands of robbers
haunt all their mountains. Gondar, which was the
capital of the country a few years ago, with forty-
three churches, palaces built by the Portuguese, and
every element of prosperity about it, is now almost
a desert, having been raided three times by the
Dervishes. The Emperor Menelek lives in Shoa,
powerless and inert. Tigré is convulsed with the
quarrels of the rival chiefs, and it would seem, if help
in some form or another does not soon come, the
great plateau of Ethiopia will become practically
depopulated.
From Sabargouina the real ascent of the mountains
begins. The Italians have made a good road, which
winds
up the hill sides, and by this time will be finished
as far as Asinara ; consequently, the journey was so far
quite easy. The ascent to Ghinda is between two
and three thousand feet, through rich vegetation,
reminding one of the southern slopes of the Caucasus.
Beneath the trees were flowering rich-coloured gladioli,
long hanging orchids, and many plants known to us
only in conservatories. Unfortunately, rain fellheavily,
and before we reached Ghinda we were completely
wet through. Ghinda is a perfect paradise, a valley
placed between the two seasons which prevail in this
part of the world. When it is wet along the coast line
it is fine on the high plateau, and when it rains on
the high plateau it is fine on the coast line; con-
ARRIVAL IN ETHIOPIA
13
sequently, the valleys leading up to the mountains
come in for a share of both rains, and luxuriate
accordingly in rich fertility.
On the following day we proceeded to Asmara, up
a narrow valley by the old road, for the new one winds
so much that it would have taken us twice as long.
It was in every respect a splendid ride, and for the
first few hours we enjoyed brilliant sunshine and
PACT
IM
AGE
This
1
IX A QUOLQUOL FOREST
glimpses of glorious scenery. Here begin the quol-
quol forests, that weird Euphorbia candelabrum which
reminds one forcibly of the seven-branched candle-
sticks as depicted in illustrated Bibles.
We had made the acquaintance of this tree in
Mashonaland, and here I may state how constantly
we were reminded of the high plateau of Southern
Africa in our wanderings over the high plateau of
Ethiopia. The flora seems to me to be strikingly
14
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
coincident, the Euphorbia candelabrum, the gigantic
baobab, the sugar plant (Protea melliflora), the
Cucumis metuliferus, with its orange-red edible fruit,
and an endless string of old acquaintances we here
met again, including thorny trees of all sorts. The
climate, too, is also similar ; though Abyssinia is
much more elevated than Mashonaland, yet it is
nearer the equator; the rains for three or four
months, and the long period of drought are practi-
cally the same; and there are, too, so many striking
points of similarity in the habits and customs of the
inhabitants, that they cannot all be accidental, but
point either to a common origin or a common in-
fluence. For example, in both countries we have
the wooden pillows for head rests, the same game is
played with a series of holes, in which they move
pebbles to and fro with a puzzling but similar regu-
larity; the same millet-meal beer is drunk in both
countries; iron is smelted in both countries after a
similar fashion, with two goat-skins inflated by the
hand, and blowing the embers with clay blow-pipes
of similar construction. In the portion of these
pages devoted to archæology we shall, I think,
from epigraphy and ancient remains, be able to
establish an Arabian origin for the Ethiopians.
One cannot fail, therefore, to see that the same in-
1 Mr. Murray, in his commentary on Bruce's Travels, expresses
it as his opinion that the Ethiopians were of Arabian origin, but Mr.
Salt differs from him. The numerous Himyaritic and early Arabian
inscriptions which we have found, Himyaritic buildings, &c., will set
this question at rest for ever, and establish the fact that the Ethio-
pians can trace their origin as well as their written script from Arabia
1
Felix.
ARRIVAL IN ETHIOPIA
15
fluence has been at work all down the east coast of
Africa, and that the Arabians have been the people
whose influence has had a kindred effect on the
peoples so far apart as Ethiopia is from Mashonaland
in times gone by.
Midday found us again in the mist and rain,
which at this season of the year comes on with pain-
ful regularity. We lunched in the mist, amidst a
wood of quolquol trees, some reaching to the height
of sixty feet and stretching out their weird arms in
every direction; it is an uncanny-looking tree, and
exudes a poisonous milky gum which is exceedingly
dangerous. The Italians, in making their roads, have
had much difficulty with these trees; and the milk
from it, if it squirts into the eyes when the tree is
cut, produces blindness. An enterprising Greek
of Massowah has tried to utilise the quolquol gum
for commercial purposes, but I hear with no great
success; it is too spongy. The natives use this tree
universally for building huts and roofing their houses.
When barked and dried, it becomes exceedingly hard
and does not rot; moreover, it is very straight and
light, and makes admirable centre poles for their
round toukuls.
Pursuing our way in the mist up a narrow gorge,
we reached an exceedingly steep ascent, up which we
struggled for two hours or more, dodging through a
caravan of camels, and then suddenly, as if by magic,
we stepped out of the mist and drizzle into brilliant
sunshine as we got near Asmara and the edge of the
high plateau.
16
THE SACRE]) CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
The effect was one of the most curious I have
ever witnessed; below was a sea of crumpled clouds
extending as far as the eye could reach, out of which
peered high mountain peaks like islands in a sea of
cotton wool; above us was the clearest of blue skies
and a burning sun. We had literally stepped at one
moment out of the winter of the coast line into the
summer of the high plateau, and we were, as the
aneroid told us, close upon 7,000 feet above the level
of the sea.
At this point, the edge of the high plateau, the
ciglione or eyebrow, as the Italians call it, is most
marked, running in a direct line north and south as
far as one could see. After the toilsome ascent
has been made, exceedingly abrupt and steep, your
eyes
wander over the vast, almost unbroken, plain of
the high plateau of Ethiopia. This plain is broken
at long intervals by deep river valleys, such as the
Mareb and the Tacazzeh, and occasionally, as at
Adoua and the range of Semyen, which reaches an
elevation of 15,000 feet, ambitious peaks like dolo-
mites soar still higher and break the monotony of
this high plateau ; but the greater part of Ethiopia
consists of a flat or undulating plain at a uniform
elevation of from six to seven thousand feet above
the level of the sea,
During our stay at Asmara, which extended over
three weeks, we noticed the greatest regularity of
climate. In the early mornings everything was clear
and bright; as the day advanced the clouds would
gather from the sea and gradually roll up the moun-
ARRIVAL IN ETHIOPIA
17
tain sides, enveloping the lowlands and the valleys
in a dense mist; occasionally, towards sundown, this
mist would roll over the edge and envelop a little
of the high plateau in its clammy folds, but it quickly
dispersed as the sun went down, and the morning
would again break forth lovely and bright, with a
slight hoar frost over the ground.
Nothing can be more health-giving and invigo-
rating than the air of the high plateau of Abyssinia
during the dry season; in fact, I believe that even
during the rains there is little or no fever, though
the country is next to impassable with swamps and
mud. At this season of the year the deep valleys are
said to be unhealthy and feverish, though the evidence
on this point is conflicting, and I imagine that, even
during the rains, these deep valleys may be crossed
with impunity if care is taken not to sleep near the
river beds.
C
18
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
CHAPTER II
STAY AT ASMARA
ASMARA is one of the most important places in the
Italian Red Sea colony—the basis, in fact, of all their
operations on the high plateau. Where once stood a
village and church called Betmariam, they have estab-
lished a strong fortress; they have also erected nume-
rous buildings for the comfort of the Italian officers
residing there, including a small palazzo, where the
governor takes up his quarters in summer time, and
which he kindly placed at our disposal during our
forced delay.
The plain around is scattered with detached
villages, where dwell the families of their native
troops, large detachments of whom, both Abyssinians
and Mussulmans, are quartered at Asmara. On a
rocky eminence stand the large round huts where Ras
Alula once lived and ruled prior to his discomfiture
at Dogali ; these are now given over to Italian govern-
ment officials. The Italian School of Agriculture has
made several preliminary attempts at farming in the
neighbourhood of Asmara with considerable success,
as far as cereals are concerned, though the climate
has not been as propitious as it was hoped for the
STAY AT ASMARA
19
be
m.vn
AM
17
*
1
9
Hom
Malang
RAS ALUL'S PALACE, ASDIARA
:
02
20
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
growth of the grape and the olive. In fact, Asmara
is quite the most prosperous place in Abyssinia in
these later days. Crowds of pauper fugitives come
in here from Abyssinia proper in search of work, even
from Gondar, Shoa, and the Galla country. Asmara
has for ages been a place of some importance from
an Abyssinian point of view. Around the old village,
about two miles from the edge of the plateau, rise
perfect mountains of rubbish — kitchen middens
which point to the existence for centuries of a con-
siderable population here.
The church in the centre of the village is also
very old, quite the oldest church we saw in this part
of the country. You go down steps into it, pointing
to a great accumulation of débris around it. It is
square, and built of stone with beams of wood pro-
jecting in rows, affording a curious parallel to the
representation of beams on the large obelisks at
Aksum, of which more anon.
Asmara has a daily market, being, as it is, such a
centre of activity, and during our stay here we went
constantly to this market
to photograph and col-
lect odds and ends from
the Abyssinians who
in from neigh-
bouring villages. We
soon amassed a good col-
lection of silver filigree
ornaments, hair-pins snatched from the heads of
bewildered women, silver ear-picks, one of which,
P0705
W00
30000000000
EAR-PICK
came
goed
HAIR-PIN

STAY AT ASMARA
21
whether of brass or silver, every one had tied to
the blue cord, the mateb or emblem of Christianity,
which every Abyssinian of the Christian persuasion
has around his neck; thorn extractors, which these
bare-footed Ethiopians are forced to carry with them
(these tweezers are just like the volsella of Roman
days, made of flexible metal); charms to ward off the
be
ANKLET, EAR-PICK, CHILD'S NECKLACE AND CROSS, WOMAN'S NECKLACE
evil eye; wooden hair combs, and oddments of all
sorts.
Abyssinian filigree work is exceedingly interest-
ing. One would almost think that the art has been
derived from European artificers—I myself imagine
from Greece. Up to quite a recent date Greek silver-
smiths were found at Adoua and Gondar. One
22
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
Greek, Apostoli by name, is reputed to have left 100
children behind him by Abyssinian women, and some
of the ornaments which we obtained in Abyssinia
bear the closest resemblance to those we brought
from the Greek islands.
Originally this filigree work would seem to have
come from Italy to Greece in the middle ages.
Greece has passed it on to Abyssinia, doubtless
through the medium of Alexandria, where the
Greek and Abyssinian elements have met for cen-
turies on common ground. One hair-pin we acquired
is of peculiarly fine workmanship, with a bird repre-
sented on the back and a cross at the top. It has
two screws in it, made by twisting wire round the
nail, as is done in India, and below it are hung little
bells without tongues, a very favourite form of
Abyssinian decoration, both for anklets and mule
trappings.
The market at Asmara was inexhaustible in its
endless points of interest and curious sights. Rows
upon rows of natives sat vending their goods with
outstretched legs, generally all their wares being
contained between these two black walls-grain,
chillies, spices, &c., being the chief commodities dis-
posed of. Here and there sat the more elderly men
and women under the shade of their umbrellas made
of grass matting, and bound with gaudy strips of
red cloth. Not far off one saw a woman under-
going the somewhat tedious and painful operation of
having her hair done. The barber uses a long
pointed pin to separate the matted locks, which she

STAY AT ASMARA
23
plaits in rows along the head, and then, when it is
done, she places a pat of butter at the top to melt in
the sun.
There is a peculiar rancid smell about all Abys-
sinian women, for their hair and dress become
saturated with this butter,
and they never wash. The
Italians find the Abyssi-
nian women attractive
enough, and rave about
their beauty, and so have
other travellers raved in
their day. The buttered
locks and rancid smell
must surely damp the
ardour of any ordinary
European lover — but
then tastes differ, and
WU
there is no accounting for
them. Abyssinian women
wear prettily embroidered
drawers, when they ride,
with massive silver ank-
lets below. They ride
like the men, with bare
feet and a big toe in each stirrup. They have a
long upper shirt, also tastefully embroidered, and
also reminding us of certain Greek island costumes.
As for necklaces, rings, and silver ornaments, an
Abyssinian woman can never pile on enough. Her
fingers are straightened with the rings she wears up
WOMAN'S DRESS
24
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
to the second joint, and if some of the necklaces
hung with silver charm-boxes, and charms written
on parchment, to ward off the evil eye, were chains
around a prisoner's neck, one would exclaim at the
cruelty of the torture; but fashion is a hard task-
master in other countries besides Abyssinia. One
can hardly fancy the wooden neck-pillows comfort-
able to sleep upon, but so elaborate is their coiffure
that the Abyssinians prefer sleeping on these to con-
stantly doing their hair.
We paid daily visits to Abyssinian houses during
our stay at Asmara, and got to know some of the
people quite well. They would give us tedge or
hydromel out of great horn cups-horns which in the
first instance must have been of enormous dimen-
sions, and which, as we got into the interior, we found
every chief had, out of which to regale his guests
with mead. These horn cups on journeys they carry
in stamped leather cases, and hang to the saddles of
their mules. A very grand lady we visited was dressed
in a most magnificent overcloak, for the descrip-
tion of which--it is too complicated for a male--my
wife's Chronicle is responsible. Over all she had on
a long purple satin mantle, lined with red and bound
with yellow, with a wide embroidered border of many
colours; the fringe was of little tongueless silver bells
hanging on chains. There was an immense clasp of
gilt filigree, and wide ornaments of gilt filigree, and
wide ornaments of silver going out from it on each side
all over the front of the body, and the poor wearer
could only get her hands out very low down. Then

STAY AT ASMARA
25
all about in different places were huge gilt filigree
bosses about as big as tea-cups, with great silver em-
WICKER GOBLET, WOODEN PILLOW, HORN GOBLET
bossed rays all round—not comfortable to sit on, I
should say, but very grand.'
Here for the first
time we saw the Abys-
sinian lyre or harp, a
specimen of which I
coveted for six long
weeks afterwards, un-
til I was able to ac-
quire one at Aksum.
It is a delightful old-
world instrument, ex-
actly like the old
Roman lyre; it has
the testudo, or tortoise-
shell, represented by a
strong rounded piece
of wood; it has the cornua, or horns, starting out of
ABYSSINIAN LYRE

26
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
the testudo ; it is played with plectra, two bits of
polished horn. Alas! it is not a heptachord, but has
eleven strings resting on a bridge on the opposite side
to the tortoise; otherwise we should have a complete
survival of the old Roman instrument. The Abys-
sinians call it the beganeh, and say it was invented by
King David, and in the sacred pictures in their church
that monarch is always depicted as playing a fac-
simile of this instrument, whereas his father Israel is
THE CHERA MASANKO'
said to have been the inventor of another favourite
Abyssinian instrument called the chera masanko. This
I also got. It is a sort of violin with a square sound-
ing board, tightly made of skin, and played with a
little bow. The asmari, or wandering minstrels, also
play it, and it is heard at every feast, whether
religious or secular. It is not altogether unlike a
certain Nubian instrument from Lower Egypt, and is
said to be the instrument to the tune of which the
Virgin Mary died, which scene is often depicted in
the sacred pictures in the churches.


STAY AT ASMARA
27
Whilst on the subject of Abyssinian instruments,
I must mention the trumpet used at all sacred pro-
cessions, and carried before great men ; it is called
the malaket, and is immensely long, about a yard
and a half. It is made of wood covered tightly with
skin, and ending in a gourd decorated with cowrie
shells forming the orifice of the trumpet. It is
exactly like the ancient oalmiyš or tuba which was
similariy used in war and public games and festivals.
The representations on ancient fictile vases of men
* IMBILTÀ’ (FLUTE), GUN-REST, AND 'MALAKET' (TRUMPET)
with outstretched arms playing their trumpets with
bell-like orifices are exactly like scenes witnessed
frequently in Abyssinia to this day.
Another instrument, more purely religious, yet
with a distinct archæological pedigree, is the rattle
which the priests use in the religious dances. It is
made of brass, neatly wrought, with a wooden
handle. Three Turkish coppers are strung on to
each of two wires across it, and it exactly corre-
sponds to the ancient sistrum, also used in Rome, but
more especially associated with Egypt, where it was
28
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
so
*3%82
7100
used in the mystical music. at the worship of Isis
(Ovid, Met. ix. 784). Concerning this instrument,
also, the Abyssinians have their
legend, which they also illustrate
on their church walls. One of
their saints, Ared by name, hearing
three birds singing in a tree, was
reminded of the Trinity, and the
happy thought struck him of
copying their music by jangling
three coins together. Then fol-
lows the playing of the instrument
before the King of kings, and the
transfixing of the saint's toe hy
the monarch's spear, without his
finding it out, so engrossed was
he by the beautiful noise he had
invented Such trivialities as
these are to be found in those
sacred books which the Abyssinian
priests study with such vigour.
No wonder their minds never get beyond the Jack-
the-giant-killer stage of our childhood.
As the trumpet has only one note, so has the
Abyssinian flute, the imbiltà. To make an Abys-
sinian band suitable to escort a great man or
perform at a religious festival, you require four
trumpets and three flutes, each player sounding a
note in turn. The imbiltà is nearly a yard long,
and is as great a mark of personal distinction as the
umbrella. The Abyssinians are very fond of this
RATTLE OR
SISTRUM!

STAY AT ASMARA
29
dreary music, and an Ethiopian who had been in
Europe, and heard all the best music of our capitals,
fell into raptures when he heard the imbiltà again on
his return home, and said he had never heard any-
thing to equal it in his travels.
ABYSSINIAN UMBRELLA
The Abyssinian umbrella is also an object handed
down from remotest antiquity; it is used by great
men solely as a mark of distinction, and by no means
as a sunshade. Great princes only are allowed to
wear red ones, and it may be said to correspond to
the Order of the Garter with us. Ordinary officials
30
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
turies ago.
wear white umbrellas obtained from the coast,
whereas the common people sport the far more pic-
turesque article made out of grass fastened to a long
stick. Where the Abyssinians got their idea of vene-
ration for umbrellas from I don't know, but we have
evidence that they were used by them many cen-
When Kilus, Bishop of Tua, came from
Alexandria as the head of the Abyssinian Church in
1209, he was met by the king and nobles, and con-
ducted to his quarters under an umbrella of cloth of
gold. The magnificence of umbrellas used in reli-
gious processions is even in these degenerate days
marvellous. A beautifully wrought silver cross is
fixed at the top, with figures of saints and other
fantasies; the silk is covered all over with filigree
silver ornaments, and the edge is hung with those
little tongueless silver bells.
Whilst we were at Asmara numerous weddings
took place, prior to the commencement of the auste-
rities of the Lenten fast. To understand the some-
what complicated marriage system as it exists in
Abyssinia, the ease of divorce, the exchange of wives,
and the dissociation of the civil from the religious
marriage, would almost take a lifetime. The first
wedding we attended was between a middle-aged
couple who were simply exchanging partners, and the
late wife and late husband of the bride and bride-
groom were both present at the ceremony, now
married to each other. It would appear that the civil
marriage is dissoluble at will, whereas the religious
1 Severus, continuator.
STAY AT ASMARA
31
,
marriage is, unless for some marked transgression of
the marriage laws, binding for life.
We entered a yard covered with fresh green
boughs, and scattered with hay, which is always
prepared for the reception of the guests, and is
called the dass. On a couch or angareb in one
corner of the yard reclined the bridegroom, the
priest, and the best men; on another, in another
corner, were the chief guests; whereas the ordinary
guests who had just come to feed lay thick as leaves
in Vallombrosa on the floor. The bride sat in state in
an adjoining hut, with a curtain before her, which
was raised for our benefit that we might inspect her
richly embroidered dress, and give her our best
wishes. She received us with apparent shyness;
but as she had gone through the ceremony at least
twice before, and was no longer young, we put this
down to affectation.
Cooking was going on on all sides; there
stood steaming pots of boiled meat, dishes of raw
meat, jugs of beer and hydromel, baskets of bread,
awaiting the appointed moment for distribution
amongst the guests. The atmosphere of the bride's
hut was so stifling we could not wait there long, and
chairs were provided for us outside. Presently the
music came; the inevitable drum, and two asmaris
with their guitars. Splendidly dressed men sat
around us, in lovely warrior garb; the man who had
slain a lion a few days before wore the animal's mane
round his red satin cap; long swords in red sheaths
stuck out everywhere, and the festive costumes were
32
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
fascinating to behold. The agarafi
, or masters of
the ceremonies, kept order with long canes, and
drove out the children when their presence became
too annoying. Then there was a little dancing,
and when everything was ready for the viands,
children trooped out of the hut, bearing baskets on
their heads containing the food, each basket being
covered with Turkey red (a fashion observed at all
respectable wedding feasts); the bowls of beer and
Serie
FESTIVAL IX JIONOUR OF A LION-SLAYER, ASMARA
hydromel were placed on stools; and then, when all
was ready, the priest stood forth, blessed the food,
and said something polite to the bride and bride-
groom, and the victuals were distributed.
Everywhere in Northern Abyssinia, people, when
they eat, are hidden from public gaze by having sheets
hung over them; thus the company were fed in little
batches of four to six, and over each batch was hung
the sheet. This custom is universal, whether the
STAY AT ASMARA
33
meal is partaken of by the roadside or in their huts.
Some say the custom originates from the necessity
of having to give to beggars if the food is seen, but I
think that is hardly likely. It originates, doubtless,
in some very antique form of modesty, that the
process of mastication is not a decent one, and it is.
maintained in Tigré to this day by all from the prince
to the muleteer. When the beer and tedge had been
handed round in horns to wash down the cooked and
raw meat, hilarity spread with wonderful rapidity;
the lion-slayer and other warriors kept order with
their wands, having hung up their black shields with
silver mountings on the branches of the dass. .
Dancing, music, and singing were becoming now so
fast and furious, that we thought a dignified retreat
was the best, and we left the revellers to finish the
day alone.
Very different was another wedding we witnessed
at Asmara, and far more interesting, inasmuch as it
was a religious one, and was binding for life. A
young deacon was about to take unto himself a wife
prior to being ordained. The marriage of a priest in
Abyssinia is exactly as it is in the Greek Church; he
must take to himself a wife prior to ordination, after
which ceremony he cannot marry a second time
should he have the misfortune to lose his wife. As
in Greece, those who devote themselves to the monas-
tic orders take also a vow of celibacy. Our young
deacon, who was about to take the important step
of matrimony once and for all, was a shy, nervous
boy of fourteen. After the religious ceremony in
D
34
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
the church, at which the Sacrament was administered
under a huge red umbrella, the elements being
bread and, in the absence of wine, a concoction
made out of raisins, the wedding party proceeded
to the house of the bride's parents, one of the best
houses in Asmara, long and gloomy, lighted only
by a door, and redolent of the most disgusting
odours.
We were placed on an angareb as a mark of
honour, and when our eyes had become accustomed
to the gloom, we learnt that the bridegroom elect
was concealed behind a sheet in one corner of the
room, whilst the bride was hidden in an inner
chamber. As on the previous occasion, much food
was eaten and much tedge was drunk, with the addi-
tion of small horns of absinthe, which rendered the
scene even more festive. Then a lot of little almost
naked black children danced prettily in the centre of
the room, and each received a strip of cloth, which he
forthwith girt around his loins. When this was over,
all the priests—and there were at least fourteen,
assembled from neighbouring villages, dressed in
their long white robes and with turbaned heads-com-
menced a series of religious dances, to the tune of a
drum and the sistra. Each priest had a sistrum in one
hand and a long crutch in the other, and their move-
ments were exceedingly graceful, sometimes almost
wild in their evolutions, singing, as they danced, sacred
songs
in Gez. The women looked on and marked their
approbation with the gurgling noise peculiar to these
clark Ethiopian beauties, which is called ulultù, and
STAY AT ASMARA
35
1
which made one almost feel as if one was present at
a rehearsal of the opera of “Aida.
When once Abyssinian priests begin to dance and
sing it is extremely difficult to stop them. Some of
them had undoubtedly taken more than was good
for them ; but at last they were suppressed and the
bridegroom was brought out from behind his sheet;
he was adorned with the great mitre on his head,
which, being far too big for him, was stuffed with
Turkey red to make it fit. Before his face he held a
great brazen cross, so that his countenance was com-
pletely hidden, his body was covered with a huge
burnouse, and thus attired he danced to and fro with
the priests, nervously and with much hesitation, and
requiring much guidance in his steps. Finally he
was conducted to greet his mother-in-law, and was
led outside by his best men, who performed a war
dance with their shields and spears in the courtyard.
Meanwhile the bride was carried out through the
crowd on somebody's back, a bundle of velvets and
silks, with no portion of her person visible, and
was conveyed to a mule which was to carry her
to her husband's village some miles from Asmara.
We followed the bridegroom and his best man for
some little distance, and when he was out of sight of
the crowd he took off his mitre and burnouse with
intense relief, and appeared before us as a young
stripling in cotton drawers and the red-striped
shamma of everyday wear.
Such is marriage in Abyssinia. The laxity of
its ties in most ordinary cases has had a very
D2
36
CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
THE SACRED
serious effect on the moral qualities of the race.
Though not officially recognised, polygamy is com-
monly practised by the rich who can afford to
maintain wives and families in different places ;
divorce is the easiest possible thing, and it appears
to be no bar to the future friendly intercourse
between the parties concerned. Probably the decay
of Abyssinia and the physique of the race may, in a
great measure, be due to this promiscuous state of
intercourse which goes on amongst them. Italian
officers told me, with regard to their native troops,
that the Abyssinian youths were far more intelligent
and active up to the age of thirty-five, and after that
they soon became decrepit and useless; whereas the
Mussulmans, though slower of development, were
capable of active service much longer. We ourselves
noticed that grey hairs were far rarer amongst the
Abyssinians than amongst the Mohammedans. The
Italian doctors say that the amount of diseases of a
syphilitic nature is appalling amongst the Christian
population.
The difference of house and church architecture
in this part of Abyssinia to that of the south is very
marked. Hamasen, the province in which Asmara
is placed, once formed a portion of the territory of
the Bahr-negous, or King of the Sea--a monarch
who admitted the supremacy of the Emperor of
Abyssinia, but who was practically independent. He
had his residence in the district of Okule Kusai at
Digsa, a place which we afterwards visited. His men
were the finest in Abyssinia; they were governed by
STAY AT ASMARA
37
1
their own laws and paid their own taxes, and in their
inaccessible mountains lived a life of great indepen-
dence. This probably will account for the difference in
architecture to be found in Hamasen. Instead of the
round huts, or toukuls, common everywhere else in
Abyssinia, we here find long low houses burrowing into
the ground; poles are first stuck in the ground, with
rafters of quolquol trees on the top; mud is plastered
on to this, and holes made in which broken jars are
inserted to act as chimneys. The walls are merely
additional comforts, just stones inserted between the
poles, and nothing to do with the original construc-
tion of the house. Sometimes these houses go in to
a great length, having inner chambers for store-
houses, through which you can penetrate into the
house of a neighbour, and come out at another
door on the other side of the town. Some travel-
lers have seen in the dwellers in these abodes the
lineal descendants of the Troglodytes—a theory
for which I see no just support. Nevertheless,
they are just like rabbit warrens, only not half as
clean.
Dirt and filth of every description reign supreme
in an Abyssinian household. Everything one touches
is begrimed with dust, vermin of every sort abounds,
and nothing would save the population from being
swept away by fearful epidemics were it not that
the air which they breathe is so pure® and health-
giving
In the deepest recesses of shade and gloom the
women live, shut off by a mud wall from the large
38
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
entrance room, where hang the shields, spears, and
horse-trappings, indicative of male life.
Here,
squatted on the ground, the women cook, baking
their bread on an iron platter over a few embers, in
the magogo or small circular oven. Around them :
rise the great mud receptacles in which they keep
their grain, very similar to those in use in Mashona-
is
"bro
mo
ܝܬܐ
»5²a.
섰
​Soup Parantia
CHURCH AT ASMARA
land. The beehive, made of cow-dung, is inserted in
the wall, and in the corner is the quaint Abyssinian
grindstone, at which the servant grinds and grinds for
many hours of the day.
Outside in the courtyard is the loom for weaving,
with a hole dug in the ground for the feet which work
it. Here most of the household clothing is made, and
excellent work they turn out too; nothing is warmer
STAY AT ASMARA
39
than the Abyssinian shumma. Worn like the toga of
old Roman days, with the end cast over the left
shoulder, and hanging in graceful folds to back and
front, the right arm is thus covered whilst the left is
free. It is always white, the toga pura of Rome,
with a red stripe down it, added, so say the Christian
legends of Abyssinia, to represent the blood which
flowed from the body of Christ. Grand men pull it
right up to the tip of their noses, hiding the mouth
to show their grandeur. When a still bigger man
comes, they lower this; and when they present them-
selves before a prince, the whole of the left shoulder
must be bare, and the shanma girt round the waist.
Such is Abyssinian etiquette.
Instead of the round churches so common further
south, we find here that square churches of stone, and
roofed like the houses, are the most common. The
church of Asmara is a particularly interesting speci-
men of this class of architecture, and, as I have said
before, the descent into it is a strong proof, if nothing
else was wanting, of its antiquity; the sacred precincts
are entered by a porch or hospitium, where the poor
wayfarer can obtain a shakedown for the night. By
the side of this is the priest's den, where he lives
amidst his treasures, his books, his crosses, and his
church paraphernalia, like a hermit in his cell; he
showed us his gospels and his illuminated books, but
would part with nothing. This we found almost in-
variably the case in Abyssinia ; the priests would not
part with anything belonging to the church for love
or money. Whether genuine piety, or fear of discovery,

40
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
was the motive power for this we never quite made
out.
The yard of an Abyssinian church is the lucus or
sacred grove of the pagan temple. It is a circular
inclosure, planted with shrubs and reeds of all sorts,
forming a shady covering when not exposed to the
winds, amidst which the priests can sit during the mid-
ABYSSINIAN CHURCH BELLS
day heats to read their books, and amidst which they
bury their dead. At the opposite end of the church-
yard to the priest lives, in a miserable hut, a withered
old nun, who has been twice to Jerusalem, and is
holy past all comprehension. She is clad in a filthy
garment, the original colour of which is uncertain,
though it might possibly have been navy blue. She
is covered all over with crosses and treasures from
STAY AT ASYIARA
41
the Mount of Olives, and reads her Bible amongst the
tombs all day long. Her hut is a terrible sink of
filth; but she is a cheery old creature, and always
greeted us warmly whenever we met her.
Before the church, suspended from a beam sup-
ported by two poles, hang the church bells—just
long pieces of some kind of slate, which, when struck,
make a not altogether unpleasant call to worship.
They are precisely the same as the semandra used in
churches in remote parts of Greece, and have un-
doubtedly the same origin. The church itself is
square, and built of stone with beams stuck in to sup-
port them. At the porch the wooden lintels, which
the pious kiss with intense earnestness—in fact,
kissing the walls and lintels of a church is a great
feature in Abyssinian devotion, so much so that,
instead of speaking of 'going to church,' they say,
· kissing the church'--are carved with quaint and
elaborate devices, strongly recalling the patterns one
sees in churches of the old Byzantine period. At
Asmara there is only one corridor inside, whereas
most of the round churches have two-one for the
people, corresponding to the court of the Gentiles,
an inner one for the priests, the court of the Levites,
and the square narthex, or Holy of Holies, in the
centre.
Into this Holy of Holies priests alone are ad-
mitted. I felt an earnest desire to go in myself, but
was not permitted, and did not gratify this desire
until a subsequent occasion. Even the great chief,
Ras Alula himself, was not allowed to go into the

42
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
Holy of Holies at Asmara, where they keep a wonder-
ful picture, which our interpreter told us, regardless
of anachronism and historical facts, represented the
Madonna, and was brought by King Menelek from
Jerusalem, when he returned with his mother to
Ethiopia from the court of the wise king.
The outer wall of the Holy of Holies is covered
with quaint pictures, done on canvas, and then tightly
glued on to the columns and intervening walls. Here
CUTTING OFF ST. JOHN'S HEAD. ASMARA CHURCH
Ras Alula is represented as conquering the dervishes.
All good men and true are represented with full faces,
all evil men and enemies with side faces; and it is a
curious fact that the Ethiopians, though dark them-
selves, paint all their people white. This is doubtless
owing to the origin of their art, which unquestionably
hailed from Byzantium.
One sacred subject struck us as peculiarly gro-
tesque: Judas, en profile, dressed in green and lilac and
STAY AT ASMARA
43
a striped shirt, has just cut off the head of St. John the
Baptist, full face, and Herodias' daughter, again en
profile, dressed in green and red, is receiving the
blood in a bowl. This picture, as peculiarly illustra-
tive of Abyssinian art, I drew; for it was impossible
to get a photograph of it in the dark corridor.
44
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
CHAPTER III
EXPEDITION TO THE MONASTERY OF BIZEN
DURING* our enforced stay at Asmara we arranged
for an expedition to the monastery of Abyssinian
monks at Bizen. Formerly this was the most impor-
tant of the Abyssinian monasteries after Aksum,
Debra Libanos, and one or two others; its territories
extended right down to the coast at Massowah,
and their numerous dependents paid rent in kind,
cheese, honey, and corn, which insured for the
monks a very large revenue. Now they have been
deprived of these lands by the Italians in return for
a sum of money which does not satisfy them, and in
the whole of their Red Sea colony the Italians have
no more vehement opponent than the monk.
The monastery of Bizen, or the · Vision,' is very
rightly named, for its position is one of the grandest
in the world, situated as it is on an isolated moun-
tain peak, 6,500 feet above the sea, and commanding
a view over endless kindred peaks, right down to the
blue waters of the Red Sea. But it is a terrible place
to reach, and the path, if so it can be called, which
leads to it, bristles with horrors. Those who told us
When we left Asmara that we could reach Bizen and
EXPEDITION TO THE MONASTERY OF BIZEN
45
pitch our tents near the monastery comfortably in
five hours grossly misled us, for the five hours had
long gone by before we reached the foot of the moun-
tain, and as we had descended thither from Asmara
several thousand feet, we were again in that wretched
mist which enveloped everything in a clammy cloud.
Evening, moreover, was coming on; so we decided to
pitch our tents at the foot of the mountain and make
the ascent early in the morning.
Glad, indeed, we were that we did so, as our next
day's experience will show.
Alvarez, who went on an embassy to · Prester
John' from the Portuguese in 1520, gives us an
account of an expedition to this monastery. At a
distance of seven or eight leagues from this town of
Asquiquo (Arkiko, two miles from Massowah), on a
very high mountain, there is a very noble “ monastery
of friars which is called Bisan.” He graphically de-
scribes the horrors of the ascent; his description
would almost do for ours. “We on foot,' says he,
and the mules unridden in front of us.' My wife
gallantly stuck to her mule, until she and her saddle
slipped off behind, and she narrowly escaped a bad
accident on a heap of stones. She then, like Alvarez,
went on foot, until she was tired, and then the sol-
diers who escorted us hoisted her on their shoulders
from time to time, and thus she went to Bizen.
Poncet, a French doctor, who made an expedition
to Abyssinia shortly before Bruce, has, with Bruce,
fallen under the obloquy of having invented much
that he saw. Poncet’s editor remarks, in reference
46
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
to the doctor's description of Gondar and the palaces
which the Portuguese built, that it must be an in-
vention, 'for it is well known that the Abyssinians
only dwell in huts and tents, so how could they have
palaces ? '
Poncet's post-mortem reputation has,
however, been saved, for these palaces have been
frequently visited of late years. Also Poncet visited
Bizen, and says that he there saw a staff of gold
hung up.
At this also the editor scoffs. But I do
not see that there is the least reason why this should
be an exaggeration. In nearly every respect Poncet,
as far as I saw, is accurate, far more so than Bruce,
and there is plenty of evidence to prove that some
time
ago Bizen was a much grander place than it is
now.
Alvarez describes a church there,' of grand struc-
ture, well built, and the buildings magnificently
arrayed, and the chief part of this is enriched with
three naves well and carefully constructed.' Salt
alludes to Bizen as having been in ruins and aban-
doned when he passed near it, and the church and
buildings which we see to-day are quite new; so there
can be no doubt that the glories of Bizen were once
much greater than they are now. The ascent to
Bizen occupied us at least three hours, and they were
hours of real hard mountaineering. We had started
very early so that we might get the view before the
mists came up, and we were not disappointed; we
were just in time to catch a glimpse of the Red Sea
glimmering in the sunshine many thousand feet below
us, and of all the neighbouring mountains, before the
EXPEDITION TO THE MONASTERY OF BIZEN
47
inevitable mists came on. Gradually they rolled up
the mountain sides, first hiding one point and then
another, until by midday it was as if we were on a
rocky island floating on a sea of clouds.
Before starting, we had been warned that things
female, whether of man or beast, are not admitted
into the monastical precincts. My wife was, there-
fore, prepared not to see much, but she was not pre-
pared for the terrible reception which awaited her.
Suddenly, when within a hundred yards of the con-
vent, we came upon some monks in long yellow gar-
ments, who at first scarcely realised the audacity of
a female in approaching so near; but when they did,
their horror knew no bounds, for not even a female
mule is allowed to approach within half a mile of the
convent. • Better would it be for them to die than to
liave such a thing happen,' they said. However, we
were firm and sat down, saying that my wife was
tired, and that, though she did not wish to enter the
buildings, she must stay where she was until she
had rested and had some food. Imagining that all
had been settled, I set off with our interpreter, and
left her with the escort and muleteers to rest. When
I returned, after inspecting the convent, to my dismay
she was gone, and what happened she thus tells in
her Chronicle : "I sat down and pretended not to
understand, and then another monk came, and he
also shook hands with me, and kept mine a long time
in his, whilst he gesticulated with the other arm and
assured me that a famine, a pestilence, a war, or the
burning of the monastery would be better than my
48
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
presence. The she-mules were quickly despatched ;
but I was not so easily disposed of. The two monks
continued to stand there, and a soldier, one of our
escort, who feared that I should be taken ill for my
unholy trespass. As soon as my husband was out of
sight, one monk began sighing and groaning loudly,
and the other fairly sank to the ground, and, winding
his arms round his head, wept and sobbed aloud. I
was quite sorry for them, so I got up and went over
and took the weeping monk's hand off his head, and
said, “Salam!” (i.e. good-bye). Then the standing
monk grasped me by the land, and the soldier very
kindly placed his on my back, and so I was rattled
down the rocks in the sun for nearly half a mile.
Then, the place being a little flatter, I was left to
walk alone, and espied a boulder with a hollow in it,
so that I could just get in, into the shade. In spite
of expostulations, I could not be dislodged again, and
refused to go further to a place where two crosses
are erected, beyond which female animals, with or
without souls, are not allowed to ascend.'
Such was the melancholy termination to my wife's
expedition to Debra Bizen. This exclusion of females
is also another parallel to the customs of the Greek
Church. On Mount Athos, for example, the sacred
abode of Hellenic monasticism, they do not even
allow hens to exist for the purpose of laying eggs.
Unconscious of the difficulties my wife was en-
countering, I proceeded to the monastic buildings to
inspect them. The church stood out prominently
almost at the summit of the rocky mountain; but it
EXPEDITION TO THE MONASTERY OF BIZEN
49
was new, and the old thatch roof of the Abyssinian
churches had given place to a hideously glaring roof
of tin. It was round as usual, with its outer corridor
for the laity, its inner court for the priests and its
Holy of Holies. They showed me some fine brass
censers, Oriental carpets, a sacred picture or two,
and a few books. Unfortunately, the memer, or head
of the monastery, was away; so I could not see all
the books which were under lock and key. Perhaps
it was no great loss; for, having previously informed
myself as to what to look for in Abyssinian biblio-
graphy, I have come to the conclusion, from books I
saw at Aksum and other places, that there are no
grounds for the belief that a vast wealth of old MS.
books exists in Abyssinia. All their books are in
constant use, and as they wear out they get new
ones, and few of the now existing books appear to
date further back than the fifteenth century, these
being copies of early Coptic and Arabic works.
Ethiopia is rich, however, in apocryphal litera-
ture, concerning the genuineness of which they appear
to entertain no doubt whatsoever; the Book of Enoch,
“Parva Genesis,' the 'Liber Adami,' an exciting history
of Adam and Eve, a second Acts of the Apostles,
bristling with miracles, being a few instances of works
placed by them on the same footing as the other
books which form our Bible. Besides these, there
are the "Synaxaria,' or lives of the saints, works full of
wonders, yet from which many interesting facts might
be obtained for Ethiopian history, if truth and ex-
aggeration were not so hopelessly blended. These
L

50
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
books the priests and monks go over again and again,
seated in shady corners, gently waving their fly-flaps
to and fro as they study.
The outer court of the convent church was full
of drums and rattles, umbrellas, and staffs or crutches;
the pateressa, or pastoral staff of the Greeks, used to
rest on during the long services, and to wave grace-
fully to and fro in the religious dances. Outside
9 T
ABYSSINIAN BOOKS AND CASES
hung the stone bells, probably the same Alvarez saw
here three centuries ago, and which he thus quaintly
describes : The bells are of stone; long, thin stones
suspended by cords passed through them, and they
strike them with sticks made for the purpose, and
they make a sound as of cracked bells heard at a dis-
tance. The monks of Bizen have also a bell-tower
and three bells of European manufacture, but for all
ordinary purposes they still use the stone ones. The
EXPEDITION TO THE MONASTERY OF BIZEN
51
monks live in little stone cells clustered round a rock,
on which stands a cross, miserable little tenements,
with a few patches of gardens around them, where
they grow the herbs and vegetables which form the
chief part of their meagre diet. There is also a big
commenda, or dining-room, where they all feed, and
kitchens and barns well stocked with grain. They
told me that there are about two hundred monks in
all on Debra Bizen, and none of them, save the memer,
ever leave this mountain eyrie, but live forgetful of
the world and by the world forgotten.
Certainly the Abyssinian Church is, as Dean Stan-
ley says, surrounded with the utmost amount of
superstition with which a Christian Church can be
overlaid without perishing altogether.' Here we
have preserved to us a specimen of what Christianity
was in its most primitive days; here exist the monks
of the Thebaid as they existed in the days of St.
Athanasius. Still the controversies on the nature of
Christ, whether He was of one, two, or three natures,
divide the faithful as they did centuries ago; and the
attempt of the Jesuits to convert them, concerning
which we shall have more to say presently, though
at one time nearly triumphant, has left not a trace of
its influence. Probably the active contest with Mo-
hammedanism, which has raged in Abyssinia for a
thousand years, has been instrumental in making
them adhere with a dogged determination to their
tenets, and made them impervious to outer influence.
One cannot help admiring the tenacity of the Abys-
sinian to his peculiar form of Christianity. The same
D 2
52
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
?
A
DIONASTERY OF BIZEN
st
ma
1 DIE
1-
EXPEDITION TO THE MONASTERY OF BIZEN
53
influence has been at work in Greece, where the con-
test with the Turks has had the same effect as the
contest with the Arabians in the Ethiopian Church,
and in both cases a perfect museum of old Christian
rites and ceremonies has been preserved to us which
have long ago disappeared from Western Christen-
dom.
Before we had finished our rest and repast at
the spot to which my wife had been inhospitably
driven, the mist was upon us, and during our tedious
descent to our camp we saw little else but rolling
clouds and gaunt rocks peering out of them.
Shortly after our return to Asmara was the day
of Epiphany; for the Abyssinians, like the Greeks,
follow the old calendar, and their festivities conse-
quently fall twelve days later than they do with us.
We looked forward to this ceremony with intense
interest, for it is the second biggest festival in the
Ethiopian Church, second only to the great day of
mascal, or the blessing of the cross, which takes
place in September. It is a sort of vast lustration or
baptism of the whole Ethiopian race, a day of great
festivity, both social and religious; the cross is
publicly baptised in a neighbouring stream, and to
celebrate this event all the magnificent ritual of the
Abyssinian Church is brought into play.
Very early in the morning the ceremony. began.
As soon as the sun was up we started for the scene
of action, across the plain to the stream where the
cross was to be baptised. Hoar frost covered the
ground, and the air was keen but intensely invigo-
54
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
rating Already the people were beginning to
assemble, pouring in from all sides, dressed in their
smartest and gayest; at the old church in the village
the priests and acolytes had already assembled, and
were preparing for the procession. I do not think
any religious procession I have ever seen impressed
me so much as this line of dusky Ethiopians, rich in
the display of their quaint ritual and costumes, which
have here survived from the earliest days of Chris-
tianity. At the head of the procession marched a
man carrying a heavy umbrella, made of purple
velvet and covered with silver ornaments; on the top
was a cross and massive object in silver, and the
edges were fringed with the long tongueless bells,
which is so favourite a form of decoration in Abys-
sinia. There were many similar umbrellas in the
procession—some, however, only plain scarlet, and
some only white. However, as seen from a distance,
the most striking feature of this Epiphany procession
is its wealth of umbrellas, reminding one of the As-
syrian tablets in the British Museum, and other
representations of ancient Eastern display, which
seems invariably to have revelled in a wealth of
umbrellas. There were many acolytes too, wearing
massive mitres or imperial crowns of brass, which
would have enveloped their whole heads had they
not stuffed them with Turkey red to keep them in
their place. The priests walked in their white robes
and white turbans—in one hand a sistrum, which they
rattled vigorously, and in the other a brass-headed
crutch. About the middle of the procession walked
EXPEDITION TO THE MONASTERY OF BIZEN
55
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not even his face was visible; and on the top of his
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covered with a cloth, so that vulgar eyes might not
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brellas, some silver crosses, some sacred books, wound
their way towards the stream.
About ten yards from the water was pitched a
large tent of red cloth, erected for the benefit of the
priests who wished to change their robes unobserved.
When all were assembled on the bank, the cross and
a large brass basin were placed in the midst, and the
56
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
service began, the first portion of which consisted in
reading out of large books, held by acolytes, the
gospels and portions of scripture appointed, the only
part of which we could understand being the long
genealogy of Christ, with So-and-so the son of So-
and-so, so oft repeated. During the reading burnt
incense was wafted around from magnificent brass
censers. Chanting, bowing, and reading continued
thus for about half an hour, during which period
we irreverently strove to obtain photographs of the
scene.
The second portion of the service consisted of the
dance of the priests. Dancing in the Abyssinian
Church is traditionally supposed to have been de-
rived from the fact that David danced before the
ark, though I am more inclined to believe that the
steps and the music have both been handed down
from pagan times, and that the excuse of David has
been invented to maintain this favourite and really
graceful and solemn form of worship amongst them.
These religious dances, in steps, tune, and rhythm,
forcibly reminded us of what a Greek chorus must
have been round the altar of Dionysus. The cross
and the brass basin have taken the place of the altar,
the frankincense is there, and the singing and chant-
ing are carried on in the form of a dialogue, as if
one priest was announcing to another some good
news which prompted hilarity; the black-faced, bare-
legged priests, with white turbans and red velvet
cloaks, a sistrum in one hand and a crutch in the
other, waved to and fro in the mazy dance, whilst
EXPEDITION TO THE MONASTERY OF BIZEN
57
boys beat the drums to regulate the time. The
figures seemed to us something between a minuet
and a quadrille. Every step was studied and grace-
ful, as they changed over from side to side, shaking
their rattles and waving their crutches, chanting the
while in low and decidedly sweet tones. This per-
formance continued for an hour, and we grew some-
what weary; but not so the Abyssinians. Men
outside the dance who had sistra rattled them and
appeared deeply interested; the women kept utter-
ing their quaint gurgling noise, the Ethiopian mark
of female approbation. None seemed tired but our-
selves; in fact, the capacity displayed by Ethiopian
priests for dancing is unlimited. In their nightly
services, at weddings and other festivities, the priests
are prepared to dance with a vigour that would put
to shame the most energetic performers in an English
ball-room.
The third portion of the service was next per-
formed, namely, the actual baptism of the cross. In
the stream itself floated a burning taper in a pottery
vessel, presumably to add sanctity to the occasion.
The cross was carried down to the brink; water was
put into the brass basin, and beneath a scarlet um-
brella the chief priest of Asmara sprinkled it witli
water, and thus the ceremony was performed. Im-
mediately this was done great noise and hilarity pre-
vailed. Guns were let off, and every one rushed into
the water with bunches of weeds in their hands with
which they sprinkled one another, and everything for
a few moments was wild confusion. These bunches
58
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
of weeds evidently correspond to the bunches of
basil used for a like purpose in the Greek Church
after the Epiphany service. The women danced
together, uttering their weird noise ; men rushed
hither and thither like children, bespattering one
another with water which had now become mud:
drums were beaten, sistrci rattled, trumpets blown;
and, to escape from the noise created, we retired to a
respectful distance and sat down to wait for the
return. Between the waterside and the church the
procession, which had reformed, stopped seven times,
and at each halt the long trumpets, the drums, and
the flutes started their somewhat unpleasant music,
and the priests, with their rattles and their crutches,
set to work to dance. Meanwhile warriors on horse-
back, with their shields glittering with silver, their
long lances and their quaint costumes, galloped to
and fro on the plain; sometimes two were mounted on
one horse. Every one had on his best to-day ; the
velvet embroidered robes of the Abyssinian chiefs,
glittering with silver ornaments, are wonderfully effec-
tive adjuncts to a scene like this. Their horses are,
some of them, very good, though small ; cobs from
the Galla country, and long-tailed Arab steeds from
the Soudan. On these they scampered about in front
of and alongside the procession, performing feats of
horsemanship which reminded us of those per-
formed by Kourdish chieftains. The Abyssinians are
splendid riders, lithe and active of limb. They only
put their great toe in their tiny stirrup, and leap
from the ground into the saddle, both mounting
EXPEDITION TO THE MONASTERY OF BIZEN
59
and dismounting on the opposite side to which
we do.
When finally the church was reached, after
another good dance in the courtyard, the priests
retired with their paraphernalia inside, and the great
ceremony of the Baptism of the Cross was over, and
all the parties concerned therein went to their huts
to drink mead and tella, or beer, to their hearts'
content. This latter beverage is very nauseous, and
is made by the fermentation of tett, a small grain
called the poa Abyssinica, used universally for making
bread. The grain is left in the liquid, and the result
is pretty much the same as the Kaffir beer made in
South Africa, and is probably the same as the “ wine
of millet' made by the ancient Egyptians. The
Abyssinians are certainly far dirtier than the South
African negroes, for their beer is always made in
dirty pots to begin with; then the pot is hermetically
sealed with a pat of cow-dung, and the man who
pours it out makes a funnel with two dirty fingers to
pour it into the glass bottle, out of which you drink it.
Altogether Abyssinian drinks are very revolting, and, if
necessity compels one to partake, one must not think.
From Asmara we made another interesting day's
expedition, which introduced us to another phase of
Abyssinian religious life and superstition. This was
to the hamlet of Addi Ras, or village of the Prince,
where is a church dedicated to St. Michael, and a
healing spring where numbers of invalids from all
the country round go to be cured of their various
infirmities. A few years ago this church and village
60
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
had fallen into ruins; and Ras Alula, then in the
plenitude of his power, restored it at his own ex-
pense, and after him it was called Addi Ras. We
rode for about two hours across the plain, and on
entering a shallow valley, with red rocks on either
side and a stream, one of the sources of the Mareb,
running down it, we descried the sacred village
perched on a gentle eminence.
The inclosure of St. Michael's Church is just my
idea of what the sacred groves of ancient days must
have been; the wall surrounding it would be about
250 feet in diameter. We entered through the hos-
pitium at the low gateway, where lay, on beds of
straw, the sick and afflicted, awaiting the hours at
which the bath must be taken. These are three
times a day: at sunrise, at midday, and at sunset.
Passing through this unpleasant entrance, we reached
the sacred grove, a dense mass of foliage, consisting
of tall wavy reeds, quolquols, mimosa, and other
trees; and this sacred grove is all the more conspi-
cuous because the country round is bare and abso-
lutely treeless. The circular church in the midst is
almost entirely hidden by the trees; and from out-
side the inclosure only the top of the sacred edifice
can be seen, surmounted with its Coptic cross,
with ostrich eggs stuck on the end of long spikes.
The church which Ras Alula built is very richly
decorated with Abyssinian paintings. On the out-
side the prince is represented with wings on horse
back and a javelin in his hand, killing a dervish, and
in another place killing a lion; whilst inside, around
EXPEDITION TO THE MONASTERY OF BIZEN
61
millahirrahim minulla dito
the Holy of Holies, every inch of the wall is covered
with paintings. The very quaintest St. Michael is
painted on the door, before which the customary veil
hangs, as in the old Jewish temples ; St. George is by
his side; Ras Alula's conquests over the dervishes
occupy a large portion of the wall.
The Emperor
John is there, too, seated on his throne; below are
crowds of devils and the Abyssinian purgatory, re-
polling tot
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PAINTINGS OUTSIDE THE CHURCH AT ADDI RAS
calling somewhat forcibly the frescoes in the Campo
Santo at Pisa; also the twelve apostles in all their
respective conditions of martyrdom. King David is
playing the harp he invented, and Israel plays also
the instrument which in Abyssinian lore is particu-
larly associated with him, to the Blessed Virgin who
lies dying. The miracles of healing also form a con-
spicuous part of this wall decoration, and the sick of
62
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
the palsy who carried off his bed has been given an
Abyssinian angareb, or couch. Of Abyssinian art,
as it at present exists, the church at Addi Ras is an
admirable exponent.
The holy stream is outside the inclosure, and is
shaded by the tall reeds so associated in the Abys-
sinian mind with religious ideas; it is a strong stream
of water, which issues from the ground where the
reeds grow; it is icy cold, and has a suspicion of
sulphur about it.
The traditional idea connected
with all these healing streams in Abyssinia is that
they flow direct from the Jordan underground—an
idea current in Greece for similar streams, and for-
cibly reminding one of the sacred source at Delos,
which the ancients believed came in a similar way
from the Nile. The continuity of these water myths
is indeed remarkable, and here, as in modern Greece,
S.S. Michael and George are the two saints who
usually preside over them.
At the hour of twelve the bathing was to take
place, so we determined to look on ; the halt and the
maimed of both sexes came as the hour approached,
and seated themselves near. Dusky Abyssinian men
and women, old and young, absolutely regardless of
decency, the presence of a large number of male
strangers, and my wife's detective camera, stripped
themselves in turn stark naked, and placed them-
selves shivering and groaning close to the sacred
stream. A wooden bowl was placed near to it, with
which the bather dashed quantities of the icy cold
water over the shivering and breathless forms of the
EXPEDITION TO THE MONASTERY OF BIZEN
63
invalids, each of whom, when the bath was over, put
on his or her clothes without any attempt at drying,
and retired to the hospitium shivering, but hopeful
that a cure had been effected.
One girl, when her turn came, utterly refused to
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WOMAN BATHING IN THE SACRED STREAM
undress, but lay on the grass writhing in contortions,
breathing heavily, with eyes distorted; she was seized
with a devil, they said, the bouda or mysterious pos-
session of an evil spirit, a form of epilepsy which
the Abyssinians, like the modern Greeks, attribute to

64
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
occult causes. She lay there unheeded and in con-
tortions for fully an hour, and when we left Addi
Ras she was still lying there, unable to summon up
courage to take her midday bath.
Patients come from all parts to Addi Ras, as well
from the lowland valleys near Massowah as from the
neighbouring highlands, and many are the cures
which are said to take place. A course of baths for
three days only is said to be
sufficient for the lighter
maladies, and few are the
diseases which obstinately
refuse to give way to a
course of seven days. When
cured, and about to depart,
the grateful patients tie up
their Christian strings or a
bit of rag to the reeds behind
the stream—a custom which
prevails all over the East
amongst the Persians, Turks,
and modern Greeks, as in
Ireland, an idea of binding
the disease to the branch
being always associated with
it. No doubt the pure air
PRIEST'S FLY-FLAP
of Addi Ras, the healthful
exercise necessary to get there, and the large amount
of faith which the patients bring with them, have
greatly assisted St. Michael in keeping up the repu-
tation of his stream for healing properties.
EXPEDITION TO THE MONASTERY OF BIZEN
65
The monks and priest who look after the church,
and work the oracle, dwell in a little inclosure ad-
joining the sacred one, and communicating with it
by a little low door. We paid them a visit, and
found them busy reading their holy books and waving
their fly-flaps. You hardly ever see a priest in
Abyssinia without his fly-flap; it is an exclusively
sacerdotal privilege to carry one; the handles are
usually prettily carved, and the horsehair whisk is
often dyed red with henna. It is curious that we
have these fly-flaps of identical shape depicted for
us on ancient Egyptian frescoes. Everything in Abys-
sinia connected with religion would seem to have
its prototype in the ancient world; the sistrum, the
fly-flap, the crutch, and many other things have
doubtless been brought originally from the valley of
the Nile, and, with the peculiar conservatism of
primitive races, have been preserved even to our
days.
After a frugal lunch in an exceedingly dirty cot-
tage at Addi Ras, we bade farewell to St. Michael
and his shrine, and rode back to Asmara late in
the afternoon.
F
66
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
CHAPTER IV
JOURNEY NORTHWARDS
STILL the news from across the frontier continued to
be disquieting ; so we elected to take a week for a
journey to the north of Asmara, in order that we
might visit the confines of Abyssinia, and see the
country where Christianity gradually fades away into
Islamism, fully determined that, if the news on our
return was not more favourable, to abandon our pro-
jected visit to the sacred city of the Ethiopians until
a more propitious period.
The frontier of Abyssinia is, and always has been,
a movable one; no definite line of demarcation can
be laid down on any side. When Abyssinia has been
strong, the Christian element has extended very far
north ; when internal troubles have occurred, Abys-
sinia has shrunk up again. King John's victories
over the Egyptians, and the subsequent bravery of
Ras Alula when Prince of Tigrė, gave a great impetus
to this expansion northwards. Keren, the capital of
Bogos, was before this entirely Mohammedan; Ras
Alula, however, conquered it, and established there
a large colony of Abyssinians; and now, under Italian
rule, they continue there and prosper, perhaps more
JOURNEY NORTHWARDS
67
than their fellow-countrymen south of the Mareb.
Keren is the bulwark of Christianity to the north,
and the monasteries in its vicinity are interesting ;
so Keren was to be the destination of our northern
trip.
Our road was decidedly uninteresting at first,
across the dry, undulating plateau, without a tree
in sight for miles. During the rainy season, I am told,
this road is hardly passable for mud; in the dry
season it is painfully arid and burnt up. These con-
ditions, to my mind, must always tell against Abys-
sinia as an agricultural country. About an hour's
ride brought us to the village of Addi David, with its
little square stone church dedicated to St. George,
built on the same lines as that at Asmara. Here
we saw large quantities of cattle with the high hump
and long dewlap of the Indian breed. The inhabi-
tants were busily engaged in threshing their teff
(poa Abyssinica), the grain most appreciated for
making bread in this country. They spread it out on a
flat threshing-floor, and drive four oxen, fastened to-
gether round and round on it, so as to thoroughly
tread it out; then they remove the stalks and chaff,
which is piled round in heaps, and collect the tiny
grain which remains on the floor. The bread made
from teff is somewhat the colour of chocolate, and
they make it into large flat cakes, with holes in,
resembling crumpets; it is always rather sour, and
possesses a smell peculiarly its own, which is not
very appetising.
Another hour brought us to the important village
F2
68
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
CROSS ON CHURCH OF ADIB. DERHO
of Amba Derho, built on a gentle hill overlooking a
somewhat fertile valley. We stopped here for a couple
of hours to inspect the large
white church and its sur-
roundings. The chief of this
village, Dejetchmatch Hatva,
is a wealthy man for Abys-
sinia, having a large stock of
cattle and many fertile acres ;
he built the church and
sup-
plied it with its treasures
entirely at his own expense,
and there is a quaint picture
of him in a frame at the
door, in which he is represented as killing ele-
phants and dervishes, and performing other deeds
of valour. The win-
dows and doors are
very neatly carved in
wood, and the cross at
the top of the thatched
roof is adorned with
seven ostrich
one corner of the sa-
cred inclosure is the treasure chamber, which looks
like a regular museum of Abyssinian church para-
phernalia, all of them presented by the chief. There
were quantities of books in their leather cases, hung
from the ceiling, niches full of mitres and robes, sil-
ver and brass crosses innumerable, rattles, crutches,
drums, and the like. In the midst of this medley sat
4.1.1.1.
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CHURCF WINDOWS
eggs. In
JOURNEY NORTH WARDS
69
the priest on a couch, reading a sacred book, bran-
dishing his fly-flap, and looking intensely bored by
our visit and the irrepressible curiosity with which we
gazed around us. Above was a bell-tower, in which
the chief lias placed a real European bell to supply
the place of the stone ones which lie neglected
below.
There was a feast going on in the village which
we visited; it was in an exceedingly dirty house, and
the floor was so paved with human beings eating,
AN
CHURCH OF AMBA DERHO
drinking, and making merry that we could hardly
get in. A wandering minstrel, or asmari, was playing
his quaint guitar outside the door, improvising verses
in honour of the givers of the feast, like the trouba-
dours of old; men in their gisillah, or robe of state,
were hurrying in and out, and mules richly capa-
risoned were tied up in the courtyard outside.
The leather work with which the Abyssinians
decorate their saddles and head-gear is very gaudy,
and rerninded us of similar work in Persia; they cut
out lions, crosses, and other decorations in green and
yellow leather, and sew them down on to a red

70
TIIE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
Decek
ground. The effect of new ones is unpleasantly
gaudy, but when they get a little worn and subdued
these leather saddle-cloths look remarkably well.
An inferior individual has a collar for his mule made
of brass, with a bell attached; a dejetchmatch, or big
man, has his of silver,
with many things there-
on to jangle and call at-
tention to his greatness
as his mule ambles along.
From the side of his
Doole er
saddle hung the red
SE2000 leather cases for his
90ce water bottle, his tedge
horn, his knives and
tools; and the rider,
enveloped in his white
shamma, tightly bound
round his nose, his spear,
and silver - mounted
shield in his hand, pre-
sents an appearance dis-
tinctly imposing
By the roadside you
pass, everywhere in
Abyssinia, piles of stones at the spot where the church
of the neighbouring village first comes in sight; each
pious traveller adds a stone to this pile as he passes
by. This custom is a common one also in Greece to-
day, where similar piles of stones are to be seen at the
point where monasteries or churches are first sighted.
MULE COLLARS
BRASS
SILVER
JOURNEY NORTHWARDS
71
The scenery improved immensely as we drew to
the close of our day's march; fantastic mountains
with finger points were seen in all directions; the
valleys were full of quolquol trees, and as the sun set
on the mountains of Barca, stretching far, far away
in the direction of the Soudan, we had a panorama
of beauty before us impossible to describe. That
night we slept at the camp of three Italian officers,
who are making a road to Keren with their native
troops, where we were most hospitably entertained
by Captain Persico, who is in command of this
arduous undertaking.
The following morning we were accompanied
by Lieutenant Vecchi and a strong escort on our
way to Debra Sina, one of the mountain monas-
teries in this wild district, the monks of which
do not bear the best of characters.
during an insurrection of the dervishes, when
Captain Bettini was murdered, and several native
soldiers, the monks of Debra Sina harboured the
insurgents in their mountain fastnesses, and the
Italians had to shoot the prior, or memer, and four
monks before they would reveal the spot where they
had hidden the rebels and stored a large quantity of
arms. We had a very heavy day's ride up and down
precipitous mountains and through vast tanglements
of jungle in the valleys before reaching the foot of
the mountain on which the monks of Debra Sina
dwell. Here a delightful stream, the Mai Ositt,
waters a narrow valley, with precipitous walls of
mountain on either side, and densely filled with all
Last year,
72
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
kinds of tropical vegetation. The spot was so
idyllic, and the ascent before us so arduous, that we
elected to rest ourselves and our wearied mules, and
to devote the next day to our visit to the monastery.
We pitched our tents by the stream, and revelled in
the luxury of a bath, whilst our native troops made
huts of branches and lit roaring fires to frighten
away the wild beasts—leopards, hyenas, and so
forth--which swarm in these valleys. The ascars,
or native troops, are excellent fellows, and were
anxious to do everything for us they could; they
seem never to get tired, and are as active as ante-
lopes, and on long marches they take nothing with
them but a bag of meal, with which they make little
round loaves, putting a hot stone in the middle, and
cooking them in the embers.
The ascent next day was a painfully stiff one, but
not quite so bad as that to Bizen. We were able to
ride as far as a mountain village called Sallaba,
where we left our mules and scrambled for the rest
of the distance almost on hands and knees to the
rock-set monastery.
We found the Abyssinian
peasants of Sallaba very wild; the men and women
have bushy hair, with long wooden pins stuck in for
the purpose of scratching when necessary. These
primitive people are perfect artists in cow-dung;
with this material they make big jars in which to
keep their grain, drinking goblets, and boards for
the universal game, which the better class make of
wood. I brought one of these away with me to
sliow how universal this game is amongst the Abys-

JOURNEY NORTHWARDS
73
sinians, from the chief to the peasant, and it reached
the British Museum unbroken. This game is called
Gabattà, and the wooden boards made by the better
class contain eighteen holes, nine for each person.
There are three balls called Chachtma for each hole,
and the game is played by a system of passing, which
seemed to us very intricate, and which we could not
learn; the holes they call their toukuls or huts, and
they get very excited over it. It closely resembles
13)
ABYSSINIAN GAME
the game we saw played by the negroes in Mashona-
land, and is generally found in one form or another
in the countries where Arab influence has at one
time or another been felt.
The summit of Debra Sina is just a mass of
gigantic boulder rocks piled one on the other, and
on the top of these dwell the monks. My wife,
whose reception at Bizen had been so cold, deter-
mined on this occasion to see more, and presented
74
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
herself dressed in a fashion that was calculated to
deceive the most critical monk on the subject of her
sex; the disguise was even more successful than she
had hoped, for, owing to certain braids which
adorned her jacket, the monks evidently mistook
her for a general, and paid her the attention suited
to her supposed rank. She was conducted into the
church, shown the pictures and treasures, and
treated in a manner that no female had ever before
been treated in an Abyssinian monastery.
The church at Debra Sina is a cave under a big
rock, with a second and smaller cave, which acts for
the Holy of Holies. In front of the church is a
curious boulder where the pious pray, and have worn
holes with their knees on it in so doing. Beneath this
they say the picture of the Madonna was found, but
I question if it ever has been moved since Nature
erected it there. In exceedingly squalid cells around
this rock church dwell some thirty monks; some of
them are like the church, mere holes in the rocks,
veritable abodes of anchorites. Around, as far as
the eye can reach, are serrated ridges of rocky moun-
tains, forming about as wild a view as could well be
imagined
Having satisfied our curiosity, we returned to
Sallaba and our mules. The kindly inhabitants had
prepared a feast for our men, during the con-
sumption of which we had to wait. The principal
dish placed before them was a wall of stiff por-
ridge, made of the red teff seed, into the inside of
which was poured melted butter mixed with herbs,

JOURNEY NORTH WARDS
75
not unlike a rich mayonnaise. The men attacked
this wall with their fingers, slipping the piece ex-
tracted into the grease until, in a very short time,
there was nothing left of either.
Next day we went on our way to Keren, aban-
doning the idea of visiting another monastery in this
district, called Tsad Amba, the approach to which is
by a narrow ledge of rock, said to be exceedingly
ROCK CHURCH, DEBRA SINA
dangerous, and as the internal arrangement of one
monastery is so like another, we decided it was not
worth incurring any risk to see. At midday we
halted by a stream at a spot called Eleberet, where
grows one of those magnificent sycamores (ficus
sycamorus) so universal at all Abyssinian places of
halt. Many were the delightful midday hours we
spent under the wide-spreading branches of these
trees during our wanderings, surrounded by tired
wayfarers like ourselves. They are quite a feature
of the country, and may be looked upon as hostelries
..
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
76
provided by Nature in a sunburnt land. They are
usually by the side of a stream, and the ground
around them is black with the fires of endless
caravans.
one.
Shortly after leaving the tree we crossed a ridge
of hills and a considerable stream below them, and
entered the district called Bogos. This district, a
sort of debatable ground between Christianity and
Islamism, the Abyssinian and the Arab, has a sepa-
rate history of its own, though decidedly an obscure
On the Greek inscription at Aksum, put up
in the third century of our era, we learn how King
Aizanes conquered the people of Bogos. The
Arabian geographer, Ibn l’Wardi, alludes to the
people of Boja as follows: "These people are the
merchants of Habesh (Abyssinia), to the north, their
country lying between Habesh and Nuba.' In those
days this country must have been one of consider-
able importance, for, continues the same author, “a
governor from Boja presides over Aidhab'i Con-
sequently, we may assume that the people of
Bogos, with their mercantile tendencies, controlled
the ancient trade route from Kassala, on the Nile, to
the coast. Their capital, Keren, is now one of the
n:ost flourishing points in the Italian colony, and the
Italians, when their road is made, hope to reopen
this trade route and induce the caravans from Kas-
sala to pass through Bogos and ship their goods at
Massowah.
The country is now sparsely inhabited; but, as
| Habab, the district between Bogos and the coast.
JOURNEY NORTH WARDS
77
Keren is approached, there are very curious evi-
dences of a very large population having once
existed here in the shape of certain tombs all
along the roadside. These tombs are certainly not
made now, and probably date from the time when
1
BLACK AND WHITE TOMBS OF BOGOS
the merchants of Bogos were men of importance.
The approach to Keren is a perfect Appian Way
of these tombs, they crown every height, and form
a marked and curious feature in the landscape.
They are round, and are thus constructed: А.
BLACK AND WHITE TOMBS OF BOGOS
wall is built of dark stone round the grave from
12 to 20 feet in diameter; these circles are filled
up with small fragments of either white quartz or
dark stone until they form a mound about 6 feet
high. The tradition is, amongst the inhabitants,
that the white graves are those of good men who
hiave died a natural death, and the black graves .
78
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
black graves.
are those of evil-doers and those who died a violent
death. At any rate, the white graves are far in
excess of the black ones. They are exceedingly
neatly finished off, and look from a distance like
large huts with whitewashed roofs. Most of them
are in clusters, presumably belonging to one family.
In one cluster we counted twenty-two graves ; the
centre one, probably that of an important chief or
head of a family, being very much larger and higher
than the rest; in this cluster we only found three
We were told that the inhabitants
who were buried thus assembled to sacrifice goats,
&c., at certain periods, and weep over the grave, and
that at each of these times they added more stones
to the pile. Of course, concerning this it is impos-
sible to say much, but it seems to me not unlikely
that this form of sepulture may have something to
do with that recorded by Agatharcides of the
Troglodytes, who, he tells us, tied the corpse by its
heels and shoulders, and pelted it with stones until it
was completely covered, amid shouts of laughter.
This looks not at all unlike an account of the funeral
feasts and stone piles of Bogos.
Keren is more than 2,000 feet lower than Asmara,
and consequently very much hotter. It consists of a
hill fortress situated in the middle of a valley, some-
what recalling the position of Salzburg. All around
are fantastic mountain peaks, and numerous villages
are dotted about the valley. At Old Keren is the
large building and gardens of a Roman Catholic
mission, nestling beneath the mountain, which has
JOURNEY NORTH WARDS
79
been established here twenty-five years. The daily
market of Keren is held at a village called Tanta-
rouga, and it is an interesting sight to see the nation-
alities there assembled Bedouins from Barka and
Mensa, Abyssinians, Jews, Greeks, and Italians.
On inquiring how the Christians and Mussulmans
get on together I was told that they live here very
peaceably, the only difference being the blue string
which the Abyssinian Christians wear round their
necks, and the fact that neither will eat the flesh of an
animal which the other has slain. Mohammed is one,
Jesus is another; but there is only one God’ is the
very laudable precept of religious toleration in vogue
amongst the inhabitants of Bogos. A great number
of the Abyssinians are Roman Catholics here, and
dwell in the village around the mission house. The
valley of Keren is exceedingly fertile, quite the
garden of the Italian colony; they water their
gardens with an elaborate system of irrigation, and
they are most productive. Everything planted here
grows in profusion. The gigantic baobab trees grow
here to an enormous size, and with a considerable
outlay of capital the valley of Keren inight produce
paying crops of coffee, tea, and tobacco. For many
years Keren was under the Egyptian Government;
many of the principal buildings were erected by
them ; but their power was shaken by Ras Alula,
who, in his turn, was conquered by the Italians.
Since then the revolts of the dervishes have kept
the Italian Government active, and no substantial
advance to prosperity has been effected beyond the
80
TIIE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
road, which, when finished, will connect it with
Asmara and the west.
On our way back to Asmara we stopped for one
night at the large Abyssinian village of Azteklesan;
it is the highest inhabited point in this part of
Abyssinia, and is justly celebrated for its keen winds
and cold nights. Prior to the Italian occupation
this place was ruled over by a powerful chief called
Hadghambassah, feared throughout all the country
for his depredations and cruelty. He originally came
from Gondar, but chose this spot for the difficulty of
attack. He joined the rebels in 1891 against the
Italian Government, and smote Captain Bettini on
the face when he came to see him. This proud
chieftain was, however, subdued by the Italian troops,
and is now in prison at the Italian coast station of
Assab, where they detain all their political Abyssinian
prisoners. Hadghambassah had built for himself a
very fine hut on the highest point of the village, and
fortified it with a wall of stones all round. He never
left this stronghold except to go on his marauding
expeditions, for he had so many enemies he was in a
perpetual dread of assassination. We lunched in
this hut, which is now turned into a granary; it is
surrounded by ox horns let into the wall, on which to
hang shields; it is fully twenty feet in diameter, and
quite one of the finest houses in this part of the
country. Not far from the house is the church, built
at the expense of the same chief, with a picture of the
Holy Virgin at the door, and below Hadghambassah
and his wife, painted after Abyssinian fashion, with
JOURNEY NORTHWARDS
81
white faces. It is curious that the dark Ethiopian
should always choose to paint his good people white;
black is associated, with them as with us, with devils
and evil people generally.
At Azteklesan we managed, by the payment of a
small sum to a liberal-minded priest, to get admitted
into the Kedesta Kedestan, or Holy of Holies, and
to see a sight which is rightly reserved only for the
clergy. It was exceedingly dark, and the wax taper
which lighted us burnt but feebly; however, we con-
trived to see a sort of double table, or whatnot, covered
with drapery, which the priest removed with fear and
trembling lest any infidel should be lurking outside
and get a glimpse. All that this drapery covered
was a square bit of wood wrapped in many pocket-
handkerchiefs and covered with certain talismanic
signs and letters of the old Geez writing. This is
supposed to be a representation of the tables of the
law which Moses brought down from Sinai, the
original one being in the church at Aksum, and the
whatnot is supposed to represent the ark or tabout
in which they are kept. These are provided for the
benefit of every parish church, and form the principal.
object in ecclesiastical processions; though, when they
are brought out of the Holy of Holies, they are always
so carefully covered with drapery that no one can
see them.
When the Sacrament is administered, the door of
the Holy of Holies is always kept open; but the
interior is hidden by a veil, behind which the priests
alone have a right to go. This feature is evidently
G
182
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
derived from the old Jewish temples, as also are the
two corridors. People who are impure are only
allowed to come into the first; the second one corre-
sponds to the court of the Levites, where the priests
dance and hold their services. In the sacred
inclosure outside the church a very picturesque
monk in his long yellow dress was busily engaged in
reading a MS. volume, beautifully illuminated, which
he put on a tall iron reading desk, to which were
attached two chains with weights to hold down the
pages as he read. The chief priest of Azteklesan
brought out his best processional cross to show us; it
is of brass, with various illustrations of the passion
rudely engraved thereon; it is in form like a St.
Andrew's cross, with various little flourishes and em-
bellishments at the corners, and is, like many of the
large Abyssinian crosses used in processions, supported
by the necks and beaks of birds, conventional in
character, so that sometimes the pattern is lost, and
the supports are merely straight pieces of brass. But
evidently in the first instance, whether in conformity
with some legend or merely for decoration and
support, the Abyssinian processional cross was re-
presented as held up by the beaks of two birds with
long necks.
To break our journey we encamped in our tents
for another night, on our way back to Asmara, close
to the village of Shuma Negous, the headman of
which brought us as a present a large quantity of
bread and some excellent honey, for which we had to
pay a sum which represented considerably more than
JOURNEY NORTHWARDS
83
the value of the so-called present. It chanced to be
the Vigil of the Blessed Virgin that night, and the
priests in the church had a very lively time of it,
dancing, drumming, and playing the sistra until the
dawn of day. As I listened to them, in vain trying
to sleep, I could not help thinking that the Christi-
anity of Abyssinia must undoubtedly, from its curious
ritual, show traces of the peculiar form of paganism
on which it was grafted. In the Greek Church we
have abundant instances of how many saints and
many ceremonies grew out of, and
grew out of, and represent, the con-
ditions of Greco-Roman paganism as it existed when
Christianity was introduced ; here in Abyssinia, as
we shall show when discussing the ruins of Aksum.
Christianity must have succeeded a form of Sabæan
sun-worship; the monoliths and altars all point to
this; and in the ritual of their Church we can still
clearly see traces of this cult. The nightly services
which end at sunrise, the circular churches with four
doors orientated to the four points of the compass,
the sacred groves surrounding the churches, and the
dancing of the priests—all recall what we know of
Baal worship, which was closely akin to the sun-
worship of Southern Arabia. Ludolphus, in his
valuable history of the Ethiopian Church, gives us
a curious catechism used 200 years ago by the
Abyssinians. To illustrate the Trinity the sun is
given as an example, "being of one substance, but
having in him three distinct things : rotundity, light,
and heat.' Then, again, on the morning of the great
Abyssinian festival of the Cross or Mascal, which
G 2
84
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
takes place in September and is the greatest festival
of the Ethiopian Church, huge bonfires are lit before
sunrise on high places, and oxen are slaughtered
before them. With points like these before us, I
think there can be no reasonable doubt that the
Christianity of Abyssinia succeeded to a form of sun-
Worship, and that many of the principal features of
the ancient cult have survived down to the present
day. Mystery has surrounded Ethiopia ever since
the days of Herodotus; yet in almost every mysterious
legend there is generally some foundation of truth ;
and when Herodotus tells us of the proposed invasion
of Ethiopia by Cambyses, and the uncertainty of its
loyalty, there may have been something in the
mysterious - table of the sun in Ethiopia' to which he
alludes. “Ethiopia borders on the Southern Sea,' he
tells us, and the table of the sun in Ethiopia is a
meadow in the skirts of their town full of the boiled
flesh of all manner of beasts' (Herod., Book III. $ 7).
When describing Aksum we shall have occasion to
refer again to this subject; but when I passed that
disturbed night at Shuma Negous, I hardly dared to
hope that we should ever reach the Sacred City of
the Ethiopians.
85
CHAPTER V
ON THE ROAD TO A DOUA
GREATLY rejoiced were we, when, on reaching Asmara,
we learnt that Ras Alula and Ras Mangashah had
come to terms and had sworn eternal friendship on
the cross and on the gospel in the cathedral church
of Aksum. The Italian governor telegraphed from
Massowah that we might now proceed to our desti-
nation with as much prospect of safety as travelling
in Abyssinia ever affords, and consequently we deter-
mined to start without delay. The box full of
presents for the great men of Tigrè arrived in safety,
containing carpets, burnouses, umbrellas, soap, scent,
knives, and the like. We added to our staff of
mules and muleteers, and when it was noised abroad
that we were going, we had endless applications to join
our caravan, for the road from the Mareb to Adoua is
at the best of times a favourite haunt of brigands,
and to insure our safety Ras Mangashah had promised
to send us a strong escort of his own troops.
Three Greeks asked to join us, one of whom had
just lost two brothers in the very mountains through
which we were going to pass, and he was on his way
to claim his dead brothers' goods. The two brothers
86
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
were murdered by brigands, because, Greek-like, one
of them was parsimonious, and refused to pay for an
escort, whilst the other rode ahead of his escort and
was surrounded. Two Abyssinian priests also asked
to join us, who were on their homeward journey from
Jerusalem, carrying with them pilgrim-wallets full of
Jordan water as a present to Ras Mangashah. The
elder of the two was constantly mounted on one or
other of the mules belonging to our escort, and the
wallets of Jordan water we stowed away somewhere
in our own luggage; so the reverend gentlemen got
decidedly the best of it. When too hot, they stripped
off firstly their respectable long black robe ; secondly,
their yellow robe beneath that, which they gave to
one of our men to carry, and stalked along with their
white umbrellas, black hats and shammas, looking
far from priestly in their dress; but when they reached
a village they resumed their garb, and rushed off to
the church to kiss the lintels thereof and receive the
embrace of the faithful. Abyssinian priests who
have visited Jerusalem are always made much of on
their return home. Their stories of the wonders
they have seen are listened to with the greatest in-
terest, and their place in heaven is supposed to be
secured beyond a shadow of a doubt.
The first day's journey southwards was unin-
teresting and uneventful. We stopped for lunch and
rest under a large sycamore, close to a village of
primitive houses, which burrowed rabbit-fashion
under the ground at our feet. The plain around us
was even more dreary and arid than that to the
ON THE ROAD TO ADOUA
87
north of Asmara; but in the afternoon we suddenly
came to the end of it, and found ourselves on the
brow of a depression, from which we could see in all
directions as magnificent a panorama of mountains as.
it is possible to imagine. Thunder was growling and
rain falling heavily in the direction of the coast. We
saw the lightning flash vividly in the dark clouds,
but with us on the high plateau the air was bright
and the sky clear.
Towards evening we descended into a river bed,
one of the sources of the river Mareb, and climbing
up past a glorious sycamore, under the branches of
which a whole army could find shelter, we reached
for our night's halt the village of Debarroa, a place
of abject squalor and misery, but which in its day
had been of considerable importance. We could get
no milk, eggs, or meat here, for the wretched inhabi-
tants had lost all their stock. Cholera and other
diseases had decimated them, and, as an instance of
the decay of Abyssinia, one could not quote a more
telling example. Alvarez, the Portuguese ambassa-
dor, passed by here in 1520, and describes it as then
the capital of the Bahr-negous, or King of the Sea.
• The town of Barua,' he says, “is very good, and it is
situated on a very high rock above a river on which
are situated the king's houses, which they call Bet-
negous' (houses of the king). A few piles of stones,
an almost ruined church, and a few wretched hovels
are all that is left to-day of this place. The Mareb
below Debarroa is only a tiny stream with a narrow
bed. It makes from here a great bend eastwards,
88
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
and then turning south, and collecting numerous
other streams from the Hamasen mountains, flows
Westward towards the Nile.
The following day we slept at Addi Ougri, a
newly-constructed Italian fort. Formerly, a village
had stood here, and the hill-top was covered with wild
olives, quolquols, and other trees, forming a dense
jungle. All over the country one sees these sites of
former towns, marked now only by these thick
clusters of trees, which have grown up in them when
deserted. At Addi Ougri the square church is still
standing in the centre, and out of this the Italians
lave made a powder magazine. They have cut down
most of the trees, and built a line of fortification
round it, and, as the hill is isolated in the midst of an
extensive plain, the position is one of considerable
strength. About a mile from here the Italians have
made an attempt at cultivation, and a body of men
from the Italian school of agriculture have been
stationed here. At present, however, their results
have not been very satisfactory, and, curiously enough,
though the wild olive grows here in profusion, they
have not as yet been at all successful in the growth
of olives sent out expressly from Italy.
The road we were now traversing is known as the
Mangadi-negous, or king's highway, the road which
for generations has been one of the principal entrances
into Abyssinia; it is nothing but a mule track, well
trodden, and easy-going for the mules. About two
hours after leaving Addi Ougri we came across a
large round stone in the middle of the road, called
ON THE ROAD TO ADOUA
89
3
the Emni Haïella, or heavy stone, which all muleteers
passing along this road try to lift, and it is quite
polished with the many attempts to do so, made in
many years. Those who can lift it are considered fit
and strong, and those who cannot are laughed at. It
stands now exactly in the middle of the road, and
tradition says that it was once a boundary stone be-
tween two provinces. This tradition is probably
correct, for it closely resembles the ancient form of
the boundary stone found in the East—just a large
rounded water-worn stone, unhewn, and set up as a
memorial or token between two covenanting parties.
A similar instance of a test of vigour is found at the
village of Saganeiti, about three days' journey from
here, where stands a huge sycamore, and, when the
men arrive under it, they try to run round the trunk
holding their breath, and those who succeed in doing
so are accounted vigorous and strong. The Abys-
sinians are very fond of showing off their powers of
endurance. Many evenings, after a long day's
march, our muleteers and escort would indulge in
games of wrestling, leap-frog, and other kindred
amusements; sometimes rushing after a ball, and
hurling it as hard as they can at one another's faces.
If a man misses, he has to stand and be thrown at
by the man who succeeds in picking up the ball.
"They never seem to be tired. Every day after the
march, whether long or short, the muleteers, after
unpacking and arranging the camp, go off to cut
grass for the animals to eat at night, to fetch wood
for the fires, and water for the camp, and sometimes
90
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
these articles are not obtained without considerable
difficulty.
We next reached Addi Quala, which is the last
station of the Italians on their southern frontier
before the descent into the valley of the Mareb is
commenced.
Here there are two villages, Addi
Quala and Addi Kola, about a mile apart, where
once dwelt two rival chiefs, constantly at war. When
the Italians came they erected their camp between
the two and tried to keep the peace; but one of the
chiefs, Lij Bayanèh, revolted against them, and tried
to obtain assistance from Ras Alula from across the
frontier. He is now in prison at Assab, and the
Italians have taken his village into their own hands,
and his rival is their right-hand man, and provides.
them with most of their native troops at this station.
The following morning we were taken to see the view
from the edge of the plateau down into the Mareb.
valley ; it is one of the most remarkable in Abyssinia.
Precipitous basaltic rocks descend down into the
broad valley beneath, tumbling over one another in
wild confusion. A few years ago the valley here:
was the haunt of elephants, who came to feed on the
trees which grow here in profusion, but now they
have retreated further inland. Still, however, huge
pythons inhabit these rocks, and dog-faced apes
bark at you from various vantage grounds. Beyond
the deep valley of the Mareb rise the peaks of the
Adoua and Aksum mountains, amongst which we
hoped to find ourselves in a day or two. They re-
resemble in many ways the distant views one obtains.
ON THE ROAD TO ADOUA
91
of the Dolomites, jagged, fantastic peaks of every
form and shape, looking mysteriously weird and fasci-
nating, more especially as they are still the home of
the free and independent Ethiopians, the strongholds
of rebel chiefs, and for us a sort of promised land
نمايد
When
di
TUIN
hata mimi
it.
i
ABYSSINIANS INNOWING GRAIN
after our long delays and wanderings in the Italian
colony.
Near Addi Quala there are some patches of fer-
tility ; but the cholera scourge, drought, and other
causes have had, as elsewhere, a ruinous effect here.
We saw a picturesque group of men winnowing a
sort of vetch with which the inhabitants make bread
and other farinaceous foods in these parts. They
hold large baskets of the dried pods high over their
heads, and let them drop out gently, so that the wind
92
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
carries off the husks, and allows the small pea to fall
on the ground below.
The friendly chief and most of his men turned
out next morning to escort us on our road. It was
quite an imposing sight. Drummers led the way;
flute-players sounded their harsh, raucous notes;
trumpeters bellowed forth hideous noises; and the
chief, on a lively Galla pony, with a saddle-cloth de-
corated with lions cut out of green leather and
sewed down on to a piece of red, greeted us warmly,
and wished us a successful journey.
As we descended into the Mareb valley on foot
-for the road is too precipitous and rocky to ride
down—we felt that our adventures were about to
begin, and that we were leaving safety and civilisa-
tion behind us. The valley below is celebrated as
the spot on which the Emperor John slaughtered the
Egyptians in the year 1875. The Mohammedan forces
were encamped at Addi Quala, and, ignorant of the
proximity of the Abyssinians, prepared to cross the
Mareb at a spot called Gudda-Guddi. They dug
deep wells, which are still to be seen; and, just as they
were commencing to march on, the Emperor John and
the Princes of Tigrè fell upon them, and not one man
escaped. Their leader, Arakel Pasha (probably a
Greek of the name of Herakles), the one who built the
palace at Massowah, fell fighting under a tree which
is still shown, and their friends who saw their dis-
comfiture from the heights above, recognising the
hopelessness of the contest, fled in dismay to Asmara,
and thus Abyssinia was freed from the threatened
danger.
ON THE ROAD TO ADOUA
93
We had to stop two nights near a village called
Gundet, down in the Mareb valley, until we received
word that the escort from Ras Mangashah would
meet us by the river, and take us over from the
hands of the Italians. It was tremendously hot
down here; the heat in some of these valleys is
excessive, and the vegetation rank and tropical.
Luckily, it was just now the dry season, and there
was no fear of fever ; but in the wet weather the
Jul
• Mountary
ja loma,
Pem
Gunder din
THE MOUNTAINS OF ADOUA FRON GUNDET
Mareb valley is very dangerous, and many are the
travellers who have succumbed here to the perni-
cious fevers which arise from the vegetation de-
caying in the wet.
The Abyssinians are supposed to be very clever
in the use of herbs in curing these fevers; we,
luckily, had no occasion to call upon their skill. We
also were told that they know many cures for many
diseases, including hydrophobia; but I think these
mysterious medicines probably would not stand a.
very careful analysis. Our interpreter periodically
dosed himself with kousso, for the tania or tapeworm,
94
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
and at these times was always particularly inert and
sorry for himself; and whilst we were at Gundet our
men tried their hands at curing the sore backs of our
mules in a particularly horrible manner, but which
was in most cases successful. They first tie the
legs and head of the unfortunate animal so that he
cannot do more than wriggle, then they cut deep
cicatrices in the back through the sore places with a
knife; a sickle is then heated in the fire, with which
they cauterise the gashes, and finally they fill up the
wounds with dung. It was altogether a most
sickening sight, and to hear the red-hot sickle hissing
in the gash made us feel quite ill; but it is sur-
prising to see how quickly the mule, when released
from his bondage, pulls himself together after a shake,
and begins to graze as if nothing had happened. In
a few days the wound is healed, and he again carries
his burden. Most of the Abyssinian mules bear
traces of this severe remedy having been applied to
them, and, probably, as the mules seem to forget it so
quickly, the process is not so cruel as it looks.
The heat at Gundet was most uncompromising ;
so, on hearing overnight that the Abyssinian escort
would be waiting for us early on the following morn-
ing by the river, we struck our camp in the dark,
and were in the saddle before five o'clock, with the
pleasing result that we reached the river-bed before
eight in comparative cool. The Mareb at this season
of the year is nothing but a dry bed of rocks. After
the rains, I am told, it is a raging and almost im-
passable torrent. As it was, we had to search about
ON THE ROAD TO ADOUA
95
some time before we could find water to cook our
breakfast with. The escort had not arrived, nor did
it arrive till well after mid-day; so we spread our
rugs beneath a tree in the river-bed, and repaid the
hours of rest we had borrowed from the night. Lion
and crocodile stories are many here, but we neither
heard nor saw either of these formidable beasts, and
only pondered in our minds over what crocodiles do
in the dry season. Do they bury themselves in
moist sandy holes, or do they live tightly packed in
the few deep pools found all the year round in the
river-bed?
Fitaurari Mangashah arrived at one o'clock, and,
bidding farewell to our escort provided by the
Italians, we placed ourselves in his charge. He is
the chief of one of the villages near the Mareb, and
had received orders from Ras Mangashah to escort
us in safety to Adoua. From the Mareb to Adoua
the distance is only about twenty miles, but it is one
of the most dangerous bits of country in all Abys-
sinia. Lofty, impenetrable mountains line the road
on either side; in these many brigands have their
haunts, and come down on unprotected caravans.
When the country is in a disturbed state, all the
leading men who do not wish to bind themselves to
either side fly to the mountains near the Mareb,
living in caves, and are on the look-out for any
plunder that may come in their way. By this time
our caravan had swollen to such a size we could not
count them all; poor men with donkeys, foot-pas-
sengers with bundles—all were glad of this oppor-
96
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
tunity to get safely through the mountains to
Adoua.
The escort was composed of about 150 men of
the most delightful kind, with all sorts of queer
arms, lances, antiquated guns, which they held
down from the back of their necks, and rhinoceros-
hide shields mounted in silver. We were told that
بلنده
1,
Spo
lipie
withili
.
FITAURARI (GENERAL) MANGASHAH
there were no less than five of the rank of Fitaurari
or general, and these had all their little armour-
bearers, who ran along in front, carrying the shields
and lances. The five generals had only three mules
between them, but they rode two and two, changing
about. Fitaurari Mangashah was full of fun, with a
great number of projecting teeth, which he showed
whenever le laughed; and they were all full of
ON THE ROAD TO ADOUA
97
of us.
noon.
compliments, the burden of which was how dearly
they loved the English, because they spent so much
money and gave such handsome presents—a gentle
hint; on entering Abyssinia, that the same was expected
It was terribly hot, and the road was full of
thorny acacias, which made progress difficult; they
say that the acacia branches are only cut down when
the king passes by; and as King Menelek never
shows himself in Tigrè, but remains shut up in Shoa,
there is every prospect that this road will soon be-
come filled up. After a gradual ascent of about
500 feet, we reached a long narrow plain, entirely
shut in by mountains, at five o'clock in the after-
When about half-way across the plain we
decided to pitch our camp for the night, and chose
a huge sycamore tree as offering pleasant shade. It
was full of beautiful blue birds and monkeys ; but it
had other occupants too, in the shape of bees, which
forthwith attacked us, and we were obliged to mount
our mules as quickly as possible and ride off. Our
wretched interpreter, who had disturbed these bees,
was screeching and waving his arms about wildly,
with his curly hair full of them, and it was some
time before he was freed from his tormentors and
pacified again. All the shade we could get for our
camp was from a thorny mimosa without leaves, and
until the sun went down we were almost boiled
alive.
This spot is the usual halting-place for caravans,
and is called Lah-lah-ah, and soon after our arrival
peasants came from a village on the hills, with
H
98
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
presents of milk and bread, for which we had to pay
considerably over the market value. . Our escort
kept awake all the night, singing and talking, for
they said the place was dangerous, and a continual
watch was necessary; so we didn't get much sleep,
and arose at four, that we might perform part of
the journey before the heat became great. An hour's
ride brought us to the foot of the mountains, up
which we toiled for several hours, reaching about
ten o'clock a cool and shady spot with water, where
we halted for our breakfast and midday rest. Ву
the way, we passed the ruins of a once flourishing
village called Daro-tachle, and on several peaks
around us we saw other ruined villages. Fitaurari
Mangaslah apologised for these in touching terms,
lamenting the inisfortunes and decay of his country,
to which remarks we felt it hard to reply.
At Mai Koumaul, the stream where we halted, we
were met by another grandee and more soldiers, sent
by Deghetch Ambeh, Governor of Adoua, and a rela-
tion of Ras Mangashah, to welcome us; and with now
quité a formidable army our caravan started about
one o'clock on the last stage of its journey to Adoua.
We soon entered a narrow pass, densely wooded, and
walled in on either side by precipitous cliffs ; this is
known as the Gashiwarkeh pass, and is reckoned the
most dangerous point on the whole road. Here the
Greek informed us that his brothers had been mur-
dered about three months before, and we were shown
the grave of a rich bishop of Adoua who had here
been fallen upon by thieves and assassinated. Al-
ON TIIE KOAD TO ADOUA
99.
together this entrance into Abyssinia was not a very
reassuring one, and we felt that we were now amongst
a treacherous and lawless race. Shortly after pass-
ing through the Gashiwarkeh pass we got our first
glimpse of Adoua, nestling beneath its fantastic moun-
tains, but spoilt irretrievably by the fact that its
principal church has in late years been given a zinc
roof instead of the old-fashioned thatch. This horrible
roof catches the sun, and gleams provokingly, and
was a perpetual eyesore to us all the time we were at
Adoua.
The mountains of Adoua are certainly the most
picturesque and fantastic in shape of any mountains I
know; most of them are nearly inaccessible—ambas,
as they call them, where the chiefs of Tigrè repair
in troublous times. Many of them are fortified and
victualled in case of need. One or two have monas-
teries perched on the top, where monks dwell, as they
do at Bizen and Debra Sina, cut off from the world by
precipices and toilsome paths. Others, again, have
political prisoners thereon, kept there in inaccessible
points, from which escape is impossible. The curious
fact is that most of them have springs of water near
the summit. Bermudez, the Portuguese patriarch who
fought so brave a fight for the conversion of the Abys-
sinians in the middle of the sixteenth century, de-
scribes quaintly thus his imprisonment on one of these
ambas : “There are in this country certain higli hills,
commanding the country with great advantage, and
all about steep like a broken rock, so that in nowise
can they be ascended but by very narrow ways made
H2
100
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
M
THE TOWN OF ADOUA
Some
AAN
II
net
1 vez porthing
L.
Uhr
ON THE ROAD TO ADOUA
101
of hand; and on the top are great plains, some of a
league ană more, and some of them seven or eight
leagues, with very good fields and fountains of good
water on the top, and other means for people to live
on them, as indeed they do; but the ways are so
dangerous that none can come in or out from these
rocks without the consent of them that keep them.
These rocks serve for fortresses, and therefore in that
country there are no walled cities. To one of these
did the king command me to be carried by two of
his captains to make an end in it without any hope
of coming out.'
At Addi Abouna, about two miles from Adoua,
by the side of a stream, we beheld an imposing spec-
tacle; all the priests in their best vestments, with
their umbrellas and crosses, were assembled to greet
us and give us their blessing. We all got off our
inules and respectfully advanced towards them, and
had the silver cross laid on our brows and put to our
lips to kiss. In return for this mark of priestly
favour I presented them with three Maria Theresa
dollars, which was all the change I had in my pocket,
and I have reason to believe that the reverend divines
were not at all satisfied with the donation. We
mounted our mules again, and, amidst the quavering
greetings of many women who had assembled to see
the rare sight of a European lady amongst them,
we proceeded on our way to Adoua.
At Addi Abouna is the residence of the Abouna,
or head of all the Abyssinian Church, sent from the
Coptic Church in Egypt. At present, however, there
102
TIIE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
is a dispute between the Abyssinian and Alexandrian
Christians, and no Abouna now occupies this position.
Formerly he dwelt at Gondar, but, owing to the
recent descent of the dervishes on that town, he left
Gondar and came to dwell near Adoua.
103
CHAPTER VI
THE PORTUGUESE EPISODE
ALMOST the only historical point in the annals of
Abyssinia since the more remote ages, which is of in-
terest to those outside the country, is the Portuguese
episode, when the enterprising missionaries sent out
by Portugal almost succeeded in converting the whole
of Ethiopia, and establishing there the papal supre-
macy. The fact that they did not quite succeed, and
that they have left absolutely no trace behind them
of their influence, illustrates well the Abyssinian cha-
racter, and the tenacity with which he clings to the
old superstitions which have survived since the very
earliest days of Christianity. This fact encourages
me to introduce here a short sketch of the history
of this episode. The authorities for the history of
this period, which lasted for over a century, are very
full and very interesting. Ambassadors and patri-
archs from Portugal, Alvarez, Bermudez, and others,
wrote accounts of their journeys into the so-called
kingdom of Prester John. The Jesuit missionaries
located at Fremona and other Catholic settlements
wrote long letters to their general in Europe, and
during this religious occupation of the Roman Catho-
104
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
lics Abyssinia was more in touch with the rest of the
world than it had been since the Greco-Roman days
when the colonies on the Red Sea traded with the
kings of Aksum and established their civilising influ-
ence over the country.
The first European to visit Abyssinia in modern
times was the Portuguese traveller, Pedro de Covil-
ham, who, on his way to India in search of the some-
what mythical Christian inonarch called Prester John,
heard, when in one of the ports of the Red Sea, of the
Abyssinian Christians, and supposed that he had
reached his destination. Covilham went into Abys-
sinia, and remained there from 1490 to his death.
Doubtless he sent back word concerning the things
he saw to the King of Portugal, and the condition of
the Ethiopian Church; but there are very meagre
details concerning his stay; and whether he was for-
cibly detained by the Abyssinian emperor, like many
a subsequent traveller, or whether he remained
through choice, must always be a matter of specula-
tion. His life, his marriage, and his death in Abyssinia
will always be surrounded by mystery. At any rate,
the presence of Covilham in Abyssinia gave rise to
the subsequent chain of events, and undoubtedly
was the motive power which prompted the Emperor
of Abyssinia, David II., to send an embassy to the
King of Portugal in 1513 Damiano Goez gives
us an account of this embassy under the guid-
ance of the Armenian Matthew, 'Legatio magni
Indorum presb. Joan. ad Emanuel Lusitaniæ anno
1513.' The result of this was a return embassy from
THE PORTUGUESE EPISODE
105
Portugal to Abyssinia, under Father Francesco Alva-
rez, which reached Massowalı, under the conduct of
Matthew, in 1520; and the narrative of this embassy,
which lasted from 1520 to 1527, written by Alvarez,
and translated by Lord Stanley of Alderley, in a
volume of the Hakluyt Society, forms the earliest and
most reliable account of the country during modern
times. Alvarez was accompanied by his secretary
and physician, John Bermudez, and one or two others,
who remained behind, and who laid the seeds of that
intercourse with Europe wlich was so soon to pro-
duce such interesting results.
About this time, 1528–1540, a terrible scourge
fell on Abyssinia. Mohammed Gran, the ruler of
Harrar, to the south of Abyssinia, mustered all the
forces of Islam at liis command and attacked the
country, ravaging it from end to end. He destroyed
the church at Aksum, and robbed it of its treasures,
and the tradition of the horrors perpetrated by this
Moslem chief is still retained by Abyssinia to-day.
At Aksum we constantly were told of the magnifi-
cence of the place before the days of Gran.'
Probably, never was the empire of Abyssinia nearer
the point of extinction than at this period, and of
being merged in the conquests of Islam. In his
extremity, the Abyssinian emperor sent John Ber-
mudez, who was still resident in his country, on an
embassy to Portugal to demand assistance, and his
l'equest was granted. Pope Paul III. made Bermu-
dez Patriarch of Ethiopia, and he returned to Abys-
sinia with full powers to do his best to restore order
106
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
in Abyssinia and win over the Abyssinian Christians
to the Roman Catholic allegiance. He entered
Abyssinia again in 1541, and with him was Don
Christoforo de Gama, in command of the 450 muske-
teers sent by the Portuguese, and in their train they
brought six small pieces of artillery, which did great
work in subduing the enemy.
They were landed at Massowah by a fleet in com-
mand of Estevan de Gama, brother of Christoforo,
and at first de Gama was victorious in all his engage-
ients with Gran; but in 1543 de Gama met with
serious reverses, and, unfortunately, died from wounds
received in an engagement. However, shortly after,
his death was avenged by a Portuguese, who shot
Mohammed Gran, and the victory of the Portuguese
and Abyssinians was complete. The head of the
terror of the Abyssinians was exposed for view in
inost of the towns, and tranquillity again restored.
The Emperor Claudius, or, as he is spelt in the Ethio-
pian MSS., Galawdewos, was on the whole friendly
to the Portuguese, and permitted Bermudez to carry
on his proselytising work. Now and again, however,
as we have seen, he would rebel against the yoke
that his preservers were preparing for his country,
and sent Bermudez to prison on an amba; but, on
the whole, during the patriarchate of Bermudez,
much progress was made, and many proselytes joined
the inission. After the ravages of Gran, much of the
work the Portuguese had to do consisted in the recon-
struction of the shattered empire; and their task
was no easy one, having to contend with prejudice,
THE PORTUGUESE EPISODE
107
poverty, and, now that the object of danger was
removed, the inherent love of the Abyssinians for
their ancient customs. Bermudez wrote an interest-
ing account of his experiences in Ethiopia, which
were published in Lisbon in 1565.
In 1555, John Numez Barreto was sent out by
John III. with a large number of missionaries to suc-
cour the infant Church, and Andrea Oviedo succeeded
Bermudez as patriarch of the Church. He reached
Ethiopia in 1557, and was received well by the Em-
peror Claudius; but this monarch died two years
later, and during the reign of his son, Wahag Sagad II.,
the Catholic missionaries were very badly treated.
From the letters of the Jesuits to their general at
home, we learn that Oviedo was, during the course
of his patriarchate, which lasted till his death in 1577,
exiled to the mountains no less than three times;
they relate several miracles performed by his
prayers, and certain points which are hard to believe;
but from the narrative the main facts appear clearly
established that the missionaries had much trouble
in their work, and made but slow progress at this
period. Internal wars devastated Abyssinia during
this period, until the death of Malak Sagad I. in
1597. Meanwhile, Oviedo had died at Fremona in
1597, and a successor in the patriarchate was de-
spatched to succeed him in 1580-Father Pierre Paës
Castillan. He left Lisbon in the same year, but had
the misfortune to be caught by the Turks, and served
in the galleys for many years, and did not reach his
destination till 1603. Meanwhile, the Abyssinian
108
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
Church was administered by men who had served
under Oviedo, and, under the kindly protection of the
Emperor Yakob, made much progress. Father Paës
was a man of wonderful vigour and energy, and, on his
arrival in Ethiopia, was well received by the Emperor
Yakob, who declared himself a Roman Catholic in
the following year. To Father Paës was due the
construction of the many Portuguese buildings which
are still to be seen in Abyssinia. He built the king's
palace at Gondar, which cost him an infinity of labour,
for he was forced to teach the workmen everything,
and look after them like a master builder. To him
probably is due the reconstruction of the cathedral
church at Aksum, as it at present exists, and whiclı
had been destroyed by Mohammed Gran. Another
Jesuit, Balthazar Tellezius, gives us an account of the
coronation at Aksum of the Negous Susenyos, or, as
the Abyssinian chronicles call him, Malak Sagad III.,
who succeeded the Emperor Yakob in 1607. "The
emperor wore a dress of purple silk, and, with a
cross in his right hand, rode up to the steps on a
richly caparisoned horse. Here he alighted, and the
steps were lined by children in white, who barred his
passage with a riband of red silk. This he cut with
his sword, and was then conveyed to the sacred stone,
on which he was crowned, whilst the priests sang
and dancecl around him.
In the Negous Susenyos the Portuguese had a warm
ally, and during his reign their power in Abyssinia
reached its culminating point.
From the Jesuit letters of this period we learn
THE PORTUGUESE EPISODE
109
1
about the building of Fremona, the Portuguese
fortress, about a mile and a half out of Adoua. The
name Adoua does not occur in any of these letters,
so I imagine that the old town was round Fremona.
There are no traces of anything older than this
fortress in or around Adoua, and it would seem that
prior to the days of the Portuguese no town of any
importance existed here. The name of Fremona was
given to the place from Frumentius, the man who,
according to Abyssinian legend, introduced Chris-
tianity into Abyssinia about the year 330 of our era.
The account of Frumentius is decidedly legendary ;
but the story, for want of a better, must be taken for
what it is worth. Ruffinus is our authority for it,
and he tells us how a merchant of the name of Mero-
pius, with two slaves, Frumentius and Adesius, put
in to Ethiopia on their way to India. Here Meropius
died, and his two friends remained in Abyssinia, in-
gratiated themselves into the favour of the king and
people, and then Frumentius returned to Alexandria
and was created the first Bishop of Ethiopia by St.
Athanasius, and on his return finally established the
religion of Christ in the country. The story has dis-
tinctly its weak points, for the Abyssinians are, as we
have seen, a race with considerable obstinacy, and
it is scarcely probable that two slaves would obtain
sufficient influence to change the religion of a whole
country, and the story is in itself almost as mythical
as that the Queen of Sheba and her son Menelek
converted this country on their return from Jerusa-
lem to Judaism. Almost at this very period, too, we
110
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
get the Greek inscription at Aksum, in which King
Aizanes dedicates statues to Mars, who had befriended
him in his wars. Still, however, by making allow-
ances for legends, we may safely surmise that some-
where about this time a knowledge of Christianity
spread in Ethiopia, and that, in 600 A.D., the nine
Egyptian monks who came to Ethiopia, in a measure
organised a Christian Church on the Alexandrian lines,
which St. Tekla Haimanout, in 1255, afterwards esta-
blished on pretty much the same basis as it is now.
The Portuguese found it convenient to believe in
Frumentius, and called the fortress, which they built,
Fremona, after him. Writing in 1621 to the general
of the Jesuits at home, Father Almeyda says, “The
fortress, which was begun last year, is at last finished ;
they have also erected another tower, to which is
also added battlements and watch towers all round.
We have put up a flag on the top of this tower, the
standard of the cross, which is so well made that
every one comes to marvel at it.' The ruins of this
fortress, abandoned and rapidly tumbling to pieces,
are still to be seen on the hill of Fremona, near
Adoua.
Father Paës, the great apostle of the Jesuits in
Abyssinia, died at Fremona in 1622, and the Negous
Susenyos in his grief threw himself on his tomb and
wept bitterly.
Writing in 1624, Father Almeyda thus describes
the progress of conversion : The emperor gives a
great example to all, both in frequent attendance at
sacraments and in visiting the church and listening
THE PORTUGUESE EPISODE
111
every one.'
to preaching ; often he communicates in sight of
one.' But at the same time he adds signifi-
cantly that there are many rebels in the mountains
of Amhara and Shoa. The emperor had now for
some time past resided at Fremona, in order to be
close to the Jesuit fathers and the new religion; but,
at the same time, it is clear that, though powerful in
the support of the Abyssinian monarch, who had
thrown in his lot with the Jesuits, there was much
discontent amongst the people. • Evil reports were
spread by the Ethiopian monks to the effect that the
Roman Catholics gave to those who wished to com-
municate a bit of camel's brain, or of a hare, instead
of the body of Christ.'
In Tigré the Portuguese had two missions—one at
Fremona, and another at Debarroa. It is a significant
fact that in these letters, there are very few allusions
to Aksum and the great monastery there, the
monks of which were undoubtedly extremely bitter
against the new religion, and from this quarter pro-
bably came the ultimate downfall of the Jesuits. The
Coptic Abouna was always ready to head a revolt.
Father Almeyda says in another letter, "We took
leave of him to go to Fremona, where we arrived on
the day of Saint Mary Magdalene, and were received
with a great rejoicing and tears of joy, with salvos of
musketry from the fortress, and the flying of many
flags on the turrets of the towers ’; and again, On
February 12 was laid the first stone of a beautiful
and large church which was to be built near the
fortress, because that of the patriarch Oviedo, besicles
112
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
being small, was far off from the house. It was done
with a great sound of drums and salutes of arque-
busses.'
Father Almeyda and the next patriarch, Father
Alfonso Mendez, in their books allude to Aksum,
stating it as their belief that it was the capital of the
Queen of Sheba, and that the big obelisk standing
there was her tomb. (Almeyda, bk. 1, ch. 22;
Mendez, bk. 3, ch. 3.)
Three years after the death of Father Paës,
Alfonso Mendez was sent out, at the request of the
Emperor Susenyos, to act as patriarch of the Roman
Catholic Church of Ethiopia. He was a typical
Jesuit, hard and uncompromising, and on his arrival
in Abyssinia in 1625 he set to work to organise the
Church there on the strictest principles of orthodoxy.
He was accompanied by Father Lobo, whose book
on Abyssinia was translated by Dr. Johnson, for
which he got the sum of five pounds. He had
every support from the emperor and his brother,
Ras Sela, who was Viceroy of Tigrė, in his desire
to obliterate from the Abyssinians all their old rites
and customs, and to substitute for them those of the
Church of Rome. But amongst the people there was
great discontent, and two years after the arrival of
Mendez a rebellion broke out, headed by Tekla
Giorgis, the emperor's son-in-law. Reports were
spread that the Jesuits were in league with Ras Sela
to make him emperor; but Susenyos, with unabated
zeal for his friends the Jesuits, succeeded in putting
down the rebellion, and his son-in-law was hung on a
THE PORTUGUESE EPISODE
113
tree; but, at the same time, the discontent was so
marked throughout the whole of his dominions that
he was obliged to allow liberty of conscience. To
this the patriarch Mendez was bitterly opposed, and
saw with undisguised disgust many of his proselytes
lapsing into their old faith ; but by this time Susenyos,
who was getting old and feeble, was unable to regain
for his friends their old ascendency, and in June
1632 he abdicated, and died in the September of the
same year, still maintaining to the last his belief in
the Catholic faith and his love for the Jesuits. His
death was the signal for a general revolt against the
influence of the Jesuits; their uncompromising position
had embittered them to the whole of the Abyssinian
nation, and thus by their over-zeal they ruined their
cause. Even their firm friend, Ras Sela, with the
true spirit of an Ethiopian, deserted them and went
over to the side of the young emperor, Fasiladas, who
was in every way opposed to the Jesuits, and issued
a decree that they should be expelled from his
dominions. Many of them, with a praiseworthy zeal,
elected to remain at their post, and all who did
suffered martyrdom, and a few months after the
death of Susenyos not a single trace of the Jesuits
and their power was to be found throughout the
length and breadth of Ethiopia.
For the remainder of that century no Europeans
were allowed to visit Abyssinia, and every attempt
on the part of the Jesuits to re-enter the country
was futile.
In 1714 some Roman Catholic missionaries were
;
I
114
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
again well received, and established themselves at
Gondar; but very soon evil reports were spread
against them, probably by the Abyssinian clergy,
who dreaded a renewal of their influence. It was
reported that the bread they gave in the Sacrament
was the marrow of dogs and pigs; the emperor
who befriended them was poisoned, and in March
1718 all the missionaries were stoned at Gondar, an
Ethiopian priest casting the first stone.
Thus ended the gallant attempt, which at one
time was so nearly successful, to bring Ethiopia
under the wing of the papal supremacy, and the
result has undoubtedly been to close Abyssinia to
European influence and to strengthen the tenacity
with which the Abyssinian priesthood adhere to their
time-honoured customs.
115
CHAPTER VII
STAY AT
AT ADOUA.
We were warmly welcomed at Adoua by the Italian
resident, Capitano-medico De Martino, who had
lived alone for over a year at Adoua without seeing
any of his fellow-countrymen, looking after the
Italian interests in the Abyssinian empire. He was
delighted to see us and talk with Europeans again,
and during the days we stayed at Adoua he made us
most comfortable.
His house and large garden were down by the
stream, where the inhabitants of Adoua wash their
clothes after a fashion peculiarly their own. They
first dig a hole in the ground near the stream; into
this they put a large skin to form a sort of basin;
then they put in the clothes, tread them with their
feet, and wash them with their native soap made out
of the seeds of the Percunia Abyssinica ground and
made into a paste, the washing properties of which
are marvellous, and they call it shipta. The Abyssi-
nians certainly are excellent botanists; they know of
a tree the leaves of which stupefy fish when thrown
into the water, so that they may be easily caught;
they know the properties of the kousso for killing
I 2
116
1
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
tapeworms, and the medicinal properties of many
other plants. Nevertheless, our friend De Martino
is greatly valued amongst them for his medical skill.
Most wounds are brought to him to be sewn up;
most fevers are treated by him; but his chief hold
over the people arises from the fact that with his own
retort he can make his own spirits and liqueurs-
and this is the way to the heart of an Abyssinian
chief. A dozen of some choice liqueur sent oppor-
tunely to Ras Mangashah will settle a point of diplo-
macy which looked sufficiently grave. Hence the
Capitano-medico at Adoua is distinctly a man of
weight and importance.
I don't think I ever saw a prettier spot than
Adoua, with its rocky mountains encircling it, with
peaks as fantastic as any in the world—one crowned
by an old prison, another by a convent. Its streams
make the land around it fertile, and a few years
back it was as flourishing as any place in Abyssinia.
Now it is a series of ruined walls and deserted huts,
a third only of the houses being inhabited, for pesti
lence, famine, and war have, during late years, visited
Adoua and left it merely a wreck of what it once was.
On the morning after our arrival the Italian resi-
dent took me to pay a visit to the Dejetch, or
governor of Adoua. The Abyssinian body politic is
thus composed : Firstly, the Emperor, King of
kings; secondly, the Ras, generally, but not always,
crowned as vice-king of a province; thirdly, the
Dejetch, or governor of a big town; and, fourthly,
the Shoum, or headman of a village.
STAY AT ADOUA
117
The Dejetch Ambeh of Adoua is a very im-
portant person, being a cousin of the reigning
family. He received us with considerable dignity
in a large round hut with grass spread over the
floor and two or three Oriental carpets; all round
the hut were horns inserted in the walls, on to
which the great men in attendance on the Dejetch
had hung their shields and other arms. The
governor sat on an angareb, whilst the Italian re-
sident and I were provided with chairs on either
side of him. After various complimentary speeches
we gradually passed into politics, and I was much
struck with the curious metaphorical way in which
these were discussed. Ras Alula was spoken of
as the devil who came up like smoke from hell,
and the Dejetch remarked that it would be neces-
sary to put up a cross on either door to keep him
out. Then they spoke of a recent victory over some
of Ras Alula's men, and how they had fled, as before
a swarm of bees. The allusions were all rather
poetical and striking. Before leaving, it was insinu-
ated to the Dejetch that we had a present for him,
which we hoped to have the honour of presenting
very shortly.
He sent us a lamb and thirty pieces of bread
that very day as an earnest of his goodwill, and on
the following afternoon, accompanied by my wife, I
went to pay him another visit, my interpreter carry-
ing the gifts mysteriously under the folds of his
shammu. It was not exactly the hour we should
have chosen to pay a visit to a royal prince, had we

118
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
thought about it, for it was just the hour at which
he and his great men were breaking their fast. In
Lent no one is supposed to eat more than once a
day, and that meal is in the afternoon. The Dejetch
and at least fifty of the principal men of Adoua were
HORN FOR RED PEPPER; WRIST BASKET FOR RED PEPPER ;
DISH COVER OF STRAW ; STRAW BASKET
all seated in a tent, which was crowded to excess and
stiflingly hot. They had before them baskets of
bread, and the usual platters of a sauce of oil and
red pepper, into which they dip the bread. I must
say the Abyssinians are very clean eaters; they break
off a piece of the bread without touching the rest
STAY AT ADOUA
119
with their fingers, and every movement is graceful,
even down to the lowest of the people--undoubtedly
the heritage of a high civilisation in bygone days.
It is just the same when they eat their raw meat;
they are graceful, and each man only touches the
piece he intends to eat with his own fingers as he
cuts it off with his sword. When the governor ate,
every one rushed up to have the honour of hiding
him with his shamma from public gaze, and of
wiping his hands with their robes when he had his
hands washed after eating. It was a silent, and to
us a very interesting, meal. Poor things ! they must
have been very hungry, and yet they all kept their
tempers admirably. When, however, the tedye
horns had been passed round, their tongues became
loosened, and conversation flowed freely.
When the process of eating was over, and the
meanest amongst them had swallowed his last
mouthful, the Dejetch evidently began to get curious
to see what presents we had brought him. He made
a sign to the agarafi
, the master of the ceremonies,
who stood at the tent door, stick in hand, to order
the guests to depart, which they all did without a
The order to depart and return again
presently ’ is very strictly observed in an Abyssinian
household; even the emperor's son obeys it; for an
Abyssinian, whoever he may be, is considered as lord
in his own house. The Dejetch displayed no emo-
tion at the things we gave him until we handed him
a watch, and then he could not restrain his inordi-
nate delight. We showed him how to wind it up,
inurmur.
120
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
::
+
open it, &c., and though he transferred all the other
objects to his servant to be taken away, he never let
the watch out of his hand.
Presents were quite the order of the day at
Adoua, and we were given several nice things by the
Italian resident, including a beautiful mergef, or
prince's robe, which is distinguished from the ordi-
nary shamma by having the red stripe beautifully
woven in various patterns. At Adoua we also ac-
quired some very good pieces of Abyssinian basket
work. Their great baskets for holding the cakes of
bread are intricately woven with different coloured
grasses and are exceedingly pretty. They also make
their dish-covers in the same way, and their red
pepper pots, with a hole in the middle, so that the
servants may wear them on their wrists as they carry
their dishes to the table. This intricate basket weav-
ing has its parallel in Nubia and Lower Egypt.
We visited a great many houses in Adoua,
making interesting little purchases at most of them,
including an embroidered lady's costume (Vide illus-
tration, p. 23), with a very pretty pattern worked in
three coloured silks. There are some good houses in
Adoua, though most of them are now falling into
ruins. Some of them are square, with upper stories
and towers; and I think the influence of the Por-
tuguese, who constructed the neighbouring fortress
of Fremona, must also have been felt in house archi-
tecture in the town. Ras Alula possesses a par-
ticularly fine set of huts in Adoua in a large space
inclosed by a wall, and his principal dwelling hut

OH-0$
Kanouri
STAY AT ADOUA
121
has a roof of a character which I had never seen
before; it is made of bamboos, very neatly put to-
gether, through which are interwoven shreds of red,
blue, and white silk, giving to the whole a very
rich and decorative appearance.
We got a leather water-jug at one of the houses
we visited-a form of jug which is widely distributed
mo es
LEATHER WATER-JUG
SILVER SEAL
in Africa, and is universal in Abyssinia, strongly re-
minding one of the shape of the water-bouget in
heraldry. At another house we annexed a great
man's silver seal with a cross in the centre and the
legend around it.— This is the seal of Fitaurari
(General) Dabalque.' Every great man who can
afford it has his seal, which he puts at the top of
any letter he may have written for him by a deftera,
or public scribe.
122
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
'
We paid visits to all sorts and conditions of men
at Adoua, to the Dejetch of princely rank, to the
negadè, or merchant, who moves in quite a different
class of society, and to the more humble peasant,
from all of whom we received the greatest kindness,
and all of whom were continually asking us, “When
are the English coming again to Abyssinia to give
us good government, and a time of peace ?
Every Saturday there is a market at Adoua, in
the big flat space near to what is popularly known
as the royal garden. Here we could study the com-
modities of the country at their best. There were
sellers of pepper, soap seeds, umbrellas, shammas,
shields, and swords. There were sellers of honey,
chillies, and salt, the latter in long thin blocks, which
is used for money. When you do not want to give
a Maria Theresa dollar for an object, you buy bars
of salt, and thus arrive at a negotiable article. But
we always found it most difficult to make purchases
in this way. At the market we saw many mutilated
men, who for political reasons had been deprived of
their right hands and left feet, and who invariably
become beggars; for Abyssinians are distinctly cruel,
and do not seem to care to support a maimed relą.
tion. From the market we came triumphantly home
with a long sword, with an angular curve in the
middle-a very ancient pattern—the scabbard of
which, of stamped leather, is made particularly broad
to admit of the curve passing in. The scarcity of
fodder and grain in the Adoua market was most
remarkable; we could not get any oats for our
STAY AT ADOUA
123
mules, which wanted them badly, nor any flour to
inake ourselves bread with. The harvest had all been
destroyed, they said, and there was none to be had.
We visited one or two leather workers when at
Adoua. One of them had his tiny shop up a flight
of steps, and there was no room to enter; so we stood
on the steps and inspected his goods. When new,
the leather saddle-cloths and fittings for the head-
gear look remarkably vulgar, green, red, and yellow
leather being cut out in intricate patterns—a green
cross, or house, or lion on a red ground, and so
forth. When old and tarnished they look remark-
ably well. I never could make up my mind to buy
a new one, and never coull persuade any one to sell
an old one; so we came home minus these charac-
teristic articles of Abyssinian manufacture. Oddly
enough, Abyssinian leather work reminded
strongly of that in. Persia, and, probably, in years
long gone by, the Abyssinians learnt this art from
that source. Then, again, the leather worker makes
cases of stamped leather for tedge horns, for carry-
ing knives and household implements in, and for
putting charms and books in. Altogether, I think
the leather workers of Adoua have as large a field
for their enterprise as any one.
Then there are the silversiniths, cunning artificers
in filigree and embossed work, who supply the
Abyssinian ladies with their trinkets and their
charm cases. There are a great many of these in
Adoua, and inasmuch as no woman, however poor,
is without some silver work, and the well-to-do
us

124
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
pile it on in ostentatious profusion, there is plenty
of opening for workmen in this trade. Every
woman wears three little silver crosses tightly
bound round her forehead, and small solitaire ear-
rings of silver in her ears. These ornaments are
Cave
ABYSSINIAN JEWELS
Hair-pin for parting hair; Necklace; Cross; Ring for Neck;
Hair-pin
de rigueur in Abyssinia ; but bangles, armlets, brace-
lets, anklets, neck charms, hair-pins, rings of silver
are indulged in according to the wealth and dignity
of the wearer. We never saw any precious stones
worn in Abyssinia, nor any ornaments of gold.
STAY AT ADOUA
125
De
So the silversmith has a monopoly of the female
vanities, which are as rampant in Abyssinia as else-
where. At Adoua we acquired a fine neck-gear for
a mule, decorated with little bosses of silver and the
pendant bells. This belonged to a person of dis-
tinction, humbler people having theirs
only made of brass. But a beautiful
filigree mitre, which we coveted ex-
On
tremely, was not to be bought. It was
one of the best pieces of Abyssinian
silver work we saw, and we left it
behind most regretfully.
One afternoon, as I was wandering
about Adoua alone, a well-to-do man
accosted me, and, rather against my
will, insisted on taking me to his house.
It was a very good house, and singu-
larly sweet smelling, for the floor was
strewn with fragrant herbs, which sent
up a delicious odour when trodden upon. He intro-
duced me to his wife, and gave me tedge and liqueurs,
for I was rather helpless, not knowing enough Abys-
sinian to refuse politely. He showed me his books
and his wife's silver ornaments, and when this rather
trying visit was over I hurried home to be scolded
by my interpreter for keeping low company, 'for,
'
said he, he is only a negadè,' or merchant. I was
never permitted to see my self-made friend again. In
many respects I feel sure we frequently acted in such
an undignified manner that we shocked the Abys-
sinians. They never could understand why we pre-
PAV.
BRASS HAIR-COMB
126
THE SACRET CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
'
ferred to walk when we could ride, or why we liked
to stroll about by ourselves, when our supposed rank
necessitated a retinue of servants.
Adoua would be nothing if it was not for its
churches ; two very conspicuous ones crown two
hills, beneath which the houses nestle. One of these
is the cathedral, to which we took an unreasonable
Hanh
OS
CATHEDRAL OF ADOUA
dislike, owing to its tin roof, which catches the eye
at every turn you take in Adoua. The precincts of
this church are, lowever, very fine; the large outer
inclosure, in which there is a daily market, except
on Saturdays, when the big market takes place out-
side the town, opens into an inner inclosure through
a handsome gateway, in the centre of which stands
STAY AT ADOUA
127
the circular church. There are treasure chambers,
priests' quarters, and numerous buildings around
this, and thither, in times of danger, the inhabitants
1.
line
TOMB OF BISHOP KYRILLOS, ADOUA
of Adoua take their valuable property for protection,
for no marauder, however strong he may be, dares
to interfere with the sanctity of the church.
But the church which interested us most, and
multe
ఔర్చు ఈ
WIE
مر' ،.
PORCIT OF THE CHURCH OF THE SAVIOUR OF THE WORLI), ADOUA
which we frequently visited, was down in the hollow
to the east of Adoua. It is dedicated to “ Madhane
128
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
Alam, or the Saviour of the World, and is the most
perfect specimen of the circular Abyssinian church
which we saw in all our tour. The outer inclosure
shuts in a very large space, and you pass through
two very handsome porches to enter the second in-
closure, which is planted with shady trees. There is
a fine bell-tower and treasure house attached, and
behind it is the square mausoleum of the Coptic
Abouna, Kyrillos by name, who built the church at
his own expense, and who was murdered on the road
to the Mareb a few years ago. There is so much that
is like modern Persia in the architecture of the sub-
sidiary buildings — the reddish, mud-bespattered
walls, and the bala khaneh over the door of the
porch—that one is tempted to believe that at some
time or another Persia and Persian art exercised
some influence over the country of Prester John.
Of course many Persians find their way to the Red
Sea on their journeys to Mecca, and one cannot help
thinking that, during the more prosperous days of
Abyssinia, Persian artificers found their way up on
to the high plateau of Abyssinia, and exercised an
influence like the Portuguese did in their day on
the crude art of the country.
The church of the Saviour of the World is very
big, at least 50 feet in diameter, and is divided, as
usual, into the three conventional divisions; it stands
on a raised platform with a sunk fence around it,
and the thatched roof is supported by very substan-
tially-built columns. The wood work of the porch is
very fine ; small blocks of wood, each with an elabo-
STAY AT ADOUA
129
rate pattern of Byzantine style, are inserted into all
the angles, acting as supports and decoration to the
doors ; the outer court was strewn with grass, and
contained a collection of drums and musical instru-
ments for the services. The pictures, too, are good
and elaborate--one especially, of Pharaoh and his
host drowning in the Red Sea, with their heads just
La
Turistiniai
Bio
uy
41:11... whil
וייזר
CHURCH OF THE SAVIOUR OF THE WORLD, ADOUA
above water, struck us as peculiarly realistic and
quaint, whilst the crowds beneath the water are re-
presented by neat rows of five swords or six guns.
It was here in the church of the Saviour of the
World that I espied a picture cast on one side, for
the colours were somewhat faded, which I faintly
hoped to acquire. At first our offers were received
with contempt, but again and again we sent our in-
terpreter, and with him ten pieces of silver, the sight
K
130
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
of which eventually overcame the priest's dread of
mutilation, and the evening before our final depar-
ture from Adoua the picture was ours. Our inter-
preter himself was terrified at what he had done.
· We must not breathe a word of the transaction, even
to the Italians,' he said; 'we must bury the treasure at
the bottom of our deepest bag’; and to all these regu-
lations we gladly acquiesced, for we knew the great
difficulty of acquiring these things in Abyssinia, and
the danger to which we all should be exposed if our
transaction should be discovered, and I am pretty
nearly sure that this picture which is now in the
British Museum is the first of its kind which has
reached Europe. (Vide frontispiece.)
The picture is 7 ft. high by 5 ft. 8 in. broad,
and is painted on a piece of silk canvas. The cruci-
fixion, which occupies the centre of the picture, is
peculiarly Byzantine in the thin, angular shape of
the body, the drooping head, and pallid hue, and
might be well a production of Mount Athos were it
not for its surroundings. As is usual in these Abys-
sinian pictures, evil-doers are side-faced, good people
full-face, as is evidenced in the compartment allotted
to the flagellation. Apparently, the subjects to the
right of the picture represent scenes before the
Passion; those to the left, after the Resurrection.
One of them depicts the quaint Eastern legend of the
Christ being let down into Hades by a cord, and
Adam and Eve receiving the body. At the foot of the
cross is the skull of Adam, conformable to the Eastern
legend that Shem and Melchisedek took the head

STAY AT A DOUA
131
of Adam and buried it in Golgotha ; over the skull
trickle three streams of blood, symbolically washing
away the sins of the first Adam. The figures of the
ENTRANCE TO THE HOLY OF HOLIES, CHURCH OF THE SAVIOUR
OF THE WORLD, ADOUA
Maries and Joseph at the foot of the cross are pecu-
liarly elaborate, and the embroidered garments worn
by the women are of distinctly local colouring. The
K2
132
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
three angels holding three vases to the three wounds
would look as if in some form or another the legend
of the Holy Grail had penetrated into Abyssinia.
Far above, in the left-hand corner of the picture, is
painted the devil fleeing in terror from this world.
Altogether, this picture is a most interesting embodi-
ment of the Abyssinian conception of the Passion,
and shows clearly the Greek influence which was at
work in this Church. As for the minor details of
local colouring, they are amusing, and produce gro-
tesque anachronisms. The Roman soldiers have all
got their matchlock rifles; the spear which pierces
the side of Christ is an exact counterpart of an
Abyssinian spear; the Roman soldier has. an Abys-
sinian toe-stirrup. The priests who dance to wel-
come Christ as He enters Jerusalem have got their
drums, their sistra, their pastoral staves, and their
fly-flaps, and the trappings of the mules are entirely
Abyssinian. Yet, taken as a whole, this picture is
purely Byzantine in character, and shows beyond a
doubt the source from which the sacred art of Abys-
sinia has been derived.
The environs of Adoua are very pleasant for
walking ; just opposite rises the great mass of
Shelloda, which the inhabitants liken to the back of
a horse. On it a German geologist is said to have
discovered gold in large quantities, but he died, and
his secret died with him. Two streams water
Adoua—the Assam and the Gogo. The ruined
king's palace and the ruined Portuguese settlement
of Fremona crown heights about half an hour's dis-
STAY AT ADOUA
133
tance from the town. Given a settled government
and power of developing itself, Adoua might be
again what it once was, the most favoured spot in
Abyssinia ; but, as it is, constant rebellions and in-
security of life and property have paralysed every-
thing about it.
134
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
CHAPTER VIII
EXPEDITION TO YEHA AND ITS ARCHÆOLOGICAL
RESULTS
We were very anxious to make an expedition from
Adoua for two nights to Yeha, whilst awaiting a reply
from Ras Mangashah, giving us permission to pro-
ceed to Aksum. From the fragments of letters copied
by Salt, I was led to believe that we should find
Himyaritic inscriptions there, and thereby be able to
establish beyond a doubt early Arabian influence and
colonisation in Abyssinia. Alvarez also, the most
reliable of guides, went into ecstasies over à ruin
there, and our Greek fellow-travellers had also heard
wonderful reports of the things to be found there.
Dejetch Ambeh gave us permission to go, and an
escort of a few soldiers to insure our safety, and the
results, as they appear in the following pages, I think
will show that the importance of the ruins of Yeha
have in no way been exaggerated; and there is no
question about it that they are of greater age and
greater importance than those of Aksum itself. It is a
ride of about five hours from Adoua to Yeha, and part
of the road is very difficult; so we set off as early
as possible one morning in the direction of the peaky
mountains to the north-east of Adoua.
EXPEDITION TO YEHA
135
The first object of interest which we passed was
a big sycamore tree, about a quarter of a mile out
of the town, where executions usually take place;
the town gibbet, in fact-luckily, just then without
an occupant. To our left we passed the church of
St. Michael, built a few years ago by Ras Michael,
buried in its grove, and then we ascended the hills
and crossed over a ridge, wlich brought us to a
broad valley completely hedged in by an amphi-
theatre of precipitous mountains. A stream runs
through this valley, the Mai Veless, and the soil
looks extremely fertile; but it is a sad instance of
Abyssinian deterioration. Ruined villages are seen
in all directions, with the customary church in the
middle, almost hidden by its sacred grove, which has
turned into jungle. Apparently, at no very distant
period, every inch of this valley had been cultivated;
now only on a few acres at the upper end, where the
valley is narrow and irrigation easy, is any cultiva-
tion carried on.
All the surrounding hills have been terraced for
cultivation, and present much the same appearance
as the hills in Greece and Asia Minor, which have
been neglected for centuries; but nowhere in Greece
or Asia Minor have I ever seen such an enormous
extent of terraced mountains as in this Abyssinian
valley. Hundreds and thousands of acres must here
have been under the most careful cultivation, right
,
up almost to the tops of the mountains, and now
nothing is left but the regular lines of the sustain-
ing walls, and a few trees dotted about here and
136
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
there. This valley is most completely shut in, quite
such an one as one can imagine Rasselas to have
lived in. We lunched and reposed by the side of the
stream, and then commenced an exceedingly toilsome
ascent on foot, up which the mules scrambled with
difficulty, by a road which has evidence of having
once been good and carefully engineered, but which
in these later times is a mass of fallen boulders and
small stones. Another equally precipitous descent on
D
VIEW OF YEHA
the other side of the ridge brought us into the valley
of Yeha, and after another hour's ride we reached
our destination, about three o'clock in the afternoon.
The first sight of Yeha impressed us exceedingly.
On a rounded knoll stands the large ruin, a massive
piece of ancient masonry; by the side of it is a more
modern church, built out of ancient fragments;
around all this is the usual sacred grove and the wall
of inclosure. We pitched our tents just outside this
wall, under a far-spreading sycamore, and looked
down on the extensive modern village buried in ver-
EXPEDITION TO YEHA
137
dure, and around it fields with flourishing crops, show-
ing a degree of prosperity which we had seen nowhere
else in Abyssinia. Behind the village rise precipitous
rocky mountains of every form and shape. The in-
habitants of Yeha were exceedingly inquisitive about
us, but at the same time polite. Next morning they
held a court of justice under the tree, and in close
proximity to our tents, accompanied by the fearful
screaming and gesticulations common in Abyssinia
on such occasions. We had nothing to do but to
show that the noise annoyed us, and the headmen
ordered the court to remove to a distance, and left us
in peace. The priests of the monastery were some-
what jealous of the close scrutiny to which we sub-
mitted the ruins ; but, on receipt of a few dollars, they
showed us everything, and assisted us in discovering
many, inscriptions. The superstitious believe that
these old Sabæan inscriptions point to where treasure
is hidden, and watched us narrowly when we walked
about, believing that we should find the spots ; and
one widow woman wlio had three inscriptions built
into her house most reluctantly allowed us to take
squeezes, gradually working herself up into hysterics,
and eventually refusing to accept the gratuity we
offered her through a belief that we should work
magic with them and bring disaster upon her.
The great building on the knoll is one of special
interest, being the centre of the old civilisation as it
here existed, and having been fortunately preserved
to us, owing to the fact that it is within the sacred
precincts, and that it has a Christian church within it,
138
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
H
t
Syd85 in.
W
now deserted. It is 20 yds. 1 ft. 21 ins. in length,
and 16 yds. 1 ft. 7 ins. in width. On the east side
there are preserved
fifty-two courses, and
on the top of this ran
the pattern given in
the illustration. The
building was probably
about 50 ft. in height,
and there are no traces
of a window in it. The stones are large, and put
together without cement; the four bottom courses
* Sydsl.ins. 5yils.281.5inl.
16 yılr.151.734 in.
11
0
4 yus.8in.
20 yos. 186.212 in.
PLAN OF TEMPLE, YEHA
سفر
MIS
Phi
(gill
:::
ninus
TEMPLE AT YEHA
give a batter of 3 ins. each, and the corner stones are
3 ft. fin. in length, 28 ins. thick; they are all
drafted stones '—that is to say, with a carefully

EXPEDITION TO YEHA
139
chiselled line edging each stone. The stone is a
hard yellowish limestone, and the preservation of
the whole is excellent. To the west was a large
doorway, 5 yds. 2 ft. 5 ins. in width, with holes for
MONOLITHS BEFORE THE TEMPLE AT YEHA
hinges; and here, too, are marks of fire. In the
interior on either side of the doorway are two re-
cesses; otherwise, inside the temple is simple in the
.
extreme.
140
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
Before this entrance there was apparently a vesti-
bule, some few stones of which are in their places;
but the greater part of this wall is of late con-
struction, and let into it are two fragments, with
Himyaritic inscriptions upon them. In front of the
vestibule stood two rough monoliths, at the base of
one of which is an altar with a circular disk on it,
presumably, from the analogy of those at Aksum, for
receiving the blood of slaughtered victims. In the
little ruined church inside the walls there are several
decorated fragments, notably a fragment of a reddish
sandstone column with many grooves. A few yards
from this building is the modern church, square, and
constructed like that at Asmara; it has been built
out of the ruins, and one interesting little fragment
let into the walls gives us what is evidently a portion
of a monolith, like those at Aksum, with windows
and battlements represented thereon. Much soil has
here accumulated all round, and a dense growth of
reeds, and I am convinced that a thorough excava-
tion of this spot would yield very interesting results
for the student of Sabaan art.
The priests had two Sabaan in-
scriptions hidden away in this
church, which after much diffi-
culty we succeeded in seeing-
one, a portion of a very richly-
carved stone, with Himyaritic let-
ters in relief (No. 7, p. 237). It appears to agree in
height, and in the decoration which runs along the
top, with the fragment inserted in the wall of the
ALTAR AT BASE OF MONO-
LITH, YEHA
EXPEDITION TO YEIHA
141
vestibule, and probably ran along above the entrance
before it was destroyed.
My impression is strongly in favour of this build-
ing having been a temple dedicated to the old
Sabæan cult of sun and star worship. Like such
buildings, it has had no windows; the monoliths and
altar in front also point to the same thing, and the
fact that the sacredness of the spot. has been handed
down to our days is also in favour of its having been
originally a temple rather than a fortress.
Outside the inclosure one sees plainly how exten-
sive the place must have been in ancient days. On
AL
0 0
lo
FRAGDIENTS FROM YCHA
every side are fragments of columns, dressed stones,
and other objects of interest let into the walls of the
cottages, and about three hundred yards from the
temple on the other side of the village stood a build-
ing, only a few stones of which are in situ, and
these are of colossal size, rivalling the colossal stones
of any early Greek or Etruscan building. This
building is now almost buried in the ground, and
would be an exceedingly interesting spot to ex-
cavate.
Modern accounts of the antiquities of Yeha
142
THE SACRED) CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
are very few. Salt gives us a little description of it,
and copied one or two of the inscriptions; but in
those days the Himyaritic script was unknown.
Alvarez, in 1520, also visited it, and his quaint little
description is worth quoting here. He calls the spot
Abafacem, and thus describes it : "There is a very
good church of Our Lady, well built. Close to this
church is a very great and beautiful tower, notice-
able both for its well-proportioned height as for its
thickness and exquisite masonry; but it has already
begun to fall into ruins, though built very strongly,
and of hewn stone, covered and enriched with such
excellent work that it displays nothing less than a
royal grandeur, such as I have never seen another
like. This tower is surrounded by houses which
match well with it, with both good walls and terraces
above, like residences of great lords.' He goes on to
tell us the Abyssinian legend that the ark of the
covenant was kept here prior to its removal to
Aksum, and that 'Queen Candace chose this place
as her residence because her home was not far from
here, where she became a Christian, which does not
seem at all improbable. Also Alvarez was struck,
as we were, with the unusual fertility of the neigh-
bourhood of Yeha, and the conduits of water with
which they irrigated their fields
The Abyssinian
legend is that it was founded by Abba Asfè, one of
the nine priests who went from Egypt to regulate the
Church of Abyssinia in the year 600.
. But the
Himyaritic inscriptions, and the construction itself,
prove this to be erroneous. It is, however, possible
EXPEDITION TO YEHA
143
that Abba Asfè built the church, and made use of
the ancient building and its precincts to found a
monastic establishment.
It struck me as curious that such important
remains as those we saw at Yeha should be unmen-
tioned by early geographers, who were well ac-
quainted with Aksum further inland as the capital of
Ethiopia Troglodytica. However, after careful ex-
amination into the question, I think the difficulty has
been thoroughly solved.
Firstly. A certain Nonnosus was sent by the
Emperor Justinian as ambassador to the King of the
Aksumites (A.D. 533) to seek his alliance against
Persia. Gibbon describes the grandeur of his
reception by the Negous, the chariot drawn by four
elephants superbly caparisoned, the gold chains
collars, and bracelets richly adorned with precious
stones, in use amongst the Ethiopians in those days;
and Nonnosus has left behind him a fragment describ-
ing his journey inland, retained for us in the Photii
Biblioteca,' which, after recounting the various ad-
ventures by the way, gives us the following practical
piece of geographical information (Sect. 35): “Aksum
is fifteen days from Adulis. Shortly before his
arrival at Aksum there appeared to Nonnosus and
those with him a great wonder at the spot called Ave,
which is between the city of Aksum and Adulis, a
great quantity of elephants, about 5,000 collected
together. Now, the ruins of Yeha are undoubtedly
on the ancient road between Adulis and Aksum.
1 Gibbon, vol. vii., ch. xlii.
144
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
Secondly. If we take the great Adulitan inscrip-
tion, unfortunately lost to us, but which was copied
by the monk Cosmas Indicopleustes at the instiga-
tion of Negous Kaleb of Abyssinia, we get much in-
formation with regard to the geography of this part
of the world. This inscription is in two parts ; the
first refers to Ptolemy Euergetes and his conquests
(B.C. 247-222); about the second part it is doubtful
as to whom it refers, though to my mind it seems
to relate the victories of some king or general from
without, who from his basis at Adulis conquered
the whole of Abyssinia. After mentioning certain
towns conquered near Adulis, certain words occur
which are supposed to be interpolated, after cross-
ing the Nile,'1 because it was impossible to account
for them. Then the conquest of Ava is mentioned,
and certain other towns, not mentioning Aksum ;
then a second passage of the Nile, and the conquest
of the kings of Semen in the snow mountains. Now,
this geography is absolutely correct. After crossing
the Mareb, one of the Abyssinian sources of the Nile,
the first place would be Yeha or Ava, about twelve
miles distant; then the Tacazzy would be the second
passage of the Nile, beyond which are the moun-
tains of Semen or Semyen, as they are pronounced,
which we saw with our own eyes were heavily
covered with snow, as the inscription describes.
They are 15,000 feet in height, and are used still,
as Cosmas tells us they were in his day, for the
detention of political prisoners.
1 Dean Vincent's Commerce and Navigation of the Ancients.
EXPEDITION TO YEHA
145
Hence we have here two allusions to a place
called Ave or Ava, just where Yeha now stands. To
account for this name of Ave, geographers have sug..
gested Adoua as a possibility; but then there are no
ruins of any sort at Adoua, and it at once occurred
to me that the ruined fortress must be Ava, destroyed
possibly in the days of the Ptolemies, and the capital
of Ethiopia Troglodytica before the town of Aksum
was built. Many points besides the name seemed
to confirm this theory—the obvious antiquity of the
building, the rude monoliths, and the Himyaritic in-
scriptions—and then absolute confirmation arrived
from Professor D. H. Müller, who, in one of the in-
scriptions found at Yela, read the words, His house
or temple Awa' (vide p. 235). Hence we have Ava
as the principal city of a Sabæan colonisation,
with a temple and monoliths and sun worship, con-
quered by an overwhelming army which spread
over Ethiopia, the victories of which are recorded
on the Adulitan stone, whereas Aksum is not
mentioned ; and, as we shall show in a subsequent
chapter, the monoliths and ruins of Aksum bear
obvious traces of a Græco-Egyptian civilisation, in-
fluencing a people originally given to sun worship,
the outcome of which has been the elaborate se-
quence of decorated monoliths which we shall discuss
at Aksum.
The name Ava is, as Professor Müller suggests,
doubtless connected with the Sabæan worship of
Baal-Ava, and the name may be also traced in the
Avalitic Gulf and the Avalites considerably further
L
146
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
south at Zeila. Claudius Ptolemy (4 g) tells us, “The
whole coast which is near Arabia and the Avalitic
Gulf is universally known as the Troglodyte region
as far as Mount Elephas, in which dwell both the
Adulita and Avalitæ. These Aualitæ or Avalitæ
were great importers of myrrh, aromatic woods,
ivory and skins into Sabæa, whence they were
carried to Europe, and it appears evident that they
were a colony of Arabian traders who settled here,
and brought with them their language and religious
rites, and had a fortress town at Yeha, a most ad-
vantageous spot for commerce with the interior. The
removal of this capital to Aksum will account for
the absence of the name Ava in the works of later
geographers, and likewise the existence of the name
Ava and not Aksum on the Adulitan stone will in
like manner be explained.
I have already, and so has Alvarez, called atten-
tion to the altogether peculiar condition of fertility
which existed at Yeha, whereas all the lands round
Adoua and the neighbouring valleys are deserted and
uncultivated, though offering exactly the same facili-
ties as the valley of Yeha. On inquiry we were told
that this was due to the existence of extensive caves
in the hills above Yeha, into which the inhabitants
drive their cattle, and in which they store their grain
when marauding parties and danger threaten them.
Now, Ava was the capital of the Ethiopians, who
dwelt in caves. The Troglodytæ, according to Aga-
tharcides (ap. Diod. 130, $ 3, iii. 32, 33), were cave
dwellers, shepherds with separate chiefs and with
EXPEDITION TO YEHA
147
princes of tribes. Their habitations were not merely
clefts in the rocks, but carefully wrought vaults laid
out in cloisters and squares, like the catacombs at
Naples, whither in the rainy season they retired with
their flocks and their herds. This is sufficient to
prove to us that the ancient idea of the so-called
cave dwellers was not that of wild savages, but of a
people who had made considerable advance in the
arts. Professor Sayce has shown from Egyptian
hieroglyphics that Troglodyte was a name coined by
the Greeks to fit in with the idea of their dwelling in
caves (tpáyın), whereas the name is not Greek but
local, and should be Trogodytes without the l. The
only one fact which is certain is that the Sabæan
tribe who had Ava for a capital were known by the
Greeks as people who took refuge in caves, and it
is a curious coincidence that the inhabitants of Yeha
who dwell around this ruined capital should do the
same thing still.
Our stay at Yeha was one of absorbing interest,
and every moment of our time was occupied in taking
squeezes of the inscriptions, photographs, and mea-
surements. Being so near the church we could slip
in at any moment, and during the hot hours of the
day, when the heat of the tent was almost unbearable,
we had our meals in the gateway of the sacred shrine
off a slab of marble which had once occupied a pro-
minent part in the old Sabaan building. The tree
was shady, but it was the meeting place of every
conceivable species of urchin, and hence, for the pur-
poses of ,
repose, quite impossible. This space on the
L 2
148
THE SACREI) CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
knoll corresponds to the village green at home ; here
the inhabitants assemble, as I have said, to discuss
justice, prior to the cases being taken to Adoua for
final decision; here they bring their dead and wail
over them prior to burial within the sacred precincts;
here they hold the banquet of the dead, the teskar,
for which poor people economise all their lives so
that their souls may be freed from purgatory; here
they pass most of the time which is not engaged in
tilling the fields, and during the day it is a pleasant
enough spot; but, alas ! at night we found it quite
the reverse. Probably it is owing to the fertility of
the place, and the better prospect of securing for
themselves the necessary means of sustenance, that
an enormous number of hyenas is attracted to Yeha.
We had a sheep given to us by the headman of the
place, which these beasts especially coveted. So our
men had to be on the watch all night, burning con-
stant fires, and occasionally firing on the troops of
these noxious animals, which made night hideous
with their howlings a few yards below our camp.
They only succeeded in carrying off the remains of
our dinner.
Certainly Yeha is one of the best places we saw in
Abyssinia, with its rich crops of chillies, oats, and
various kinds of grain growing in the fields around
the village, though it was the dry season, owing to
the copious supply of water and the elaborate system
of irrigation. In the fields stand straw huts on piles,
in which the guardians of these crops sit to protect
their produce.
EXPEDITION TO YEHA
149
We would fain have stayed a little longer at
Yeha ; but, owing to the disturbed state of the
country, I had promised the Italian resident that
we should only be two nights away from Adoua ;
so on the third day we sorrowfully said good-bye to
this interesting place, and, without let or hindrance,
reached our destination, the hospitable roof of Cap-
tain De Martino.
And it was well we did so, for on the following
day arrived the alarming news that hostilities had
broken out again between Ras Mangashah and Ras
Alula; that the latter, with a considerable body of
men, was marching on Adoua, and that, under these
circumstances, we were in imminent peril. Captain
De Martino solemnly communicated this news to us
on Sunday night, bidding us pack up at once, with a
view to flying to the frontier at daybreak. Every-
thing was excitement and terror; the courtyard was
crowded with armed men, who ostensibly came to
protect us; though, if Ras Alula had come, I do not
think they would have raised a finger in our defence.
Some said Ras Alula was only a few hours off; that
he was cutting off the right hands and left feet of all
his opponents who fell into his power. “He is sure
to cut mine off,' said the terrified Italian, "for I am
an old enemy of his; but I expect he will only take
you prisoners to the mountains and demand a heavy
ransom.' This news was certainly not encouraging.
Sleep was, of course, out of the question, and when
our packing was done we sat with anxious faces and
at terrible tension through the dreary hours of dark-
150
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
ness awaiting events. In the middle of the night
news of a more reassuring character reached us. .
Ras Alula had abandoned his intention of attacking
Adoua, and was making for his mountain in Tem-
bien, which he had victualled and fortified at the
very time he was swearing at Aksum eternal friend-
ship with Ras Mangashah. Such are the Abys-
sinians. Accordingly, we abandoned the intention
of flying early the next day, and determined to await
the return of the governor, Dejetch Ambeh, who had
been summoned in all haste from Aksum, and to act
on his advice.
News confirming the retreat of Ras Alula to his
mountain came in next morning, and the governor,
who arrived about ten o'clock, gave it as his opinion
that the danger was, for the time being, averted, but
that the greatest care would have to be taken to
watch the movements of Ras Alula.
After a lengthy discussion with the Italian resi-
dent, we determined to proceed to Aksum the follow-
ing day, promising to return whenever he sent us a
messenger, and be prepared at any moment for flight.
· Perhaps you may be only able to stay two days;
perhaps you may be able to stay a fortnight,” he
said. “All depends on the attitude of Ras Alula and
Ras Mangashah ; it would be a pity for you to have
come so far to see Aksum and to have to return
without doing so.' This was exactly what we had
thought ourselves, and though prudence rather
prompted us to return to the Italian frontier, desire
EXPEDITION TO YEHA
151
to accomplish our end got the better of us, and we
hastily commenced our preparations for going to
Aksum on the following day, inwardly wishing our-
selves well out of Abyssinia and the mysterious net-
work of treachery which surrounded us.
152
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
CHAPTER IX
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
a
As far back as Abyssinian annals go, far away into a
hazy legendary period, when Christianity was plant-
ing itself on the ruins of a Sabæan paganism,
Aksum was looked upon as the sacred city of
the Ethiopians; and there is little doubt that it
was the centre of this part of Ethiopia for at least
two centuries before our era. Nonnosus, whom we
have already quoted as the ambassador to the King
of Ethiopia from Justinian, tells us that “ Aksum is
both the greatest city and the capital of all Ethiopia.'
The anonymous author of the Periplus, A.D. 64, knew
Aksum as the capital of this kingdom, and the in-
scriptions we found confirm this point. There is no
doubt that, after the destruction of Ava, the fortress
city of the first Sabæan colony in Ethiopia, the
capital was fixed at Aksum; and down to this day,
despite the frequent change of capitals and the
many vicissitudes of Ethiopia, Aksum has retained
its place as the sacred city and the centre of their
curious and time-honoured Christian Church. Firmly
does the Abyssinian of to-day believe that in the
innermost recesses of the Cathedral at Aksum is kept
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
153
the original tabout,' or ark of the covenant, which
Menelek, the son of Solomon, is reported to have
brought with him from Jerusalem ; and in this
legend one sees, probably, a faint glimmer of truth.
At first (says the legend) it was kept at Yeha (Ava),
and then removed to Aksum. This is in conformity
with existing proof. When Ava was destroyed the
arcana of their religion and the capital of the king-
dom was transferred to Aksum.
In this chapter I propose to describe Aksum as
it is now, and then to enter at greater length into
the archæology of its wonderful obelisks and their
history.
We left Adoua early in the morning for our ride
to Aksum; it is only twelve miles over a broken
country of no very interesting aspect, except when
we looked back and got a glimpse of the glorious
range
of the Adoua mountains behind us.
isolated peak before us was perched the monastery
of St. Pantaleon, one of many round Aksum, where
the Ethiopian monks pass their dreary lives in close
proximity to the sacred city. This peak is the
end of a spur which juts into the plain, or high
plateau, extending right away to the Tacazzeh river,
brown and dreary in its aspect, treeless and unculti-
vated, save in favoured corners. Miles and miles
away to the south, across the Tacazzeh, in the hazy
distance, rise the stupendous mountains of Semyen
covered with snow. I wish here to add my testi-
mony as an eye-witness on this point. Father Lobo
says he saw snow thereon. Bruce denies it, and
On an
154
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
laughs at Father Lobo. During the ten days we
were able to stay at Aksum we had a view of the
Semyen range each day, and the snow thereon was
unmistakable. The fact is important, for the pre-
viously quoted Adulitan inscription thus alludes to
it : The nations of Semen beyond the Nile (Tacazzel)
dwell in inaccessible and snow-clad mountains, in
which there are snowstorms, and cold, and snows so
deep that a man sinks in up to the knees.' From
what we saw from Aksum. I should say that this
ancient account on the Adulitan stone is substan-
tially correct.
The town of Aksum nestles in a kloof or valley
running up into the above-mentioned spur ; it is
shaded in parts by massive sycamores, and, being
nearly 1,000 feet higher than Adoua, the climate is
delightfully cool and fresh. It is 7,545 feet above
the level of the sea, and has a vast plain below it,
where rise streams which eventually flow into the
Nile. Even in the dry season we saw lots of deep
pools filled with water on this plain. The features
of the place are very marked; firstly, one comes
across the large, sacred inclosure, nearly a mile in
circumference, thickly planted with trees and reeds,
in the centre of which rises the cathedral, surrounded
by the monastic buildings and the residence of the
etchigeh, or bishop. This inclosure occupies nearly
the whole of the entrance to the valley ; beyond it,
on the hill slopes, are the houses of the inhabitants,
whilst running up the valley is the long line of
stupendous obelisks, and beyond is the ancient tank
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
155
or reservoir, from which the inhabitants still get
their water supply. Altogether the general aspect
of Aksum is most quaint and fascinating. When
looking at the obelisks one finds oneself face to face
with the relics of a primitive and mysterious cult;
when looking at the sacred inclosure we see the
existence of one of the most primitive of Christian
churches; and the inhabitants, strong in their super-
stitious veneration for their shrine, are amongst the
most bigoted of their race.
Around this interesting centre one enjoys views
of surpassing beauty of mountain and of plain. We
earnestly longed for a sufficient time to study and
enjoy all these things, and the political disturbances
of the country permitted us to remain there for ten
days, for which we were devoutly thankful.
We first rode up to the house of the political
governor of Aksum—the Nebrid Dejetch Weldu
Giorghis, to whom I had a letter. He is an elderly
man of royal descent, who received us in his commo-
dious hut most graciously. The houses at Aksum
are good, being round and about 20 feet in diameter.
Ras Alula has another fine house here too, which we
visited, and most of them are large, commodious,
and circular, with a thatched roof crowned in nearly
every case by an ornament which we only saw at
Aksum ; it is made of pottery, and looks ratlier like
a huge raspberry growing on a stalk out of a plate,
with a handle on the top and a cross surmounting it.
I have no doubt it has some symbolical and religious
meaning, but I could not discover by inquiry what
156
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
it was. Of the circle of the governor's hut four
angles were formed by walls, in two of which dwell
mules, who look round and contemplate all that goes
on inside. In the two opposite corners were kept
household goods. The floor
The floor was carpeted with
freshly-cut reeds.
The governor reclined on liis couch or angareb on
his
one side, like an old Roman patrician, supported by
pillows, for he is very old and feeble. On the oppo-
site side stood his sons and grandchildren, whilst we
were provided with seats beside the couch. Mead
was produced forthwith in a great horn, and dealt
out to us in miniature decanters, out of which we
had to suck the beverage as best we could, and after
our hot ride we found it most refreshing. A wide-
spread misunderstanding had taken place on account
of my name. It was reported that the King of Eng-
land was coming, as no one not royal was likely to
be called Theodore. The Abyssinian legend is that
King Theodore I., who reigned from 1409–1412, was
a great worker of miracles, and that another king
would arise of this name, who would re-establish the
cross in the Holy Sepulchre, and make Ethiopia the
first of nations. This was the reason why Kassai
called himself King Theodore II., and so the gover-
nor's first question was whether we were related to
the royal family of England, and when we replied in
the negative he seemed greatly disappointed and to
think but little of us. However, he promised every-
thing we asked him to find us a clean hut in which
to dwell, to assist us in our researches, and so forth.
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
157
But I think the fact of our plebeian origin must have
influenced him, for he certainly kept none of these
promises; for beyond exchanging presents, in which
he got the best of it, we had very little more to do
with him during our stay at Aksum. Perliaps, also, ,
the fact that his son is married to a daughter of Ras
Alula may have had something to do with this cool-
ness; he is consequently anti-Italian and anti-Ras-
Mangashah, and we were therefore naturally his
political opponents.
Words fail me to describe the squalor and dirt of
the huts to which the governor sent us as fitting resi-
dences. No pig in England would be content with
such sties as we were led to. We wished for a house
at Aksum in which to dwell ; firstly, because for a
long residence our tent would not be convenient,
requiring as it did constant watching for fear of
theft ; secondly, no one at Aksum can exist outside
the walls which keep off the hyenas, and all the
courtyards are too begrimed with dirt to pitch a
tent in. The day was fast declining, and still we
could find no home; so, in despair, I set off to visit
the etchigeh, or bishop, to whom I had another
letter. He received us in a magnificent hut, shel-
tered by trees and reeds, in the midst of the sacred
inclosure. His grace was clad in a rich black
burnouse, with his head enveloped in a white cloth;
in his hand he held a cross, which my interpreter
told me was gold, but which I believe to have been
brass. He is a very grand man indeed, and a mass
of affectation in all his movements. When I asked
158
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
inore
him about a house he assured me that any number
would have been at my disposal within the sacred
inclosure had I not brought my wife with me, but,
of course, no female is ever allowed within those
hallowed walls. However, the bishop was
kind to us than the Nebrid, and ordered me to be
conducted to a very good hut near the inclosure,
which belonged to a rich old Dejetch, who now
dwells at Adoua.
Having been uninhabited for some time, we found
our residence fairly clean, and, after brushing it out
and scattering peppermint leaves all over the earthen
floor, we found ourselves in possession of a really
sumptuous and fragrant abode, the only drawback to
our happiness being the fact that several poor fami-
lies dwelt in the same inclosure; but they soon grew
tired of staring, and left us in peace. The hut was
round, about 20 feet in diameter; horns were stuck
in the wall all round, which supplied for us the place
of cupboards. My wife was able to put up her dark
tent for photography inside, and work in the greatest
comfort; and all round we piled our luggage and
the innumerable presents of food and bread which
were sent us, until, in spite of the peppermint, our
abode smelt so strongly of the bread that we had to
give it to our muleteers.
The bishop was most kind to us in supplying us
with milk, bread, and other delicacies. We ex-
plained to him that we could not eat the sour teff
cakes, so he sent us some round loaves called am-
bashah, which were really quite eatable.
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
159
Of course we had to give the bishop a handsome
present, and to do so I paid him a second visit.
This time he received me in his private sanctum at
the back of the larger hut, approached by a pretty
garden full of bananas and shady trees. It was one
of the most fascinating little rooms I ever saw,
approached by a flight of steps. It was only about
8 feet square, with a domed roof, and every inch
of it was covered with the quaint Abyssinian paint-
ings. Below was a sort of dado formed by military
processions, in which Ras Mangashah and his armies
figured largely. Above this were depicted all the
apostles enduring all sorts of martyrdoms, whilst
the domed ceiling was covered with angels of the
quaintest description. A pretty little window, with
carved sides, let in just sufficient light to make the
effect mysterious, and his grace was seated cross-
legged in a corner on a Turkey carpet reading his
religious books, many of which were scattered on
tall stands about the room, so that there was hardly
room for us to get in. He was very gracious to us,
and received our gift with infinite politeness. I
think nobody is more courteous in his manner than
a well-bred Abyssinian, and the Bishop of Aksum is
a member of one of the leading families in the land
from Gondar in Amhara.
During the absence of a Coptic Abouna the
Etchigeh is practically the head of the Abyssinian
Church, and, as Abyssinia is naturally a priest-ridden
country, his power is very great. By the rules of
the Church the poor man may never leave the sacred
160
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
inclosure, except some important political juncture
requires his presence; so he and my wife never met,
and his photograph never got taken, much to our
regret. Crowding round the door into the bishop's
garden, we saw a ghastly mass of beggars, a boy
with elephantiasis, with a foot and leg nearly as big
as the rest of his body ; lepers innumerable, with
decaying limbs; men who had been mutilated for
political reasons. All these come to Aksum to get
alms from the rich monks, and during our stay there
we saw endless sights which made our blood curdle.
Next in authority to the Etchigeh is the Nebrid
Tekla Giorghis, or head of the priesthood of Abyssinia.
He is married and has a large family; he lives out-
side the sacred inclosure, in a good house on the hill-
side ; he superintends all the services in the church,
looks after all the working clergy, and generally sees
to the executive; he is the guardian of the tables of
the law, and all the treasures of the church at Aksum.
In former years, when the Etchigeh resided at Gondar,
the clerical Nebrid of Aksum was a very powerful
person. Now his power is somewhat curtailed. We
paid him a visit, and gave him a present of the
second-class, namely, a white umbrella and a few
silk handkerchiefs; he regaled us with clotted milk
instead of tedge ; and his return present of food was
conformable to the size of the gift he had received.
These are the principal functionaries of the Abyssinian
Church : the Abouna, sent from Egypt, whose place
was just now vacant; the Etchigeh, or head bishop,
always a native; and the Nebrid, a sort of archdeacon.
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
161
Then there is the Lij Kaneat, or judge in ecclesi-
astical affairs, and the monks and priests of various
grades beneath them. Besides these there are at
Aksum a large number of the class called defteras,
whose position it is hard to define; they are lay-as-
sistants in all the services, acting as singers and per-
formers in all the Church ceremonies; they are the
scribes, advocates, and doctors of Abyssinia, and are
certainly the most instructed and intelligent people
we came across. We made great friends with two
brothers, both defteras at Aksum, who had a nice
house close to the sacred inclosure; and to their
kindly assistance we owe the fact of being allowed to
take impressions of the inscriptions. I am quite sure
that neither the Etchigeh nor the Nebrid would have
given us the slightest assistance in this direction, for
they both belonged to the bigoted party in Abys-
sinia who resent foreign interference, especially with
regard to the secret things of their Church and past
history.
The defteras do a good business in writing the
long parchment charms with quaint pictures thereon,
which are tightly bound up in stamped leather cases
and tied round the neck to ward off diseases and the
evil eye. From a nun at Aksum we bought a very
handsome necklace with five scrolls attached, inter-
spersed with circular silver ornaments, and a large
square silver box in front, hung with tongueless silver
bells, and strongly reminding one of the phylacteries
worn by Jews. These scrolls contain several
prayers
addressed to Christ, the Virgin, and the archangels
M

162
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
Phanuel, Raphael, and Gabriel, rude figures of which
are painted at intervals down the scroll with a cross
in their hands labelled "The cross the bane of the
Jews'; and the prayer begins thus: 'In the name
of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost,
we begin with the help of the Lord exalted and great,
TESTE
CHURCH AT AKSUM
the book which the Father wrote with his blessed
fingers for Christ and the Lady Mary as a guide to
the righteous.'
The sacred inclosure at Aksum is one of the most
celebrated sanctuaries in Abyssinia, where men guilty
of treason, murder, and other crimes can take refuge
and be safe from justice. Taking asylum is done by
going to the porch, ringing the bell, and declaring
three times, in a loud voice, the intention of taking
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
163
refuge. Food is brought them by their friends, and
thus under religious protection they live secure, and
escape the penalties they have incurred. Even Ras
Alula himself dares not interfere with the gheder,
or sanctuary of Aksum ; and we were told that in
case of danger we, too, could be protected; but the
difficulty was that my wife could never be admitted,
and thus the protection for us would be inadequate.
Aksum, however, is never attacked and interfered
with by rebels; the whole place is too sacred. Here
the inhabitants are in possession of cattle and flocks
which feed on the neighbouring pastures and none
dare to rob them. The Aksumites possess many
fine
specimens of the Hindoo cattle with the high hump
and long dewlap, which feed on the pasturage up the
valley, and on their backs sit that persistent little
bird with gay plumage and red beak, which eats out
all the bad flesh from sores, and, though considerably
annoying the animal, they do it, I am told, a great
deal of good. The story is told that a Galla chief once
purposed to despoil Aksum; but, as he rode into the
town, he and his horse disappeared in the ground, and
his terrified followers took to flight. The terrible
Moslem chief, Gran, did certainly succeed in robbing
and destroying the church; but then he was con-
quered and killed shortly afterwards. Consequently,
the people of Aksum enjoy a condition of peace and
tranquillity unknown in the rest of Abyssinia.
The big church is a decidedly interesting feature;
it was erected under Portuguese influence, after the
Gran campaign, on a raised platform, which, un-
M 2

164 THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
doubtedly, has signs of a very ancient substructure.
Most probably this was the site of an ancient temple
in the days of sun-worship. The few old stones
which are in their places show that the structure
originally was like that at Yeha, being built of large
SILVER NECKLACE WITH CHARMS CASES
like a
drafted stones' with chiselled edges put together
without mortar. The present church is very
mediæval Portuguese structure, with fragments let
into the walls, recalling early Byzantine work, which
doubtless formed a portion of the Christian church
destroyed by Gran. It has a flat roof and battle-

THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
165
ments, and a little bell-tower. There is a corridor
outside, where the priests dance and sing; and every
day during our stay at Aksum we heard them hard
at their devotions all through the night, stopping
only at break of day.
The steps leading up to the platform, also,
would appear to have belonged to an earlier struc-
ture. Inside, the church has one large vestibule and
the Holy of Holies beyond. In the vestibule is a
varied collection of drums, banners, crutches, &c.,
for the use of the worshippers. The key of the
church is certainly the queerest of its kind I have
ever seen ; it is a curved piece of iron, two feet long,
with tooth-like wards at one end. The deftera who
borrowed it for us could not open the door with it
at all, so we had to send for the priest, who was
better acquainted with the lock. Around the
church are large shady trees, amongst which are
several smaller churches or treasure-houses, where the
relics and other valuables are kept. Aksum, I was
told, is immensely rich in all manner of quaint relics,
besides the supposed ark and the tables of the law,
but no monetary bribe would gain for me a glimpse
at these treasures. Books and sacred things innu-
merable have, of late years, during the troublous
times, poured into Aksum and been stored in the
vaults of the church, and everybody who has any-
thing valuable keeps it there as in a bank. When
we wanted to buy the nun's necklace, she sent her
servant to the church with her key to fetch it, and
it and some other treasures were brought in a

166
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
strong leather bag for our inspection, after waiting
for about half-an-hour.
Luckily our old friend Alvarez
wrote a description of the church
at Aquaxumo, as he calls it, before
it was destroyed by Gran. He
stayed there, he tells us, eight
months by the order of Prester
John, and considered that he was
in the abode of the Queen of Sheba.
The Abyssinian legends of the
Queen of Sheba and their first King
Menelek compare curiously with
the early Arabian legends of Bilkis,
Queen of the Sabæans, her wealth
and her journeys—a legend, like
that of Sindbad the Sailor, which
one would expect to find amongst
a race with widespread commerce.
The legend is found in various
forms wherever Arabian influence
was felt. We have it in Persia,
where, when two ruins come near
together, one is called the throne
of Solomon (takht i Suliman), and
the other the throne of Bilkis; we
have it at Zimbabwe in Mashona-
land, where the legend is current
that the large elliptical ruin was
the palace of the Queen of Sheba; we have it
1 Bilkis was the dynastic name of the Queens of Saba.
ILLUMINATED CHARM
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
167
naturally enough in Arabia itself, where the elliptical
ruin at Marib (the ancient Mariaba) is called to this
day “the harem of Bilkis’; and we have it here, too, in
Abyssinia, with the adjunct of the son Menelek, whom
she is said to have borne to Solomon after her visit
to Jerusalem. This seems to me like a clever effort
of the early Ethiopian Christians to acknowledge
their Arabian descent, and at the same time to identify
themselves with the chosen people of God, for the
subsequent inscriptions clearly show (Ch. xiii.) that
the Abyssinians had nothing to do with Judaism or
Christianity till several centuries after Christ.
“In this town,' says Alvarez, we found a very
noble church; it is very large, and has five naves of
a good width and of a great length, vaulted above,
and all the vaults are covered up, and the ceiling
and sides are all painted; it has also a choir after
our fashion. This church has a very large circuit,
paved with flag-stones, like gravestones; and it has
also a large inclosure, and is surrounded by another
large inclosure like the wall of a large town or city;
and there are handsome abodes of terraced build-
ings, and all spout out their water by strong figures
of lions and dogs of stone. ....
Twelve stone
chairs, as well made of stone as though they were
of wood, are for the twelve judges of Prester John.'
This account of Alvarez would seem to be very ac-
curate. The spout heads of lions are there still,
built into the porch; the twelve stones are there
still, but they are ancient triumphal thrones set up
by the kings of Aksum after victories, and not the
168
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
:
seats of judges ; furthermore, this account of the
church, written in 1520, proves that the Abyssinians
anciently had a good knowledge of building long
before the Portuguese came amongst them.
The inner sacred inclosure is alone denied to the
female sex; even a queen is not admitted into this;
but within the outer they circulate freely, and here
are held the law courts of Aksum, sometimes on a
knoll of grass, sometimes in a hut, and many were
the angry wrangles that we heard. There is also
another church hard by, just the ordinary round
Abyssinian church, where women may worship; and
outside this is a font where children are baptised, for
no unbaptised people are admitted within the walls of
a church, and it has an old Ethiopian inscription
around it.
For several days after our arrival at Aksum we
enjoyed ourselves immensely, taking walks up and
down the valley, on to the surrounding hills and
plains, and quite forgetting the existence of political
disturbances and other dangers. One day we rode
quite a distance to visit the lion carved on a rock
(p. 195), had our luncheon out, and returned quietly
home. Just as we reached Aksum we saw a large
body of men assembled. I was forcibly made to ride
up to them, and there found the son of Nebrid Dejetch
Weldu 1 Giorghis, the one who had married Ras Alu-
la's daughter, seated on a rock, with his hair beauti-
fully plaited, and his followers around him. He
smiled at me and bid me adieu, and then we learnt.
1. Weldu means son-i.e. Son of (St.) George.
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
169
that he was just starting for the mountains by the
Mareb to commence a marauding expedition, for he
was afraid of being seized by Ras Mangashah if he
remained longer at Aksum.
Shortly after our return home the authorities sent
to reprimand us for going so far away without an
escort, stating that the times were very dangerous
and the surrounding hills full of brigands. Our plea-
sant rambles at Aksum thus came to an end, and we
never were allowed to go a quarter of a mile from
the town without a body of men to protect us. This
condition of affairs was far from agreeable, and we
could see that the plot around us was thickening.
Market day at Aksum was, as usual, a busy one.
From all the country round the peasants assembled on
the flat space below the hill near the sacred inclosure,
and held their stalls on and around the ancient stone
monuments, of which we shall presently have to
speak. Food was here very scarce; no oats for our
mules, or vegetables for ourselves, could be procured,
and, in fact, the only purchase we made was a speci-
men of Abyssinian scales, made of leather and string
attached to a stick, with notches cut in it as if for
rider weights. We were also interested in seeing the
curious staves with which the market people walk
They are long sticks with hooks stuck in all the way
up; these they stick in the ground, and hang their wares
upon them when they have reached their destination.
Bodies of armed troops now began to pour in
from all sides. Conflicting reports reached us as to
the state of affairs; but, not hearing from the Italian
170
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
resident, we determined to continue our work and
await events. One day a messenger arrived to us
from Ras Mangashah, thanking us for the present we
had sent him, and requesting us to come and pay
him a visit at his military camp in Tembien, where he
promised to treat us with great hospitality. The
letter, written in Amharic, interested us much, as it
was stamped with the royal Abyssinian șeal, the lion
in the centre, with the legend around it, “The lion
of the tribe of Judah shall prevail,' and inside this
an Arabic legend—a seal which owes its origin to
the popular theory that the Ethiopian royal family
are descended from King Solomon.
Not wishing
to be drawn into the war ourselves, we returned
him many thanks for his kind invitation, but “re-
gretted that the lady was too fatigued to undertake
so arduous a journey.'
A general from the neighbouring province of Schiré
arrived the next day and paid us a visit ; in fact, at
this juncture, our hut was invaded by generals and
officers of the Abyssinian army without end, who, on
their way to join their chief, took the opportunity of
paying us a visit of inspection. We gave them each
a glass of absinthe, and showed them our things,
which interested them immensely. The more trivial
the object the more delighted they were with it. We
happened to have with us one of those French toys,
representing a roll of bread which opens in the middle
and a mouse jumps out. Nothing we took with us
to Abyssinia had a greater run of success than this
toy. The generals were all convulsed with laughter
1
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GENERAL IESHSASHA STARTING FOR THE WAR

THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
171
when they saw it, the report spread far and wide,
and every one came to our hut to inspect it.
Fitaurari (General) Meshsasha was one of these
soldiers on his way to the wars; he was a vain man,
and wished to have his photograph taken, and we
were delighted to have the opportunity of doing it
GENERAL MESHSASHA WITH HIS SPEAR AND SHIELD BEARERS
quietly. He brought his shield-bearer and his lance-
bearer and his horse, splendidly caparisoned, with
him.
He put on all his grand robes in which he goes
to battle, and he wore his lion's mane around his
forehead. When mounted on his horse, with his
172
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
shield embossed with silver in one hand and his lance
in the other, he looked a most formidable warrior.
Then he wished to be taken in the garb of peace,
with his beautiful embroidered robe or merge
around him, and his bearers holding his shield and
lance behind him, his hair beautifully plaited and
shining with butter. His followers held shammas
up to form a dressing-room for him whilst he con-
scientiously changed his trousers, which did not
show in the picture. After we had taken him in
five different attitudes, he demanded to see the pro-
ductions, and nothing could exceed his wrath and
rudeness when we tried to explain the various pro-
cesses the photograph would have to go through
before completion; but as we had him safe on our
negatives we did not much care, except that we
rather wanted to buy his shield, which was
prettily decorated with silver lions and curious pat-
terns fastened on to the hide ; but, of course,
this was now out of the question, as our relations
were so strained. However, I managed to get some
of the stone bullets, used by the Abyssinians when
ammunition is running short, out of one of his fol-
lowers, and an iron gun-rest which the Abyssinian
warriors stick in the ground when they fire, and
which also serves to hang the shield on at night.
This is probably a legacy of the Portuguese occupa-
tion, for such gun-rests were common in Europe
about that period. (Vide illustration on p. 27.)
The long-dreaded summons from the Italian resi-
dent came that night. We must pack up at once,
SO
TIIE SACRED CITY OF THE ETIIIOPIANS
173
he said, and be ready to start the following morning
for Adoua, so as to avail ourselves of the escort of
the Nebrid Tekla Giorghis, who was going to join
the forces of Ras Mangashah, and who was expected
to be the last of the generals who would go. All the
soldiers from Aksum and the neighbourhood had
gone, and, as the Italian resident put it, we might, if
we liked, stay at Aksum with comparative safety; for,
in all probability, no one would interfere with the
sanctity of the place; but then we could never hope
to get away until the war, which might last for an
indefinite period, should come to an end. The moun-
tains around the Mareb were by this time swarming
with brigands, and our only hope of an escort and
safety was to join the Nebrid. This was the ninth day
of our stay at Aksum, and we were enjoying the rest
from travel and the constant work of research so
exceedingly that it was very irksome to us again to
pack up and be on the march. However, there ap-
peared to be no help for it, and we gave the necessary
orders.
In the morning I had still to take two more im-
pressions of inscriptions. My wife's negatives were
not dry, and the packing was arduous; so it was mid-
day before we were ready to mount our mules. All
Aksum came out to see us start, cheering and running
by the side of our animals. The Nebrid Tekla Gior-
ghis is an admirable specimen of the Abyssinian
Church militant; his son went with him, and ten men,
each armed with a rifle, formed his staff. He headed
our procession as we left Aksum, mounted on his
174
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
!
mule, holding in one hand the white umbrella which
we had given him. On his head he wore his white
priestly turban, his body was enveloped in a black
burnouse, and his bare big toes were stuck into his
stirrups. His whole appearance was so quaint that
it was hard to realise that he was the chief priest of
Aksum going to the wars at the close of the nine-
teenth century. I looked at him rather as if he were
some old picture representing a flight into Egypt, by
some pre-Raphaelite artist. Thus protected, before
nightfall we reached Adoua once more in safety.
175
CHAPTER X
ON THE ANTIQUITIES OF AKSUM
THE question of the origin of the Ethiopian is one
shrouded in the darkness of ages. Ludolphus, in
his history written in 1684, would seem to have
almost reached the truth, and the Sabæan inscrip-
tions we have just found in every way substantiate
this theory. He says: "For they are not natives of
the land, but came out of that part of Arabia which
is called the Happy, which adjoins to the Red Sea.
That an Arabian colony settled on this coast at a
very remote period, and had a strong fortified town at
Yeha or Ava, is absolutely proved by the mass of
Himyaritic inscriptions found there; that these
Himyarites were the founders of Aksum is also ob-
vious, for the earlier inscriptions are all in the same
script, though later, and not nearly so clearly cut.
That this Arabian colony, cut off from its mother
country, gradually lost its identity, merging with the
negroid races around them, may be taken for granted
from the blended physique which is characteristic
even of the Ethiopian of to-day, and another in-
teresting point proved by the inscriptions is that the
Ethiopians called their country Habashat long before
1.76
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
!
the later Arabians called it Habesh, a name supposed
to be given to it from the mixture of races therein
(vide Ch. xiii. p. 251).
It is natural that this Arabian colony in Ethi-
opia should bring with it its ancient cult, its veneration
for stone monuments, its sun and its star worship;
and this is, as we shall presently see, the key to the
curious group of monoliths which are still standing
at Aksum. Another factor seems to have been at
work after the expeditions of the Ptolemies to the
coast of the Red Sea, namely, a Græco-Egyptian
influence, which can be traced in the architectural
features of these stones, and several other buildings
still to be found at Aksum-an influence which
pro-
bably attacked Ethiopia from two sides, down the
Nile valley and from the Greek towns on the west.
Greek would seem to have been the fashionable
language of the Aksumitans down to the sixth century
of our era. King Aizanes, early in the fourth cen-
tury, set up a stone to commemorate a victory, one
side of which is written in Sabæan characters, whilst
the other is in late Greek (vide p. 240), and there is
a certain colour of Greek theology, too, in the fact
that he sets up statues and returns thanks to Ares,
who is my father,' for the victories vouchsafed to him
over the adjoining tribes.
Early Ethiopian coins have Greek legends around
them. The earliest we have is that of a King
Aphilas, decorated with a globe on a crescent, the
ancient Himyaritic symbol found engraved on stones
1 Longpérier, Revue numismatique, N.S: vol. xiii.
ON THE ANTIQUITIES OF AKSUM
177
in the British Museum. These Greek legends are
found on later coins, after the introduction of Chris-
tianity, when the cross is likewise introduced. The
early Ethiopian legends do not appear on the coins
until the seventh century A.D., and it is highly pro-
bable that this knowledge of Greek in the kingdom
of Aksum greatly facilitated the introduction of
Christianity from Alexandria, paving the way for
missionary enterprise on the part of the Egyptian
Christians, and this is probably the reason why the
Ethiopian Church has always borne a striking re-
semblance to the form of Christianity in use in the
Eastern and Coptic Churches.
From the anonymous author of the ‘Periplus of
the Red Sea,' A.D. 64, we learn that the king of this
country, Zoskales, whose dominions extended from
the Moscophagi to Barbaria, was a prince superior to
most, and educated with a knowledge of Greek, and
several early geographers speak of the importance of
this kingdom. “Auxum and Adulis,' says Nonnosus
(“Phot. Bib., n. 3, p. 2), were the chief centres of trade
for gold dust, ivory, leather, hides, and aromatics.
Kosmas, the monk, who copied the Adulitan inscrip-
tion, tells us about their extensive trade. “Every two
years the King of Aksum sends an expedition to a
place he calls Sasou, very rich in gold mines. The
traders stop at a certain spot, make a hedge of thorns
piled together, and establish themselves there; then
they kill their oxen and expose pieces on the thorns,
also salt and iron. Then the natives approach,
bringing ingots of gold called tanchara, and each one
N
178
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
gives gold for the bits of meat, the salt, or iron-one,
two, or three ingots. These voyages lasted about
six months, more or less, and forcibly remind one of
the expeditions of Solomon and Hiram, and the enter-
prise of Phænician traders down this very coast.
The empire of the Aksumites apparently reached
its culminating point about this period, and was
strong enough to carry its victories over to the
mother country on the other side of the Red Sea.
Aizanes styles himself King of the Homerites, but it
is not until the reign of King Kaleb that we have
definite proof of the strength of the Aksumites.
Procopius (* De Bello Persico,' i. 19) tells us how
they, in A.D. 522, crossed the Red Sea, to protect the
Christians in Arabia, on planks bound by cords, and
anchored at Boulikas, the naval station where the
Ethiopian ships generally went. King Kaleb con-
quered, and, on his return, wrote to the Emperor
Justin an account of his victory, and Bishop Gre-
gentius was sent to regulate the Church in Ethiopia.
Shortly after this Justinian sent an embassy under
Nonnosus to ask for his aid against Persia; but this
apparently came to nothing, and shortly afterwards
the power of the Aksumites began to wane, and they
were finally driven out of Arabia in 575.
Throughout all ages the bitterest enemy of Ethio-
pia has been its mother country, Arabia. For cen-
turies the Ethiopians have had contests with Moham-
medan chiefs, wars of the crescent against the cross as
keen and bloodthirsty as those which went on in Eu-
rope; but, thanks to its mountains and its inherent
ON THE ANTIQUITIES OF AKSUM
179
strength, Ethiopia has held its own. Probably this is
one reason why Arabian geographers have provided
us with such meagre accounts of Abyssinia. In vain
we look for information in the pages of Edrisi,
Aboulfeda, and Ibn Said; their knowledge was very
meagre and their pictures of the country ridiculous.
As Gibbon says, “Encompassed by the enemies of
their religion, the Ethiopians slept for a thousand
years, forgetful of the world by whom they were for..
gotten.' The same author also well expresses their
origin : “ Their Arab descent is confirmed by the
resemblance of language and manners, the report
of an ancient emigration, and the narrow interval
between the shores of the Red Sea.'
There is another curious reference to Ethiopia
given us by Philostorgius. An embassy was sent by
Constantine, in A.D. 356, to Arabia and Ethiopia,
with Theophilus the Indian at its head.
It runs as
follows: From this Arabia Magna Theophilus pro-
ceeded to the Ethiopians, who are called Auxumitæ,
who dwell near the entrance of the Red Sea. Next
to these Auxumitæ, but to the East, dwell the
Syrians, who stretch to the other ocean. For Alex-
ander the Great of Macedon placed them there
after he had removed them from Syria.' Without
placing much reliance on this story, which we hear
of nowhere else, it is worthy of remark that possibly
an importation of Syrians into this neighbourhood
may have materially influenced the introduction of
Greek and Greek architecture into Ethiopia, and
there is, as we shall presently see, a curious point of
N 2
180
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
resemblance between the decoration of the monoliths
at Aksum and the decoration on tombs in the south-
east of Asia Minor and Syria. This resemblance
struck me forcibly when at Aksum before I saw this
passage, but still it may only be a coincidence to
which no value need be attached.
The first object seen on approaching Aksum is a
tall monolith, twenty feet in height, hewn out of
granite, pointed and with flat sides. This is about
three-quarters of a mile from the town, and there
are several others prostrate near it. A hundred
yards from this stands the stone with the Greek and
Sabæan inscription, erected by King Aizanes, probably
early in the fourth century of our era. Fortunately,
the Greek is easy to read, and one can make out
every word of it, and it acquaints us with several
interesting points. Firstly, the extent of the kingdom
of the Aksumites. King Aizanes styles himself . King
of the Aksumites, and Homerites, and of Raeidan,
and of the Ethiopians, and of the Sabæans, and of
Zeila,' &c.; from which we may argue that at that
time the rule of the Aksumites extended over the
mother country and over the whole of Abyssinia.
Secondly, the name Ethiopia, or, as it is styled in the
Sabaan version, Habashat, is given as if somewhat
distinct in those days from the Arabian provinces,
and would seem to have been of Greek not native
origin ; gradually it seems to have become the generic
name for the race, and is the name by which the
Abyssinians to-day distinctly call themselves, varying
in no way from the pronunciation which we give it.
ON THE ANTIQUITIES OF AKSUM
181
Thirdly, the dedication to Mars plainly shows the
influence of Greek paganism, and that the legend of
the existence of Judaism as the religion of the coun-
try prior to the introduction of Christianity is worth
nothing, and this is further confirmed by the other
inscriptions in which three Sabæan gods are men-
tioned; and, lastly, the dedication of one statue of
gold, one of silver, and three of brass,' enables us to
form a very likely conjecture as to certain curious
stones, which lead from this inscription in a straight
line towards the town, and which evidently were the
pedestals of those metal statues which have since
been removed. Since writing the above the transla-
tions of the early Ethiopian inscriptions by Prof.
Müller (vide p. 263) conclusively prove that these
were “the thrones set up in Sada' by the Aksumite
kings to commemorate victories; there are between
twenty and thirty of them still to be seen at Aksum.
On one of them are distinctly seen the marks
where the feet rested, and the statues have evidently
been slipped into grooves which are still seen in the
stones. This line of statues of precious metal must
have formed a very striking and appropriate approach
to the city. Around two of these pedestals have
been inscriptions, too much obliterated by the action
of the weather to enable more than a few isolated
letters of the Sabæan language, gradually approxi-
mating itself to the early Ethiopian, to be distin-
guished, and probably the inscribed tablets were put
up near the thrones or statues to which they be-
longed.
182
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
This line of stones and statues leading up to the
city bears distinct traces of being of a more recent
date than the line of obelisks running up the valley
on the other side of the sacred inclosure, and proba-
bly dates from the flourishing period of Aksumite
history in the fourth and fifth centuries of our era.
It is difficult to say exactly how many of these
stone obelisks there are left standing at Aksum.
Including those at a little distance off on the plain,
those at the entrance of the town, and those running
up the valley, I should say there are somewhere
about fifty. Many of the fallen ones are hidden
away in gardens, built into houses, and so forth.
Systematically to count them would take a long time
and an arduous search; but I had hoped to have
accomplished this had not our departure from Aksum
been so precipitate. The great row of obelisks up
the valley calls, however, for our more special atten-
tion, the others being merely rough unhewn stones,
like the menhirs of Brittany, the monoliths of Zim-
babwe in Mashonaland, and the Stonehenge of
Wiltshire.
The great point of interest about the obelisks of
Aksum is that they form a consecutive series, from
these very rude unhewn stones up to the highly-
finished and decorated obelisks, and it is highly
probable that here we have the origin and develop-
ment of the obelisk, side by side ; high up in the
valley they are all rough and unhewn, like the mono-
liths at Ava, placed in the ground at all angles, and
in no way to be distinguished from the many rude
By
7. 1
BACK VIEW OF THE DECORATED STONOLITH, AKSUNI
184
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
stone monoliths which we find scattered all over the
world. Then we come to one sixteen feet in height,
which has the corners squared and a series of nine or
ten notches running up one side of it, and various
other holes cut on its surface. This appears to be
the earliest attempt at bringing these monoliths
under the influence of decorative art.
Next we have one about the same height, which
is divided into stories by four bands, and the beam
ends, supposed to support the stories, distinctly cut
on the stone. Without the assistance of the more
perfect monoliths, one would not have arrived at
the meaning of this decoration ; but by comparison I
think it is quite obvious that the division into stories
is here intended to be conveyed. The highly-finished
monoliths are nearly all of the same character, namely,
representations of a many-storied castle. At the
base are the altars, fitting beautifully on to the mono-
liths, which we will presently describe. Then there
is the sham door cut in the granite block, in one
case with a lock and bolt, in another with a simple
door-handle ; above this we are left to imagine a lofty
hall with a low story above it like an entresol. Between
each of the stories and along the sides the beam
ends are carefully cut, causing one to imagine that
the original pattern of these monoliths was con-
structed of wood. In the case of the one standing
monolith of this description there are nine stories,
topped with a semi-circular finish, on the front of
which has been fastened a metal plaque, and behind
there is still to be seen a representation of the solar

RUDEST MONOLITHS, AKSUM

MONOLITH WITH BANDS

TALL STANDING MONOLITH, AKSUM

ON THE ANTIQUITIES OF AKSUM
185
disc. In fact, we have before us a perfect repre-
sentation of the Beth-el, or House of God, terminating
in the firmament, in which the Sabæan sun-god is
supposed to reside.
The religious purport of these monoliths is
obvious; at the foot of most of them stand the altars
—very interesting examples of religious architec-
ture. One of these, 7 ft. 10 in. by 9 ft. in width, has
ALTAR AT BASE OF A MONOLITH, AKSUM
a raised platform, in which is cut a vessel, strangely
resembling a Greek kylix, to receive the blood of
the slaughtered victim. Two channels cut at two
corners enabled the blood to flow on to the lower
platform, where again we have three more recipient
vessels cut, and a complete series of holes all round,
and two more channels at the corners to enable the
blood to flow on to the ground.
186
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
Such altars as these were common in Mithraic
worship, when victims were sacrificed to the great
sun-god. We have them, too, in Greece, and their
purport is clear. The altar before the great stand-
ing monolith is flat, 11 ft. 5 in. by 13 ft. 10 in. in
width. It has around it a pattern formed of vine
tendrils, with alternate leaves and bunches of
grapes,
a pattern also seen on a Himyaritic stone in the
14.00
1
"Illil 11,
20
ALTAR AT BASE OF TALL DECORATED DIONOLITH, AKSUDI
British Museum. In the centre of this altar are
three deep holes, 1 ft. 21 in., for the reception of the
blood. Undoubtedly excavation would reveal other
altars, but for all practical purposes the two before
us are sufficient to explain the object of them all.
The obelisk next to the large standing one has a
perfectly flat undecorated altar. This obelisk is
rounded at the top, like the obelisks at Medun in
Egypt, and the obelisk on the other side is pointed

ON THE ANTIQUITIES OF AKSUM
187
like Cleopatra's needle ; but these are entirely without
decoration to guide us. The great standing obelisk
is 60 ft. in height, but it was by no means the
largest. In an adjoining garden we saw the remains
of a much larger one broken into huge fragments,
the extreme front width of which is 12 ft. 81 in.,
as against 8 ft. 7 in., which is the greatest width of
the standing one. Consequently, this and another,
SHAM DOOR OF FALLEN MONOLITH, AKSUM
which has fallen and now lies in Ras Alula's garden,
must have considerably towered above the one
which, as it stands now, imposes one with its height
and delicate proportions. These two were similarly
divided into stories, and, in falling, they must have
crushed their altars to fragments beneath their
weight. I may mention here that the curious
connection between these and tombs in Cilicia
188
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
and Lycia is suggested by the imitation beam
ends and the sham windows. The tombs in Asia
Minor are made to represent houses, with beams for
their roofs carefully cut in stone, and most of them
have imitation windows.
It is also curious that the
church at Asmara has
beams inserted all along
between the stones for
support. (Vide p. 38.)
Another obelisk is of
particular interest. Unfor-
tunately, it has fallen on
its face; but, by crawling
underneath and scraping
away some soil, I was able
to
recover most of the
pattern. This obelisk was
only 27 ft. 10 in. in height,
and 6 ft. 6 in. in width,
OOOT
and had on the back a
decoration like a Greek
tomb, or temple in antis,
the columns of which were
5 ft. 8 in. in height. On
the front side this same
decoration appeared at the
top, but it was supported
by a column made in the form of a lotus or an Ionic
scroll, resting on the inevitable beams, with the small
ivy-leaf at the top, so commonly found on late Greek
w
FRONT OF FALLEN MONOLITH, AKSUM

ON THE ANTIQUITIES OF AKSUM
189
sepulchral stele. It is impossible to tell what
was below this, and if proper appliances had been
forthcoming I should have turned this obelisk over
again. This obelisk, more than any other, shows
the Græco-Egyptian influence, and that that influ-
TOP OF FALLEN MONOLITH, AKSUM
ence was not at a very early date, probably con-
siderably later than the settlement of the colony at
Adulis.
One obelisk, which had broken into fragments
and fallen into the stream, enabled us to take a
photograph of the top and to see the holes by which
the metal plaque had been attached, and thereby
satisfactorily establish that it was not a cross which
had been placed here, as ardent Jesuit travellers had
stated. For assigning an actual period for the con-
190
THE SACREI) CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
struction of these decorated monoliths we have but
slender data to go upon. Personally I feel assured
that they belong to that period which saw the de-
velopment of colossal architecture at Baalbec, and
that the Aksumites then adapted the fashion in art
to their special form of cult, namely, a veneration for
stones set up in honour of the celestial deity, and the
patterns for this decoration found their
way
hither
from Egypt and Asia Minor. Apparently, at the
time Alvarez visited Aksum there was only one deco-
rated monolith standing. He writes : “This raised
stone is 64 ells in length and 6 wide; it is very
straight and well worked, made with arcades below
as far as a head made like a half-moon, and the side
which has this half-moon is towards the south. As
far as I could ascertain there was no special system
of alignment used in erecting these monoliths.
Nevertheless, the altar and the decorated side is
always towards the rising sun.
As to when and how the great monoliths fell
there is no record or legend to help us. I imagine
that the washing away of the soil by the stream, the
Mai Shum, has been the reason, causing them to lose
their balance and fall forward. The effect of these
colossal slabs of granite, when they were all standing,
must have been very imposing, and Aksum in its
best days must have perfectly bristled with these
stone monuments of a primitive form of piety. The
erection of stone monuments seems to have been
inherent in the Semitic races. The Phænicians had
their bætylia ; the Canaanites, Moabites, and other

ON THE ANTIQUITIES OF AKSUM
191
races of a kindred origin always set up stones as
objects of piety. In Leviticus xxvi.
In Leviticus xxvi. 1 we have
the injunction to the Israelites to set up no image
of stone in their land, the words used being eben
mascith, a figured stone or stone of picture. Joshua
set up twelve stones to commemorate his passage of
FRAGMENT OF THE LARGEST MONOLITH AT AKSUM
the Jordan. The statues of Baal were supposed to
be of stone of a conical shape; and here at Aksum
we seem to have before us a highly perfected form
of stone worship, associated with sacrifices to the
sun, and affording us a complete series, from the
early rude monument to the exquisitely decorated
monolith, leading up in architectural symbolism to
the home of the great God above.
Within the precincts of the sacred inclosure
192
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
ANCIENT SPOUT, AKSUDI
there are several objects of antiquity scattered about
which were probably coexistent with the monoliths.
At the porch are two carved lion heads which have
formerly been waterspouts, and are now set into the
wall for decoration. They ob-
viously belong to a period when
art was of the best at Aksum,
and show a distinct Greek in-
fluence. Within the outer ring
of the sacred inclosure there
are twelve gigantic blocks of stone placed in a row,
which must originally have been the pedestals of
metal statues similar to those already alluded to at
the outskirts of the town. One of them has a very
much defaced Ethiopian inscription on it.
Before the porch leading into the inner inclosure
are some columns with a stone slab in the midst,
which is popularly supposed to be the throne on
which the emperors of Abyssinia are crowned.
.
Curiously enough, these columns are exactly of the
same style of architecture as the columns at Adulis
and Koloe, which we shall have occasion to describe
later on; they are square, and with a narrow edge
cut off the four angles of the shaft.
This again
shows the influence of the coast towns on the archi-
tecture of the interior. In the courtyard before the
church there are numerous ancient stones laid down
in the pavement; one of these is a fragment of a big
monolith; we can see the windows on it, and above
are carved two lance heads, a form of decoration
which does not occur on any of the other obelisks.
ON THE ANTIQUITIES OF AKSUM
193
FRAGMENT OF MONOLITH,
AKSUM
The foundations of the church are built of huge
blocks of stone, evidently belonging to an ancient
temple which stood on the same
site, probably a Himyaritic
temple to the sun-god, towards
which the lines of stone mono-
liths lead from different direc-
tions, and these stones are all
drafted like those at Yeha.
There are mounds and rub-
bish heaps scattered about in
the sacred inclosure, in which
we longed to dig; but, unfor-
tunately, the superstition of
the Abyssinians connected with
this their sacred shrine will probably not allow
of any work being done here for many years to
come.
Up the valley there are many points of interest
to be examined. Firstly, the great tank or reservoir,
where the waters of the stream are artificially con-
fined, and where still the inhabitants of Aksum get
their supply. This is also an ancient construction,
and on the hillside is approached by rock-cut steps,
resembling those one finds everywhere at the site
of old Greek towns. There are several sets of these
rock-cut steps and rock-cut paths leading up from
the valley to the hill above. Further up the valley,
beyond the line of monoliths, are the foundations of
several ancient buildings, huge blocks of stones care-
fully cut and placed together without mortar, making
194
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
.
A
one feel as if one were visiting the site of some
ancient Greek city.
On an eminence about a mile and a half up the
valley is a collection of ancient tombs, called by the
inhabitants the tombs of Kaleb, the king who ac-
cording to the Abyssinian story in the sixth century
of our era carried his victorious arms into Arabia ;
but they bear evidence of being much older than
that period. The blocks of stones of which they
are constructed are very large, and you enter by
a sloping dromos, or approach, just as you enter
into ancient Greek tombs. There are three sepul-
chral chambers built with a regularity which, if
found in Greece, would at once make one assign
them to a good period. An adjoining tomb has a
stone sarcophagus in one of its chambers, and in
the rocks around are cut several tombs, the exact
counterpart of those one sees in Asia Minor and
Syria. Taking all these points together, the decora-
tions on the monoliths and altars, the rock-cut steps
and tombs, the construction of the so-called tomb of
Kaleb, the foundations still left of the more ancient
buildings, and finally the Greek inscription, I think
we cannot lay too great a stress on the obvious
Greek influence which has been brought to bear
on the architecture of the ancient capital of the
Aksumites. Furthermore, it is not a Greek influence
of a debased period, and must have come from
intercourse between the Sabæans and the Greeks
before the commencement of our era.
A walk along the edge of the hill to the north of

ON THE ANTIQUITIES OF AKSUM
195
the present town impresses one with the extent and
size of the ancient town of Aksum. Here there are
for miles traces of buildings with large stone foun-
dations at the edge of the plain, structures of con-
siderable size, which must have been temples or
palaces. Beyond these we found another field of
monoliths, all undecorated and unhewn; and then
there is a large circular artificial mound which prob-
OUTLINE OF LIONESS CARVED ON ROCK
ably contains a tomb, and which we longed, but,
owing to the stress of circumstances, were unable,
to open.
One day we visited the lioness carved on a granite
boulder, called Mount Gobederah, about three miles
to the north-west of Aksum. It is half-way up the
steep hill, at the foot of a massive granite projection,
from which I imagine the ancients obtained their
large blocks of granite for their monoliths, for the
02
196
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
granite is noticeably split up into flakes, which in
themselves suggest the form of the monolith. The
lioness is in very low relief, and to obtain a photo-
graph of it we burnt sticks and run over the lines
with black, otherwise it would never have come out.
It is a very spirited work of art, measuring 10 ft.
8 in. from the nose to the tail. The running atti-
tude is admirably given, and the sweep of the hind
legs shows that the artist had thorough command
of his subject. A few inches from the nose of the
lioness is a circular disc with rays, probably in-
tended to represent the sun, and the whole thing im-
presses one strongly with the knowledge and skill
possessed by the artist in depicting animal life.
Probably, if the political conditions of the country
had permitted us to remain longer at Aksum, we
should have been able to discover more traces of this
interesting civilisation in the heart of Africa. About
two hours from Aksum, on a hill, we were told of
other remains called The House of Solomon. To
avoid another of the too frequent disappointments
we experienced from the ignorance of the inhabitants,
who led us to all manner of stones which they sup-
posed to be inscribed, I sent my interpreter, on
whose judgment I could rely, to inspect the place.
He reported the existence of walls of big stone, and
a lion head similar to those at the porch of the
sacred inclosure, but no inscriptions. Owing to our
hurried departure I was unable to go myself, but the
report is sufficient to show that in the immediate
neighbourhood of Aksum there are doubtless many
ON THE ANTIQUITIES OF AKSUM
197
other sites which would repay an archæological
search. In the actual town itself I think we
examined everything that it was possible to do with-
out conducting extensive excavations, and in the
present condition of Abyssinian superstition and
political anarchy there does not seem much chance
of getting any work done in that line.
198
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
CHAPTER XI
ON THE RETURN JOURNEY
On reaching Adoua we found the state of affairs
highly critical, and the Italian resident very anxious.
The governor of Adoua had been excessively rude
to him, and refused to grant him the escort necessary
for returning to the Italian territory. “They will
never let the doctor go' was the opinion of every one.
· You will all be obliged to go and join Ras
Mangashah in Tembien,' and the facts of the case
were too evident. Ras Mangashah wanted the
presence of the Italian and ourselves at his camp,
and we had grave forebodings that we might be
yet detained in Abyssinia for an indefinite period,
and obliged to go to the wars, whether we wished it
or no. Captain Dr. de Martino lost no time in de-
spatching a message to Addi Quala to inform Tenente
Mulazzani of our predicament. Of course it was im-
possible to resume our journey on the following day;
with no escort forthcoming it would be little short
of madness to attempt to cross the mountains in the
direction of Mareb; and with conflicting rumours
around us, and uncertainty of every kind as to what
was going to happen to us, we passed a very un-
pleasant day at Adoua.
: ON THE RETURN JOURNEY
199
That evening the Italian resident gave out his
determination to fly at any cost on the morrow, and
risk the dangers of the road, in the hopes of meeting
succour from the Italian side of the Mareb. Every
moment increased the danger of our being seized by
the governor and carried off to Tembien to join the
camp of Ras Mangashah. All the other Europeans
at Adoua, consisting of the three Greeks, were to
accompany us, and also Mr. Schimper, secretary to
the Italian resident, a son of Herr Schimper, the
German botanist, by an Abyssinian lady. He had
married a daughter of Fitaurari John's, whose father
was a European, and therefore their tiny baby of
a few months old could boast of as mixed a parentage
as any one.
We were prepared to start soon after sunrise,
but had to unload our mules again, as the Abys-
sinians would not let the Italian resident go, and
we could not go without him. We were told that
Ras Mangashah had not given permission for us to
depart. At last, every one but our small escort was
turned out of the yard, and we thought it better to
make an unexpected start before resistance became
too strong. So, at ten o'clock, after a messenger had
been received from Lieutenant Mulazzani that he
was coming to meet us, we started, our party con-
sisting of the resident, the family of Schimper, with
baby Schimper in a leather bag across its nurse's
back, and about ten Abyssinian soldiers, who were
positively bribed to go with us and protect us. All
went well for about an hour and a half, when our ten
200
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
protectors sat down and refused to go one step fur-
ther. We were just about entering the Gashiwarkeh
pass, which was exceedingly dangerous, they said,
and full of brigands; and in blank dismay we had
to dismount, and at twelve o'clock in the day pre-
pare to encamp at one of the most perilous spots on
the road. The Italian was furious, and suspicious of
a plot, but there was nothing else to be done under
the circumstances; so, with great reluctance, we
chose a spot for our tents, and let loose our mules.
Scarcely had we done so when a messenger arrived
from Mulazzani, informing us that he was only about
an hour and a half away, and was coming on to our
assistance as fast as he could. Without hesitation
we ordered our mules to be reloaded and set off, and
an exceedingly joyful meeting we had, after a ride
of about half an hour.
Mulazzani had brought with him all the available
forces at his command, native troops in all manner
of strange garb, numbering 400, who were serving
under the flag of Italy, and no words can express
how grateful we were to see them, knowing that
now our dangers were over, and that a safe exit
from Abyssinia was assured to us. We thought that
Captain de Martino would die of the ecstatic joy
he experienced on this occasion. He and Mulazzani
jumped off their mules and flew into one another's
arms, and indulged in a long and tender embrace,
after the manner of their country. We looked on at
this scene, showing as much joy and gratitude as our
colder northern blood would permit. There was to
ON THE RETURN JOURNEY
201
1
be no delay, our rescuers said ; so we hurried on
for many long hours, until we were nearly at the
Mareb; for the Italians, in thus crossing the frontier
to effect our rescue, were anxious to avoid any colli-
sion with Abyssinian troops. We halted by a stream
as night drew on, and a weird scene our camp pre-
sented, with its quaint groups of Abyssinian warriors
seated round the fires, playing their native instru-
ments, and evincing the greatest satisfaction at having
accomplished their end without unpleasant complica-
tions. They had been on the march since 3 A.M.
the previous morning, yet they kept up a lively con-
versation all night, and we were off in the morning
at four. Abyssinians certainly seem as if they never
can get tired. We reached the Mareb for our mid-
day halt, and during the afternoon, in great and
scorching heat, rode up as far as Gundet, where we
once more pitched our tents for the night.
Here, however, though safe from our Abyssinian
enemies, another and unexpected terror awaited us.
Scarcely had we got to bed before a most terrible
thunderstorm broke over us--or rather two thunder-
storms, which discharged themselves one after the
other quite close to us—thunderstorms such as those
who were acquainted with the country said they
had never seen the like. For three hours we had
one perpetual flash of lightning and one endless clap
of thunder. Then came the rain in torrents, flooding
our tents, and dashing to the ground that of the two
Italian officers. I never was in such a storm, and
hope never to be in such another. An Abyssinian
202
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
t
thunderstorm of the first order quite comes up to
one's preconceived ideas of the end of the world,
minus the final catastrophe. Such a thunderstorm
at this period of the year is most exceptional, I was
told, and it ushered in the period of the 'lesser rains'
before they were expected, and this year the lesser
rains were of unusual violence, and coming as they
did, before the farmers had ploughed their fields and
sown their grain, they were of not much good. Such
is the nature of agriculture in Abyssinia, even more
uncertain than it is in our own much-abused climate.
We rode on to Addi Quala next day, up the steep
ascent from the Mareb valley, at the top of which
the women met us, coming in crowds with joy and
thankfulness to welcome their husbands back. They
treated us to their gurgling greeting with more than
usual vehemence; they danced, they sang, and ran
along by our side, evincing their joy in every move-
ment, and continued to do so for at least two hours
after our arrival. We felt decidedly shattered on
reaching Addi Quala, and gladly accepted Lieu-
tenant Mulazzani's invitation to rest for three days,
and recover ourselves from the effects of our some-
what exciting exit from the realms of Prester John.
Personally, I cannot help thinking that the sooner
some European nation undertakes the government
of Abyssinia, the better it will be for the country.
Torn asunder as they are by the quarrels of their
leaders, raided as they are by marauding parties of
their fellow-countrymen, the poor Abyssinian peasants
have not a chance of improving their condition. Every
ON THE RETURN JOURNEY
203
generation adds to the tract of once-cultivated
country which is becoming desert; every generation
sees villages and churches abandoned, and no others
taking their place. If this condition of affairs con-
tinues very much longer, the Ethiopian will be, like
his elephant, a thing of the past.
From the fortress of Addi Ougri we determined,
as we had now ample time at our disposal, to return
to the coast by quite a different route, and visit cer-
tain ruins about which we heard rumours in the
neighbourhood of Halai. Godofelassi was the first
place which we came to on our way, once the chief
town of a province and a place of considerable im-
portance; but, now that the Italians have left it and
gone to Addi Ougri, it has an air of great squalor
and misery. The church is old and interesting,
having a very thick sacred grove around it, and some
very good pictures round the Holy of Holies. Here
we saw illustrations for the first time out of the life
of the great Abyssinian saint, Tekla Haimanout. In
one of these he is represented as standing for seven
years with one foot in a river, reading his Bible. All
sorts of strange stories such as these, which could
only have been invented by the fertile and credulous
brain of an Abyssinian, are told about St. Tekla
Haimanout in their sacred books. His tomb is at
the monastery of Debra Libanos, where pilgrims go in
crowds, and near it is the stream which is reported
to have come out of the ground to appease the saint's
thirst, and originally, like all these sacred streams, to
have come by mysterious channels from the Jordan.
204
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETIIIOPIANS
He has the credit of having established the Abyssi-
nian Church on its present basis, and to have insisted
on the numerous fasts and austerities of monastic life
which are still observed. He girded his loins with
heavy chains, and he lived on herbs up in the moun-
tains, where he wrote his rules and precepts for the
guidance of his followers.
Some of the houses at Godofelassi are large,
being built on the square system, which seems to
have been preferred to the round hut in all the Abys-
sinian district north of the Mareb. We sat under the
shade of a tree to eat our lunch, and were soon sur-
rounded by the inhabitants. Three women, with
their hair down, or rather sticking out like the snakes
of Medusa, amused us greatly. They wear it in this
way on the rare occasions on which they wash it
until it is ready to be greased and plaited in rows
according to the custom of their country. One of
these wild-looking women had a baby on her back in
its leather cradle edged with cowrie beads, and tied
by a belt around the waist; and here we acquired one
of those infantile necklaces of silver worn by all Abys-
sinian children of the better class until they reach
the age of puberty (Vide Illustration, p. 21). They
are exceedingly light and thin, and made me wonder
if they were intended to represent what the old
Roman bulla, used for the same purpose, is supposed
to have done, namely, a bubble floating upon water.
There are generally nine of them tied on to the
Christian cord, and the effect is exceedingly odd.
i Vide the læres bullatus of Juvenal (Sat. xiv. 4).
ON THE RETURN JOURNEY
205
There is so much that has a Roman pedigree in
Abyssinia, it is quite possible that it is the origin of it.
One of the disappointments of our life in Abys-
sinia consisted in not being able to get good honey
or good milk, both of which we were led to believe,
before going there, flowed in the land. The milk,
unless we had it straightway drawn into one of our
own vessels, was nearly always spoilt by being put
into a dirty pot, and the honey was always in a state
of fermentation-a revolting mass of bees' heads and
wings, ready to be made into mead. At Godofelassi
they brought us honey stuffed into a pot with a lid
of clay fastened on with cowdung, and when we
opened it the mass of foreign matter with which the
honey was filled was so great that we gave it all
away in disgust to our men; and when we recollected
the comparative cleanliness of the savages we came
across the year before in Mashonaland, we arrived
at the conclusion that the Abyssinians must be quite
the dirtiest people in the world.
Soon after leaving Godofelassi we began to de-
scend rapidly into the valley of the Mareb once
more, and after a hot and uninteresting ride we came
to a halt at a miserable little village called Shia, at
the edge of a precipitous descent into the river bed.
At Shia there are now only some wretched hovels,
but they are perfectly overgrown with tomatoes, small
round ones about the size of pigeons' eggs, which we
ate like gooseberries, and enjoyed immensely after
having been so long without fruit and vegetables.
About two hundred yards from the present village is
206
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
a big sycamore with huge granite boulders under it,
and holes for the everlasting game cut therein, and
beyond are the traces of a ruined village. I believe
at one time Shia was rather an important place, com-
manding as it does one of the passes of the Mareb by
which traders formerly entered the country. Next
day, after a steep descent into the Mareb valley, we
ascended rapidly by an atrocious road, up which we
had to do a great deal of walking, and then entered
the district of Gura, a series of shallow valleys
amongst the mountains, full of a rich red soil, where
the Italian School of Agriculture has made very ex-
tensive experiments in cultivation with greater suc-
cess than in any other portion of their Abyssinian
colony. We pitched our tents close to the Italian
settlement, and discussed agricultural prospects for
the year with Italian labourers. We had another
very heavy thunderstorm that evening ; but, being
prepared for it, we suffered little, and the follow-
ing morning on the low ground by the stream we
gathered a large crop of mushrooms, which formed
a valuable addition to our larder.
There are a great number of villages about here,
all more or less flourishing. This district or province
of Okule Kusai, which was once practically indepen-
dent of Abyssinia, and ruled over by the Bahr-negous,
or King of the Sea, has many characteristics which
are not to be found elsewhere in Abyssinia. The
men are of a much stronger type, tall, active, and
independent; they are very industrious, and till their
land with great care. Formerly this district enjoyed
ON THE RETURN JOURNEY
207
a constitution of its own, and elected its own national
assembly, which in its turn elected the Bahr-negous,
generally out of one family. The men were not
obliged to serve in the Abyssinian army, nor did they
pay any taxes, and, inasmuch as all the caravan
roads passed through this district and paid a tribute
to the Bahr-negous, the condition of this district was
exceedingly flourishing. The Italians told me that
their best soldiers and workmen in all their colony
came from this district, and certainly in physique the
inhabitants of this district are far superior to any we
had seen.
We halted for our midday repast at the village
of Maraba, where we found several quite imposing-
looking houses, square, and with towers on the top
of the flat roofs. The headman of the village, Kan-
tiba Asboroum, invited us to refresh ourselves in his
house. Kantiba is a title peculiar to this district,
and appears to correspond to the Degetch or Shoum,
the titles of governors of towns and villages in Abys-
sinia. He was a very fine specimen of a patriarch,
and exceedingly hospitable. A shamma was hung
up to screen us from the vulgar gaze as we ate, ex-
cellent tedge was produced, and baskets of teff and
a really capital dish, which the Abyssinians indulge
in in Lent, called elbèt, a sort of soubise sauce made
of oil and onions, into which you dip the bread before
eating it. Kantiba Asboroum had some excellent fur-
niture, a handsomely carved bed or angareb and
stools, and above all a chair, which no sooner did
we see than we coveted. The seat is low, like the old

208
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
Egyptian chairs, and made with thongs of skin fas-
tened to the woodwork, which is joined together
exactly on the old Egyptian principle. Two panels let
into the back of the chair are prettily carved, and
no sooner did we express a wish to acquire this
ABYSSINIAN CHAIR
article than the Kantiba presented it to us, and thus
we made this rather formidable addition to our
already weighty baggage. That evening we halted
at Saganeiti, and sent the Kantiba of Maraba a return
present of a white umbrella, with which, I believe,
he was highly delighted.
ON THE RETURN JOURNEY
209
Almost all the inhabitants of the large village of
Saganeiti are Roman Catholics. A mission has been
established for many years in Okule Kusai, with the
result that a large number of the inhabitants have
abandoned their old Abyssinian form of Christianity
and joined the Church of Rome. Under the Italian
influence a new church has been built here, on the
top of a high mound, looking for all the world like a
church in the Apennines. Still, however, the inhabi-
tants have not abandoned their old customs. On the
night of our arrival, one of the headmen in a hut
close to our abode died, and his relations indulged in
their passionate grief and wails during the whole of
the night, and held their teskar, or funeral feast—a
sort of sacrifice to the departed—a custom which one
finds nearly everywhere in the East, as old as the
very oldest pages of history, and perhaps more tena-
cious than any other.
Saganeiti is very high, and comes in for its share
of the sea mists which roll up here by way of the
gorge of Taranta from the low lands. The next day
we spent there almost entirely in the mist, a sort of
thin drizzling rain, strongly reminding us of Scotland.
It was a great feast day in the Italian colony, being
the birthday of the King of Italy. There was a mass
held in the church, at which Ethiopian priests of the
Roman Catholic persuasion officiated. The service is
conducted in Latin, as in Italy, but a slight Ethio-
pian innovation is admitted in the shape of a little
dancing, without which no Abyssinian would be con-
tent. The priests looked odd with Roman Catholic
P
210
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
vestments, white turbaned heads, and bare black legs.
The headmen of the village, two brothers of the rank
of Kantiba, manifested great loyalty, and came to the
house of the Italian resident to drink the health of
their king in decidedly potent libations.
The next morning was beautifully fine again, and
we started early for Digsa, which is only distant
about two hours from Saganeiti, where we proposed
to halt for a night in our tents. We passed through
exceedingly rich land, with an enormous number
of quolquol and juniper trees. Here the quolquols
have very large stems, and are universally used in
building and roofing the long low houses. About
an hour after leaving Saganeiti we came across an
exceedingly interesting old sycamore, a sacred tree
invaded by junipers and wild olives which surrounded
it in one vast jungle. Around it a wall has been
built, and its lower branches are hung with little
offerings—beads, rags, bracelets, rings, &c. It is de-
dicated to our friend St. Tekla Haimanout, and the
earth around it is considered very good for curing all
manner of diseases. The patients who arrive here
strip themselves naked and sit under the tree whilst
a friend scrapes together the earth in a pottery jar
provided for the purpose, and sprinkles it over the
body of the sick, just as at Addi Ras (p. 63) we
saw the patients bathed with the water of the sacred
stream. Once a year, on the last Sunday in Decem-
ber, the day of St. Tekla Haimanout, pilgrims come
here in crowds, kill a sheep or an ox, and hold an
open-air feast in honour of the saint. We were
ON THE RETURN JOURNEY
211
greatly pleased with this sacred tree, and felt that we
were in the presence of the survival of a very ancient
form of worship.
Digsa was once a very important place, and prior
to the Italian occupation the king of the sea'had
his capital here ; it is situated on the top of a conical
hill, which commands numerous valleys in all direc-
tions. The houses look old, and are nearly all con-
structed in the style common to this part of the
country; but we were disappointed in finding no
traces here whatsoever of any remote antiquity.
Since the Italian occupation, Digsa has very much
deteriorated; it is off the main road now, and as a
centre Saganeiti is much more important. From the
summit of the hill we enjoyed a charming view over
the distant mountains of Adigrat, and we saw once
more our old friends the mountains of Adoua, and
the deep valley of the Mareb dividing up the country
in its course.
Not far from our tent, nestling behind a secluded
rock, I found an Abyssinian blacksmith forging iron.
Curiously enough, he does it in precisely the same
way that the blacksmiths in Mashonaland forge their
iron. He has two skin bellows, one of which he
holds and inflates with each hand by pulling them
backwards and forwards. The nozzle of these bel-
lows is inserted into clay blow-pipes, which introduce
the wind into the burning charcoal which smelts the
iron. It is curious how widespread this method of
smelting is through savage Africa. The paraphernalia
of an Abyssinian smith is precisely identical with
p2
212
THE SACRED) CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
that of the tribes to the south of the Zambesi, hun-
dreds of miles away; but the Mashonaland nigger
produces a better article than the Ethiopian smith.
The blacksmith in Abyssinia is looked upon with
mingled dread and superstition ; that was the reason,
I imagine, that our smith had chosen a retired corner
at some distance from the village for his work. He
is supposed to have the power of communicating the
bouda or devil to anyone he wishes; he is supposed
to have the power of turning himself into a hyena
and committing ravages on his enemies. The story
of the loup-garou and the were-wolf is as widely
spread amongst the Abyssinians as it is amongst
other superstitious and primitive races of mankind.
As Digsa was one of the last Abyssinian villages
of importance which we should visit, we took care
here to annex an Abyssinian umbrella and a malakat
or trumpet, both of them exceedingly cumbersome
additions to our luggage. As to the latter, we found
considerable difficulty in possessing ourselves of it:
the man professed to be more attached to his trumpet
than to his wife and family, and scorned the silver
dollars with which I hoped to tempt him. Much to
our annoyance, and I suppose with the intention of
getting a bigger figure, he came and played it that
evening near our tent. Next morning we rode away
without it, but he followed us; and when he saw
there was no hope of a higher price he consented
to part with it, and the coveted trumpet was ours.
Nevertheless, he followed us next day to our halting
place, Halai, and demanded it back again, saying he
ON THE RETURN JOURNEY
213
felt miserable without it; but we held him to his bar-
gain, and refused to open negotiations afresh.
Halai is one of the highest places in the Italian
colony, being 600 feet higher than Asmara, and en-
joying a perfectly delicious climate. It has been
quite recently chosen by the Italians as a military
station, and the officers had only been there three
months when we arrived. There has been for ages
an old village there, squalid and poor; but, being the
first Abyssinian village visited by travellers after
ascending to the high plateau, it has come in for
a larger share of notoriety than it deserves. Halai
has been the centre of the Roman Catholic mission
in the district of Okule Kusai for many years, and
has been the scene of bitter contests between the old
form of Christianity and the new. They quarrel
chiefly about the Church : is it to be Ethiopian or
Roman Catholic? One day the majority are of one
persuasion and the next day the majority are of the
other, and the service of the Church is conducted
accordingly. The government were seriously just
then taking into consideration the advisability of
pulling down this church or converting it into a
powder magazine, and obliging the contending
parties to find their own places of worship.
The Roman Catholic fathers do not speak in very
enthusiastic terms of the constancy of their converts,
for they will change their religious views, they told
me, out of personal spite, for a mule--nay, even for a
sack of four-and then change back again with equal
rapidity when the object is gained.
214
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
At Halai we made inquiries about our ruins, and
spent a day there resting and questioning the inhabi-
tants. We learnt that the object of our search was
five to six hours distant, and as that part of the
country was rather disturbed, the Italian Captain
Odone, in command at Halai, allotted us a consider-
able and well-armed escort.
We enjoyed our day at Halai extremely. The
Italians have got a garden and some excellent vege-
tables, including beetroot growing to a size I had
never seen before. Below this garden was a lovely
spring of bright, clear water, shaded by thick trees
and rocks, where the inhabitants assemble to fill
their skin receptacles, evening and morning, in pic-
turesque groups. But the sight of Halai is the won-
derful gorge known as the Mai Kashi, or priest's
water, which runs like a wedge into the high
plateau; and from Halai you look deep, deep down
into its mysterious depths, and as it opens out into
a lower plateau you find your horizon bordered by
the blue misty mountains of Adigrat and Adoua.
As a lovely foreground to this enchanting view are
massive boulder rocks with gnarled juniper trees
and the fiery spikes of the aloe growing out of them.
215
CHAPTER XII
THE RUINED CITIES NEAR THE COAST
The high plateau of Kohaito was the name of the
place on which we were to find our ruins—a long,
isolated plateau, as high as Halai, but cut off from
the rest of the Abyssinian high plateau by deep
valleys, and with its wall of precipitous rocks around
it the position, from a strategical point of view, is
splendid.
Very soon after leaving Halai we entered on a dis-
trict of sandstone hills, eaten away into strange forms
by the action of the atmosphere. Here dwell, in un-
interrupted peace, hundreds—nay, rather thousands
-of baboons, whose bark at our approach echoed
through the still valleys; and as far as the eye could
reach we saw nothing but dense masses of baboons
scampering to their safe retreats as we approached.
Baboon mothers with their babies on their backs,
baboon fathers with their venerable frills of long
hair and dog-like bark—all fled before us, and formed
a dense mass of moving creatures, like an army in full
retreat, resembling miniature lions with their light
manes.
We had great difficulty in extracting from the

216 THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
inhabitants of the village of Taconda information
concerning our destination, and we narrowly escaped,
from the confusion of kindred names, starting off in
exactly the opposite direction to the one we wished.
However, a villager who knew the spot well came
to our rescue in the nick of time, and promised to
conduct us himself to the great old stones, of which
he told us we should find a vast quantity on the
heights of Kohaito. At Taconda we were obviously
under the coast influence; the inhabitants wore more
cowrie beads and brass rings than the people further
inland;
their type was more of the Shoho than the
Abyssinian. Yet they are still Christians, and build
themselves churches of quite a different class of
architecture to any that we had as yet seen. They
are square, stone buildings, with low, square towers
on the top, and are exceed-
ingly bare and uninterest-
ing inside.
The inhabi-
tants were busily engaged
in weaving baskets of straw
with long iron nails such
as the Abyssinian women
use for curling their hair,
and they make themselves
caps and coverlets of
PEASANT'S CAP
coarse black sheep's hair
for in the cold season the temperature here is
often low.
The population of all this district bears a very
bad character, and there are constant raids going on
THE RUINEI) CITIES NEAR THE COAST
217
between the Mussulmans of the coast and these rough
mountaineers, with the result that this road, which
was in former ages the great entrance into Ethiopia
from Adulis to Aksum, is now almost entirely aban-
doned, and the caravans go in either by Asmara or
the gorge of Taranta. During the days before we
were at Kohaito, a band of brigands was captured in
this district, and we were very glad of our well-armed
escort to protect us.
The ascent to the high plateau of Kohaito from
the valley below is exceedingly difficult ; the wall of
rock which surrounds it makes it only possible to
ascend at certain points. We commenced the ascent
at the southern extremity of the table mountain, and
after a while had to descend from our mules and
scramble up as best we could. For our baggage
mules with the tents and bedding it was exceedingly
difficult, but at last we reached the summit, and
the rest of our journey was comparatively simple.
There are traces of the old roadway still existing on
the side we went up; the rocks have been cut in
many places; but then boulders have fallen, and trees
have
grown up, so that the condition of the road has
been entirely altered. The summit of Kohaito is one
large flat plateau, extending for many miles, always
bordered by these inaccessible cliffs; so that it re-
minded us strongly of pictures of Roraima in South
America. It is very rich in water and springs, and
offers excellent pasturage; but, owing to the disturbed
state of this part of the country, it is now entirely
uninhabited. There are traces of ruined huts, and
218
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
our guide told us he had been born there, but that
his people had been obliged to flee to Taconda and
abandon their home on Kohaito.
About an hour's ride after reaching the summit
brought us to the ruins, where we pitched our tents
for two nights, so as to have plenty of time to
examine them carefully.
The great feature of the place is a massive wall
of ancient masonry running right across a narrow
valley at the summit, and exactly in the centre of
the mass of ruins which formerly constituted this
town. This wall, which might well have been a
specimen of the best period of Hellenic masonry, was
built to catch the waters of a small stream which
finds its way and forms a shallow valley all down
the centre of this plateau, by which means a cir-
cular lake, about half a mile in circumference, was
formed. On three sides the basin is contained by
natural rock, but the southern side is entirely
blocked up by this wall, which is a very fine speci-
men of ancient engineering skill.
The wall is exactly 219 feet in length—the middle
part, which had to sustain the greatest body of
water, being much more substantially built than the
rest. On either side of this substantial part were two
sluice gates, 5 ft. 3 in. wide, and the inferior por-
tions of the wall, 46 ft. 4 in. and 74 ft. 4 in. respec-
tively, were built up to the rocks on either side of
the depression.
The centre portion of the wall is decidedly the
most interesting and is quite intact; it is 99 ft. 4 in.
THE RUINED CITIES NEAR THE COAST
219
in length, and is built of very fine mortarless stones,
the largest being 5 ft. long and 1 ft. 61 in. high.
Between each course a thin slab is inserted, and
each course recedes so as to give the appearance of
steps. There are eight courses visible now; but I
expect, owing to the accumulation of soil, there are
several more. There have been throughs,' or sus-
taining stones, arranged in this strong portion of
1,
THE DAM AT KOLOE
the wall, forming steps in a zigzag pattern, each
through' being 1 ft. 3 in. apart. On the outer side
there is nothing visible, as an enormous amount of
soil has accumulated here, in which juniper trees
grow in a dense mass up to the level of the wall.
Probably, if this accumulation could be cleared away,
some inscription or decoration might be revealed on
this outer side. The appearance of this wall as it
exists now in utter abandonment is a striking testi-
inony to the advance the Sabæan or Greek colonists
220
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
on the Red Sea had made, so that here, 7,000 feet
above the Red Sea, they had expended such an
enormous amount of labour and engineering skill
in providing their summer capital with an adequate
supply of water. In many points this dam reminds
us of the celebrated dam at Mariaba, the Sabæan
capital in Yemen, with its sluice gates and its steps,
and suggests the supposition that this town was
Sabæan in its origin.
The extent of the ruins on Kohaito is most re-
markable; on small mounds in every direction, peep-
ing out of juniper trees, are to be seen columns and
large blocks of stone, where buildings have stood.
The town must have covered many acres when at
its best. About 200 yards from the lake, on rising
ground by the stream, stood a series of small
temples, of one of which we were able to get toler-
ably accurate measurements. It stood on a platform,
46 feet in length, built of large and regularly cut
stones, and was approached by a flight of steps. On
the top of this platform are still standing several
columns, and their architecture happily enables us
to connect it with the architecture of Adulis and the
architecture of the old columns previously alluded
to at Aksum. These columns were evidently in
rows of five, 5 ft. 6 in. apart, and originally sup-
ported a slate roof, and the uniformity of all the
columns and capitals, both in the ruins at Kohaito
and Adulis, is sufficient proof of their kindred origin.
They stand only 10 feet high, and are square, with
a narrow line cut off the four edges. The capitals
THE RUINED CITIES NEAR THE COAST
221
are formed of three square step-like tiers. The
columns at Kohaito are made of a sandstone, the
stone of the place, whereas those at Adulis are
of black basalt, and those at Aksum of granite ;
1. Grupulin
.
om oftesto
1
zhro
HE
More
Dry
CAM
1:1::.
Uutis
Contoh
COLUMN AT KOLOL
but in other respects they are identical. They, of
course, belong to a late order of architecture, and
probably do not date further back than the cen-
turies just before our era; but then Adulis did not
come into prominence until a late period, and natu-
rally the architecture adopted was one of decadence.
222
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
Mr. A. S. Murray, of the British Museum, has called
my attention to the similarity of the square shaft
and step-like capital to the shaft and covering 1 as
shown in the Harpy tomb from Xanthus in Lycia.
This similarity is very striking when the other archi-
tectural points, traceable to Asia Minor in this part
of the world, are taken into account-namely, the
beam ends on the monoliths at Aksum, and the
imitation and receding doors and windows. That an
influence from Asia Minor was at work here is
pretty certain, and it is easily to be accounted for in
the days of the third Ptolemy, who extended his
victories over all that part of Asia Minor, and may
have transplanted artificers to his new colonies on
the Red Sea from the conquered cities.
We rode in all directions over this high plateau
of Kohaito, but found nothing more interesting than
the ruins around the lake. Evidently the area
covered by buildings was large, and two miles from
the lake are traces of temples and other buildings
still to be seen. Most likely, froin its high and im-
pregnable position, the table-land of Kohaito was
used by the inhabitants of Adulis as a summer resi-
dence. The air here is delightful, water abundant,
and easily reached from Adulis in two, or at the
most three, days.
The great question to be considered is the name
of this place, and whether we have any allusion to it
in early geographers; and to this, I think, we can
1 See Catalogue of Archaic Greek Sculpture in the British
Museuin.
THE RUINED CITIES NEAR THE COAST
223
give a very satisfactory reply, though we found no
inscriptions to help us, owing, I think, to the fact
that the stone employed is principally sandstone, and
worn away by the action of the atmosphere, and it
would have been difficult to convey marble to this
spot. The anonymous author of the “Periplus of the
Red Sea' tells us, after describing Adulis : "Three
days' journey inland was Koloe, the first market
where ivory could be procured. From Koloe it was
five days' journey to Aksuma, where all the ivory was
collected.' From this very explicit statement Lejean
and other travellers have imagined that Koloe was
at Halai or Digsa; but, as I have mentioned, there
is not a single trace of ancient ruins there, nor are
there any ruins within many miles of this spot. So
I think we can fairly determine that the ruins on
Kohaito are those of the ancient city of Koloe.
Furthermore, it is exactly where it should be, ac-
cording to the description in the ‘Periplus,' three days
from Adulis and five from Aksum, and on a moun-
tain, immediately below which the ancient trade
route into Ethiopia passed.
Claudius Ptolemy, in his geography, also mentions
Koloe as being in this position; but, curiously
enough, he also mentions further inland a lake which
he calls Kolón líuvn, which he distinguishes from
Κολόη πόλις. Two circumstances with regard to
this statement strike me as curious; firstly, that the
Greek name Kolón, which was the name of this
city, should also be attached to a lake far inland,
which, for want of any other, geographers have con-
224
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
sidered to be Lake Tzana, and which Stephanus
Byzantius distinctly tells us was called bébw by the
ancients; and, secondly, that the chief feature of the
town of Koloe, as we have already seen, is a lake in
its very centre.
I think it is not unfair to suppose
that Ptolemy may have got a little confused in
writing his account of this part of the country; that
he found Koloe city and Koloe lake in his notes, and,
not fancying the two were identical, put the Koloe
lake further inland, and added the statement, 'from
which flows the river Astapus.'? It is a small point,
but the elucidation of small points in the meagre
material left us for the reconstruction of early
African geography is to my mind always worthy
of discussion. A stream really does flow through
this lake, and in the uncertainty of geographical
data at that period it is quite possible it may have
been considered a source of the Astapus, as the river
Mareb, which flows only a few miles away, certainly
was.
During the two days we spent on Kohaito we
suffered considerably from the inclemency of the
weather. We had a thunderstorm the first evening,
and were enveloped in the thick impenetrable mist
which is often experienced in this borderland be-
tween the high plateau and the hot district of the
1 Agatharcides (ap. Strabo) and Diodorus Siculus give us the
Psebæan mountains, which are undoubtedly the mountains of Abys-
sinia, facing the Red Sea. Strabo has a lake Psebo 'above Meroe,'
usually identified with the Tzana lake. Theophrastus also has an
island Psebo above Meroe. From these facts it would seem that the
name Psebo is older than Koloe.
THE RUINED CITIES NEAR THE COAST
225
sea coast. The second day was gloomy but fine,
and on the morning of our departure the ground was
covered with a light hoarfrost.
Certainly I think the ruins of Koloe may safely
claim to be the most elevated ruins known of any
ancient town.
Our guide professed to be able to take us down
by another road on the western side of the mountain,
but he was unable to find it, and after riding about
for some hours we became hopelessly lost. Luckily
for us, as we were wandering along through a thick
forest, we came across three woodmen, who were
carrying to their home the trunk of a big tree
which they had cut down. They put us in the right
path, and we descended by an exceedingly steep
road, which bore ample traces of having been a
very fair road at one time, and probably the prin-
cipal approach to Koloe in ancient times. The sus-
taining walls which had helped to keep up the road
were still there, and with many twists and turns we
finally got down into the valley below. Here, on
slightly rising ground, we found in a dense mass of
jungle the ruins of another ancient town or village,
which stood just above what must have been the old
caravan road from Adulis to Aksum. In the midst
of it stood a small temple, on a built platform, with
two columns left standing of precisely the same style
of architecture as those above. This must have been
a village or halting place at the foot of the hill on
which Koloe was built, where caravans going and
returning could halt; and here, too, a little excava-
Q
226
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
tion might yield some interesting results with regard
to the trade route, and the nature of the commerce
which was carried on in ancient times up this road
into the heart of Africa.
We were obliged to return to Halai, because we
had left our luggage there; but if we had been able
to follow the old line of road from this point, which
gradually leads down to the valley of the Addas and
the coast, we should have saved a long détour, and
might possibly have seen other traces of earlier occu-
pation. As it was, it was quite dark when we got
back to Halai, owing to our having lost our way on
the descent from Koloe.
One thing, however, I should have been sorry
to have missed, namely, the stupendous descent of
Shumfaitou, where a narrow road by countless zig-
zags has lately been constructed by the Italians for
mule traffic, which leads down almost abruptly from
the high plateau at Halai to the valley of the Addas
below, a descent of close upon 5,000 feet. During
this remarkable descent we enjoyed scenery of the
most exquisite character ; before us lay stretched the
whole length of the high plateau of Kohaito, from
which it seemed almost impossible to imagine that
we had only returned the day before. To our left
extended fold upon fold of deep blue mountains,
shutting in the narrow twisting valley which was to
lead us down to the sea. Behind us rose the stupen-
dous wall of the high plateau, on which we had now
lived for so many weeks. As we descended, the
air became stiflingly close. The valley of the Addas
THE RUINED CITIES NEAR THE COAST
227
is exceedingly narrow, shut in by walls of rocks,
which reflect the sun in all its tropical fervour;
tamarind trees, eucalyptus, and others of the torrid
zone, here take the place of those which prefer a
cooler climate. It is almost impossible to imagine a
more sudden change than that afforded by the short
three hours' descent from Halai to the little Arab
village of Mahio, deep down in the Addas valley.
As with the vegetation, so it was with the people :
all is changed. Arab-speaking Mussulmans in miser-
able hovels are the sole inhabitants of these val-
leys debouching on the sea. Mahio, during the late
famine, was a great market for grain, and the Italians
had a fort here to regulate the distribution of relief
to the thousands of Abyssinians who came down here
to look for sustenance. This is now entirely aban-
doned; but an Italian resides at Mahio, who has
developed the only definite industry which we saw
throughout the whole of the colony, namely, the
making of cords and ropes out of a sort of aloe
called the Sanservera Ehrenbergii, which industry bids
fair to be a great success, as most of the ropes for
ships on this coast of the Red Sea are made of it.
Heaps of Arab women were engaged in beating the
leaves of the aloes in the stream, so as to leave the
fibre, which is eventually spun into ropes. The
whole valley of the Addas is full of this plant, which
owes its discovery to the German botanist, Ehren-
berg, whereas I believe Schweinfurt was the first to
recognise its value for practical purposes.
Freaks of nature in towering rocks and narrow
Q?

228
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
gorges were all that we had to look upon for the next
two days, as we gradually approached the sea. The
scenery of this approach to Abyssinia is excessively
weird and grand, but exceedingly monotonous, and
we were intensely relieved when at length we came
out on to the narrow belt of plain once more, which
CAPITAL OF COLUMN. ADULIS
borders Africa, and late one evening found ourselves
by the sea again at Arkiko.
We undertook the journey to Zula more from
curiosity than in any hope of finding anything, and
the net result of our expedition to the ruins of the
ancient Adulis was the discovery, sufficiently im-
portant in itself, that the columns and capitals of
Adulis, Koloe, the village below it, and Aksum, all
belonged to the same order of architecture, and all
THE RUINED CITIES NEAR THE COAST
229
owed their origin to the mercantile influence on the
coast.
We took a boat from Arkiko, and, thanks to a
favourable breeze, we were able to pitch our tent on
shore, about an hour from the modern Zula, and an
equal distance from the ancient Adulis, just before
the sun went down. Early next morning we commu-
nicated with the Sheikh of Zula, who sent down
mules and asses to bring us to his village, and before
midday we had our tents pitched in the midst of the
remains of what once was the town of Adulis.
Strabo did not know of the existence of this town.
Pliny and Claudius Ptolemy, and the anonymous
author of the “ Periplus of the Red Sea,' knew it well
as the emporium for the products of the Ethiopian
kingdom. But our great authority for the existence
and history of Adulis is the monk Cosmas Indico-
pleustes, who copied the inscriptions there, which
we have already referred to: Adule is a city of
Ethiopia, and the port of communication with
Axiomis, and the whole nation of which that city
is the capital. The town is two miles from the shore,
and as you enter it there is still remaining a chair or
throne, which appertained to one of the Ptolemies,
behind which stood the celebrated stone.' Beckh
gives the inscription in full, in his Corpus Inscrip-
tionum,' so there is no occasion to do more than
refer to it here.
The possibilities of finding it again are great. In
fact, the nature of the ruin which has come upon
Adulis makes it probable that a systematic excava-
230
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
tion might here yield untold treasures. Adulis has
simply been buried in the sand and alluvial deposits
which the adjacent stream, now silted up, has washed
down. Some slight excavations were made in one or
two of the mounds at the time of the English expe-
dition, which brought to light the above-mentioned
basalt capitals and columns, which compare with
those of Koloe and Aksum. But the ruins cover a
vast area, and consist of a conglomeration of
mounds, each of which represents an important
building overgrown with a low scrub. So that the
work to accomplish anything would have to be
systematic, and presentivg labour not much less
than that of unearthing Pompeii itself. For the
history of Africa in remote ages this work would
be of exceptional interest and value, but the ex-
cessive heat and unhealthiness of the climate would
also be a further bar to the accomplishment of this
end.
We stayed only one night at Adulis; for, with
the exception of the few columns unearthed by the
English, there was nothing to see, and the heat was
terrific. With a strong breeze behind us we reached
Massowah in six hours, and there brought our Abys-
sinian wanderings to a termination.
231
CHAPTER XIII
ON THE INSCRIPTIONS FROM YEHA AND AKSUM
BY DR. DAVID HEINRICH MÜLLER,
Professor of the University of Vienna, and Fellow of the Imperial Academy
of Science, Vienna |
PART I.—The Inscriptions from Yeha
THE small Sabæan inscriptions found by Mr. Bent in
Yeha, the old temple near Adoua, unfortunately do
not provide us with the name of any king or any
date by which the age could be decided with abso-
lute certainty. Their existence, however, on Abys-
sinian soil is in itself of the highest historic interest,
because they testify by their presence there to the
connection between the peoples of South Arabia and
of Abyssinia, which is set forth in the list of peoples
in the 10th chapter of Genesis ; and they also testify
to the migration into Ethiopia of the Sabæans-a
fact which Greek authors allude to. That these
were not isolated or sporadic colonisations is testified
by the magnificence of the buildings themselves, and
that they employed the best style of Sabæan art is
testified by the artistically engraved inscriptions,
1 Prof. Müller will publish in the Akademie der Wissenschaft at
Vienna fuller particulars on these inscriptions and photographic fac-
similes of the impressions.
232
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
which, whether in incised or raised work, remind
one of the most beautiful of the examples we have
of Sabæan art.
We are also in the position, from palæographic
grounds, to assert that these small fragments, as well
as the buildings into which they were built, date
from a very remote antiquity, about the 7th or 8th
century B.C. It is well known that Sabæan history
falls into three great periods, which are distinctly
divided from each other according to the titles which
the kings of these periods bore in the inscriptions.
In the first period the ruler of Saba bears the title
Mukrab Saba. In the second period he is called
Melek Saba. In the third period Melek Saba wa
Raidân, king of Saba and Raidân.
The inscriptions before us might also fall into
this palæographical division, which has been laid
down on grounds connected with the history of the
script ;? and the following signs which are here
briefly added will serve to show the peculiar charac-
teristics and the history of the development of the
script.
M. S becomes gradually 1
3
1
>>
OO
Sh. 3
W. 0
R.)
F. O
32
3
1 Four of these inscriptions were also copied by Salt, Voyage in
Abyssinia, 431 seq.
2 See Professor Müller's Burgen und Schlösser Südarabiens.
3 See Mordman and Müller, Sabäische Denkmäler, 105 ff.
INSCRIPTIONS FROM YEHA AND AKSUM
233
Quite peculiarly characteristic of the first period
are the signs 8 , and the inscriptions from
Abyssinia show that these forms occur there; and the
whole character of the text principally recalls the
Sabæan monuments, Nos. 45, 46, and the long in-
scription No. 16 (“Sabäische Denkmäler '). A further
sign that the inscriptions are of the oldest period is
that they are in the boustrophedon style of writing,
which consists in the first line reading from right to
left, and the second from left to right, and so on. In
fact, the inscriptions above alluded to, which in their
lettering most resemble our fragments, are written
in this boustrophedon style. One only of our frag-
ments is of more than a single line, so that we can-
not bring this argument to bear on all of them; but
this one double-lined fragment is, as we should natu-
rally expect, boustrophedon. These are the grounds
which have decided me in placing these inscriptions
in the Mulcrab period, and that they are therefore of
the very greatest historical importance need hardly
be mentioned.
YEHA 1 and 2. (Impressions taken by Mr. Bent.)
(Boustrophedon.)
Olha aliho 4010SYM0[4
oorhon rotllo (NYBOL
410119009 109989
Y Bol
Both of these fragments were found round two
234
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
sides of the four-sided capital of a column, and are
written boustrophedon ; they are parts of one inscrip-
tion of which the second fragment is the last.
No. 1 is 0:50 metre long by 0·14 wide.
No. 2 is 0.45 metre long by 0·14 wide.
Translation : [and placed under the protection of
the Deity]
1. ... Their souls, and the souls of Ilas, and
2. Ilagad, and Ilakab and their possessions
3. which they have gained for themselves.
Yafam in Haw
4. [Before each that] they (will annihilate]
About the script and the boustrophedon way of
writing we have already spoken. It is probable that
this is the termination formula of a building inscrip-
tion. The place name Haw is to be remarked, and
according to my knowledge it also appears in an
inscription from Al-Higr.
1
YEHA 3. (Impression by Mr. Bent.)
AXYO684 0) 50 ) X
Likewise No. 3 goes round two corners of a
capital.
Length, m. 0:60; width, 0.12.
In consequence of the fragmentary character of
this inscription, and the peculiar small words, I do
not dare to offer a translation of it.
1
See Professor Müller's Epigraphische Denkmäler aus Arabien.
INSCRIPTIONS FROM YEHA AND AKSUM
235
YEHA 4. (Impression by Mr. Bent, copy by
Mr. Salt, p. 434.)
Fragment built into a wall of temple:
on 41
Length, m. 0:17; width, m. 0:12.
Translation : “He went into the valley,' or some-
thing similar.
YEHA 5. (Impression by Mr. Bent.)
00190 OYX9[1]
This inscription is on two sides of a corner stone.
Length, m. 0:40; width, 0.15.
Translation : "He built his house A.W.M, and
This little fragment is of the greatest importance
for the consideration of the name of the locality.
Mr. Bent, in a letter addressed to me, and dated
May 24, 1893, expressed the following supposition
· Yeha is the modern name of the spot where I
have found the Himyaritic inscriptions; it lies on
the road from Aksum to Adulis. There also I found
a temple which is excellently constructed, and other
remains, as, for example, monoliths and buildings of
huge stones, which certainly belong to a very remote
antiquity. When I had compared all authorities of
the ancients, I came to the following conclusion :-
'1. It cannot be Koloe, which is mentioned in
the “Periplus," § 4, and which place I have
found, where one would expect it to be,
236
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
>
namely, in the neighbourhood of Halai, on
a mountain plateau, 7,000 feet above
Adulis, with several temples and a wall
which formed a reservoir.
“2. Nonnosus (see Miller's “ Hist. Min.," W.
179 f.) mentions Aủá as a xwplov between
Adulis and Aksum.
63. In the Adulitan monument, Part II., a list of
people and place names is given, which the
author of the inscription had conquered,
and amongst them is Ava.
It seems to me very probable that Ava is iden-
tical with the modern Yeha, and through the
rise of Aksum the old Sabæan colony of Ava
seems to have gradually fallen into decay.
Now, in truth, this little fragment from Yeha
appears in a most remarkable manner to verify
Bent's hypothesis. I read and deciphered the above
inscription before Bent communicated his supposi-
tion to me in the above-given letter, but now I
recognise in ‘A. W. M.' the old Ava, as in M. at the
end of the line we have the terminal or final syllable,
which in the Sabæan language signifies the end of a
substantive.
To further explain this fragment I will add one
point more. ' Bayt' means, in Sabaan, 'house,' and
also castle' or 'temple.' In this sense the word
often occurs in building inscriptions. We see here
also an old temple, Ara, which was erected by the
Sabæans in Abyssinia.
INSCRIPTIONS FROM YEHA AND AKSUM
237
1
In fact, we know from the Sabæan inscriptions in
South Arabia that the god Almaqah had temples in
Marib, Serwah, and other places, and was honoured
in a temple called Ava, and on two bronze tables
from Amrân he is named Lord of Ava, the castle
Alw. Two women in the neighbourhood of Maryab
(Marib) dedicated a statue to Almaqah, the Lord of
Ava. Also, upon an inscription in Serwah the Lord
of Ava is mentioned. Therefore it seems to me
that we may safely recognise in our fragments an
Almaqah temple which gave its name to the place.
I leave it to be decided whether these inscriptions
relate to the Sabæan temple erected on Abyssinian
ground, or whether they relate to another temple of
a similar name elsewhere.
YEHA 6 and 7. (Impressions by Mr. Bent, copies
by Mr. Salt.)
4)0019119409
15X96001SXOO1X3 lo
6. Length, m. 0:35; width, 0.12
7. Length, m. 0.65; width, 0.12.
Translation : 'Aknag, son of Waran
· And Bashinat and Adatm of the
family (or place) Ark.
Also this is a building inscription, and must there-
fore continue with the words have built,' &c.
These two inscriptions are in very high relief, and
obviously form parts of one and the same inscrip-
238
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
tion, and they came from the doorway of the ancient
temple at Yeha. These inscriptions likewise show
the oldest letters of the Sabaan alphabet. Can this
name Ark be compared with the name Arkiko on
the coast near Massowah ?
YEHA 8. (Copy only by Mr. Salt, p. 431.)
$1190941
The only thing to be recognised in this fragment
is the proper name “Hajw.'
YEHA 9. (Copy only as a monogram by Mr. Salt.)
86 SAN
=
PART II. —The Inscriptions from Aksum.
1. THE BILINGUAL INSCRIPTION. (Impression by
Mr. Bent.)
On the back of the Greek inscription at Aksum
Mr. Salt remarked that he saw traces of an old
Ethiopian inscription, from which he copied some
groups of letters more or less correctly. After care-
fully putting these together, one could not make out
a single word from his facsimile. Also, the forms
of the letters were not properly given by him, and
the supposition was held that this inscription was
partly in Sabæan and partly in Ethiopian letters.
But this was not correct. The alphabet is still quite
Sabæan, but its form belongs to the latest period of
this script.
INSCRIPTIONS FROM YEHA AND AKSUM
239
As far as the contents show, it is evident that
the Semitic inscription on the back of the Greek is,
for a part at least, identical. In fact, the commence-
ment of the inscription is an exact word-for-word
translation of the Greek monument-a circumstance
by which the deciphering of the very worn and
destroyed Semitic text has been greatly assisted.
From a careful examination of Mr. Bent's im-
pression, it is evident that the inscription originally
consisted of forty lines. But the Greek, which is
written in much greater letters, only consists of
thirty-one lines, and, on an average, three Greek lines
contain the material of only one Semitic. So, there-
fore, the Semitic inscription must have contained at
least three times as much material as the Greek.
Unfortunately, the side of the stone on which the
Semitic inscription was engraved was much exposed
to the weather, and only with great trouble can the
first six lines be satisfactorily read. From line 7-15
there are single phrases legible, from line 16-25
single words, and from line 26 to the end only single
letters. At the time of Salt the lines at both the
beginning and the end must have been still distinct,
since he gives facsimilia of both; but these are en-
tirely useless.
The inscription is 0.98 metre wide and 1.56
metre high.
240
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
No. 1.
גון
בן
Translation.
1. Aizan", king of Aksum", and of Homer", and
Raydan", and Habaset", and Saba", and
2. Silh” and Tiyam", and Kas”, and Bega”, king
of kings, son of Mahrem", who is never triumphed
3. orer by his foes. Since the people of Begâ
had revolted he sent his two brothers Shazân and
Hadefah, and made against them
4. war, and when they had reached them they
overpowered them-—namely, six kings, with their
tribes
5. and their furniture, which was not fixed to
the ground, with their children and their wo-
6. men and their servants [also they) took
the sucklings with their mothers
7. . gave to drink (?) . . . and their cattle.
8. . . . and they presented them and provided
them with bread ...
9. whilst . . . and they drove them forth from
their lands.
10. ... to . . . and their meat (?)
11. that they gave them to eat .
12.
13. Delivery (?)
.. and they adorned.
14. where their land is great.
15. . . . and they would take.
16 and 17. .
18. To Mahrem".
21. and their land.
24. Their sucklings (?).
בון
No. І.
8.
\
оо
І. oo|ЯАЛНоо] ДХ3 Пwoo|ДЫН?}оо] ДЯДWHoo|ДДАКА161Д142°o
2. ХРАНІДДЯ ДІАПІ461Д161ДІДТПоо| ДНКоо ДДРЖоо| ДW1A
3. HYTHoы оо| Д-Ho39foogl6A11?ПАТППНІДЯХНА14ooЯ
4. ЧАЈНАДІДХ3141 ДХАННІ ДЕП БИІДДҰ ЖПоо | oo ДАП
5. Ноо ДДУНІАДІ Д} ПА ІДН1РА І ДДоороо ДДЕПX
б. НІ ДДХ ПІДП 14THRAT До Н. ПОРІДИЛІЧНоо | ДДХ
7. ДДҰ1oo }
Дх. ДПIPPX . IX
Оо 1 дү8 Пgh oo | ДЯЛбоо |.
9. ДДФ ПАД оо оо Ноо | ДЖА P8АРТНЧА
10. Д13 оо |
8 . Яп. ДР1о1.
II. РRІДХ? } оо
До
691x. ХІДД16АРН
12. Одоо 8. . Д18
дхоп ТДХП
13. oo 1: Ноо 13 ДУПНІ
8 дн.. П ДР 14 Д
14. I Дуп 1 ПКР | ЯНоо
Х
15. Хооо | ДРҮПІДoo РДА? оо
1oo. II
16. A46Р1 Д
Д
Д. 1 оо :
ПІДД
Пhoo |
хп3
оо Н
1 ЯДЧД 11 Д
19. x | Д
х
дохоо.
Гд: х. Ф П
Ф
Дҷоо хоч
Нд Поо
22. от Д
ПА ЧАД
23. ГДК 3 Р
ПX
24. Г Д 6 П 1
25. Тоо 1 и
1
Д
Д
Н!
оо
17.
18.
20.
т
2 І.
1
1
1
о
26.
27.
28.
29.
30.
?
3.
Я П
| |
32.
33.
34.
лікч 1
В
НП 691
35.
36.
37.
38.
| 1x Д
д
39.
40.
4I.
оох
бпу
INSCRIPTIONS FROM YEHA AND AKSUM
241
Remarks on this Inscription.
To show the relationship between the Greek and
the Semitic inscriptions, I have thought it best to set
out the first ten lines of the Greek inscription and
the Semitic translation line for line.
Greek. .
Semitic.
1. Αειζάνας βασιλεύς 'Αξωμι- Ι (1) Aizanm, king of Aksum,
των και
and
2. “Ομηριτών και του Ραειδαν of Homêrm and Raydänm and
και Αϊ-
Haba
3. θιόπων και Σαβαειτών και Shatm and Sabam and (2) Silhm
του Σιλεη
4. και του Τιαμώ και Βουγαειτών | and Tianmom and Kasm and
και του
5. Κάσου βασιλεύς βασιλέων | Began, king of kings, son of
υιός θεού
6. ανικήτουΑρεως: άτακτησάν- : Mahrenhm, who is not triumphed
over by his foes. When they
revolted
7. κατά καιρον του έθνους των (3) The people of Bega
Βουγαει-
8. των απεστίλαμεν τους ημε- we sent our two
τέρους
9. αδελφούς Σαϊζανα και τον brothers Shazânm and Hadefah
“Αδήφας
10. τούτους πολεμήσαι
To make war upon them.
των
As we have stated, the first three lines are almost
word for word with the Greek text; the slight
differences which appear in the two texts are not of
any material importance. In the Greek text the
Bugaeiton are placed before the Kasu, as in both the
Gez inscriptions of Aksum, whilst in the Semitic the
Bega are placed after the Kasu. That the difference
is due to the existence of the war, about which this
inscription tells us, is scarcely probable. For we see
R
242
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
on the Greek inscription the Bega placed before the
Kasu, and we know from the Adulitan monument
that the founder of the Aksumite kingdom had al-
ready subjected the people of Bega. The placing of
the people of Bega after Kasu can only be looked
upon as an oversight of the writers, and one can
but come to the conclusion that the title of the king
was not yet quite thoroughly established. A further
difference is the placing before the god's name the
word θεού, also the use of the term ανικήτου instead
of the relative sentence who is not triumphed over
by his foes' is to be attributed to the difference of
speech. The phrase katà kaipóv is not inserted in
the Semitic text, and, lastly, the change of person in
line 8 is worthy of notice, and in the Semitic text
also the use of the dual.
From the fourth line the Semitic text no longer
follows the Greek word for word, and in certain parts
they deviate pretty considerably, and often follow in
a different order, but they can in several places be
recognised as having about the same turn of phrase.
Lines 4, 5. The corresponding phrases are here
set out together :
· And when they had reached them, they over-
powered them,' is the equivalent of the Greek,
lines 10–12 and 18–19: kai nepadedukórw aủTôv
υποτάξαντες αυτούς ήγαγον [προς ημάς] οίτινες
ήσαν τον αριθμόν βασιλείσκοι εξ συν τω όχλω αυτών.
Line 5. “And their furniture, which was not fixed
to the ground, corresponds to the Greek, line 14:
και κτηνών νωτοφόρων.
.
INSCRIPTIONS FROM YEHA ANT) AKSUM
243
Lines 5, 6. With their children and their women
and servants' represents μετά και των θρεμμάτων
αυτών (line 12). The words βοών τε ριβ και προβά-
TWV okd appear to be absent in the Semitic, unless
they stood on the obliterated part of line 6.
Line 7. If the reading and translation 'gave to
drink ’is right, one must recognise Totí Coutes in line
17. The word "cattle at the end of the line is to be
identified with Bócow, line 15.
Line 8. “And they presented them, and provided
them with bread' is translated in the Greek by
τούτους ούν δωρησάμενοι (line 23), and αννωνεμένοι
äptovs oltivovs (lines 20, 21).
Line 9. ' And they drove them forth from their
lands' is visibly αυτούς μετοικήσαμεν και κατεστη-
gajev és Tuva TÓTTOV TÝs nuetépas xópas (24–26). The
remaining readable and decipherable phrases no
longer correspond with the Greek text. No wonder,
for the Semitic version must have been three times
as large, and must, therefore, have contained much
that is not in the Greek.
Though the Greek inscription from Aksum has
been often commented upon, and its historical and
geographical importance already sufficiently brought
forward, yet the Semitic text offers a number of in-
teresting explanations, which I will briefly set out
here. It is known that the inscription, like the
Adulitan monument, has been set up by a king of
Aksum, named Aizanes, who calls himself son of the
unconquered Ares in thankfulness for the victories
which his two brothers and their armies have gained
R2
244
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
against the rebellious Bega. He offers to Ares three
standing statues—one gold, one silver, and one iron.
The king, therefore, was a heathen, and acquainted
with the Greek religion and culture. In a letter
from the Emperor Constantine (356 A.D.) to Aizanus
and Sazanus at the end they are termed his åderbol
τιμιώτατοι ; the altar in this inscription is distinctly
mentioned. This inscription is important, particu-
larly in the title of the king. He not only names
himself king of Aksum and other African countries
(Tiamô, Bovyaeltw kai toh Káoov), but also the king
of the Homerites and of the Raydan and the Ethiopians
and the Sabæans and of Sileê, from which it can safely
be seen that Aksumite kings had carried their con-
quests into the kingdom of the Sabæans and Himyars,
and had ruled for a longer or shorter time on the
other side of the Red Sea. This circumstance is
nowhere else mentioned by Greek or even Arabian
writers, but it is none the less true, and proved by
relative circumstances. Since we know, on the one
hand, from the monument of Adulis, that an Ak-
sumite king made a campaign to the Arabian coast,
and, on the other hand, we know of a conquest of
South Arabia by the Aksumites in 525 A.D., we must
conclude for certain that the war between the rival
kingdoms went on meanwhile.
The founder of the Greek inscription at Aksum
is called 'Aelcávas (in the letter of Constantine
Aizanus), and much trouble has been taken to find
the Ethiopian equivalent for the Greek name. The
most approved hypothesis is the one that Aizanes
INSCRIPTIONS FROM YEHA AND AKSUM
245
corresponds to the King Ela-San, of the Ethiopian list
of kings (351-364), and people have gone so far as
to find a form of Greek flattery in the name in the
sound of åei lâv, to live for ever.' A. Dillmann alone
has, with very critical insight, refused this identifi-
cation; and though he, on etymological grounds,
identifies the naine with Du-Gezen, he has made
no attempt to show any historical proofs, from the
undependable Ethiopian list of kings, or the even
less reliable chronology. Others, again, have tried
to identify Aizanes and Sazanus with Ela-Abraha and
Ela-Asbeha, the last of whom is described by the
Ethiopian accounts as the founder of the chief holy
place in Aksum, in whose reign the conversion of the
Ethiopians to Christendom is said to have taken place.
The untrustworthiness of this supposition Dillmann
has also pointed out in his second treatise (p. 17).
Dr. Edward Glaser has also a theory that he has
discovered not only both these kings in the South
Arabian legends, but also can identify Aizanes with
Ela-Asbeha (“Sketches of the History and Geography
of Arabia,' ii. pp. 524-526).
Unfortunately, all these theories, founded upon
the supposed obliteration of the stone, are now dis-
proved by Mr. Bent's impression. The inscription is
able to be read in part, and both names stand written
in Sabæan letters, the Arabic equivalents for which
are Ayzân and Shazân. Therefore, identification with
the other names is put out of the question; but, at
the same time, the two words in the Semitic script
afford us no assistance in unravelling the mystery,
246
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
only in establishing the incorrectness of all theories
as yet advanced.
There is yet another word in the inscription,
which is of historical interest. I allude to the word
Habashath, which corresponds to Aiolórw in the
Greek text. The titles of the king in the Greek in-
scription of Aksum differs distinctly from that in the
Semitic inscription, particularly in that of King of
the Ethiopians. Furthermore, we get the assurance
that the term “ Ethiopia' was not for the Aksumites
identical with the kingdom of Aksum, as has already
been pointed out in reference to the monument
of Adulis. The founder of the monument at Adulis
had not yet conquered the Himyaro-Sabæan kingdom,
but had, on his warlike expedition to the Arabian
coast, reached as far as (ws) the frontier of the
Sabaan countries. Also, he had not yet subjected
the lands of the Ethiopians, but only the frontier
people in the neighbourhood of (uéxpu) Ethiopia. In
our inscription the king is lord not only of the Him-
yaro-Sabæan kingdom, but also of Ethiopia. The
mention of Ethiopia after the Homerites and Raydan,
and before the Sabæans and Salhîn, as Dillmann has
already rightly remarked, shows that it is only a
question of an appanage of the Himyarite kingdom,
which, after the conquest of the mother country, falls
ipso facto into the conqueror's hands.
Now, from the author of the “Periplus of the Red
Sea’ we learn that in his time (A.D. 64) Azania was
under the suzerainty of the Himyar kings of Zafâr.
This territory appears to have been included with
INSCRIPTIONS FROM YEHA AND AKSUM
247
Ethiopia. The word Ethiopia, which at different
times has had quite a different geographical significa-
tion, has created much confusion in the investigation
of historical facts. Originally it may have signified
all the countries south of Egypt, and Herodotus again
placed it further south. In the inscription of Adulis
it signifies a district lying south-west; and finally, in
the inscription of Aksum, it appears to be identical
with Azania. In the middle ages Ethiopia was for the
first time used to describe all the territories which
the former kings of Aksum had conquered.
The word Habashat had a similar fate to that of
Ethiopia. The Arabians meant by it the kingdom
which we now call Abyssinia, but against that there is
no doubt that in our inscription it signifies Ethiopia in
the sense which we have defined it above. It need not
be said that the kingdom of Aksum is not designated
by it, and it is to be remarked that the word Habashat
appears here for the first time in an Ethiopian text.
On the other hand, we find Arabian writers use it
several times in Sabaan-Himyaritic inscriptions.
The chief places are these : Firstly, in Glaser's
collection, No. 828–30, in his sketches, p. 188, which
have only just been published and explained by
J. H. Mordtmann. My interpretation varies somewhat
from those of Glaser and Mordtmann, who also differ
strongly from one another. In my opinion this in-
scription was erected by Alhan Nalfân, King of the
Sabæans, and the general purport is as follows :
‘Alhân Nalfan King of Saba dedicates to the
God Ta'lab a wide stretching district . with
248
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
all belonging to it, water rights, fortifications and
terraces as far as the column and pillar, and all the
vallies and vegetable lands as far as this column,
&c. as a sign of thanksgiving and praise that
Gadarat King of the Habashat has made a treaty of
arms and contract with him in order to make him
his brother; and this brotherhood between him and
Gadarat and the host of the Abhashan was perfect,
and they plighted themselves to make war and peace
together against everyone who should raise them-
selves up against them as enemies, and that they
should become brothers truly and faithfully. Salhin
(the house of the King of Saba) and Zurarai (the
house of this King of the Habashat) and Alhân
(King of Saba) and Gadarat (King of the Habashat)
all one with another; and they gave thanks that
their brotherhood had become perfect with the King
of the Habashat, as their brotherhood was perfect
with Jada ab Ghailan, King of Hadramaut before
this dedication, &c.
The four words Salhin, Zuraran, Alhân, and
Gadarat are very important. Alhân we know to have
been King of Saba, and Gadarat King of Hadramaut.
Salhin is the well-known name of a castle of the
Kings of Saba mentioned on the Aksum inscription.
So we can well perceive that Zuraran stands in the
same relation to the King of Habashat as Salhin to
the King of Saba ; in other words that Zuraran is the
name of a castle of a King of the Habashat. That
this king had not common property with the King
of Aksum appears to me evident. This inscription,
>
INSCRIPTIONS FROM YEHA AND AKSUM
249
which is the most important of Glaser's collection,
comes from the chief sanctuary of Ta'lab in Rigan.
Secondly, another inscription from this neigh-
bourhood also mentions the Habashat (“Sabäische
Denkmäler,' No. 9), and in other places in Glaser's
sketches, there are further allusions to expeditions
of Sabæan leaders against the Habashat in Yemen,
and he also alludes to later texts in which these
people are mentioned.
Lastly, the inscription of Hisn Gharâb must be
mentioned, which runs as follows :—Samyafa' Ashwa,
and his sons :. . have inscribed this memorial in
the fortress Mawigat [= Hisn Gharâb] when they
rebuilt their walls and their ... and their water
tank, and their mountain path, and fortified them-
selves therein, after they had conquered the Haba-
shat and the Abessiniei (Ahbashân) they made the
trade road to the Land of Himyar after they had
killed the King of Himyar and his relatives (princes)
the Himyarites and the Arhabistites. In the month
of Higgatên, in the year 640.
If all this is correct, then we must identify
the Homerite 'Eoqubaios with Samyafa, who, after
having killed Du Nuvas and his eight relations, as
Procopius (I. 20) says, was raised to the rank of a
tributary king by Elesbaas (Ela-Asbeha) the king of
Aksum. The circumstances described in this in-
scription, namely, the murder of the Himyarite king
and his relations by Habashat, as Jos. Halévy was the
first to show, refers to the murder of Du Nuvas.
We see, therefore, at about the year 515 A.D. the
250
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
Himyar Samyafa mentions the invasion of the King
of Aksum as setting out from Habashat. Therefore,
the name Habashat already was applied to the king-
dom of Aksum.
Also a Greek source gives Ahbashan as the plural
form of Habashat. Steph. Byz. says : "['Aßaonvoi
έθνος] 'Αραβίας, Ουράνιος εν 'Αραβικών τρίτω: μετά
τους Σαβαίους Χατραμώται 'Αβασηνοί και πάλιν: η
χώρη των Αβασσηνων σμύρνην και όσσον και
Ovulaua kai képtalov. Uranius says, in his third
book of the Arabica': . After the Sabæans follow the
Hadramotites Abasena,' and later on: The land of
Abasena brings myrrh, osson (KÓOtos?), incense, and
kerpat (bark of the cinnamon tree). In the Sabaan
monuments the authors place the Abasener (Ahbashan)
in the furthest myrrh region ’of Ptolemy in the land
of Madhiy of the Arabian authors, and Hamdani
(93.20) furthermore places a town in this district.
From the above points we
points we can establish the
following facts :-
1. That from the beginning of the sixth century,
A.D., the kingdom of Aksum was known by
the name of Habashat.
2. That in the middle of the fourth century, A.D.,
the Habashat were completely separate from,
but tributaries of the kings of Aksum.
3. The Habashat were for a long period some-
times at war and sometimes allied to the
kings of Saba, and often made raids into
the Arabian kingdom.
In order now to bring these various significations
INSCRIPTIONS FROM YEHA AND AKSUM
251
into unity with each other, I imagine the development
of this word to be as follows: Habashat, from the
root H.B.S š, “to collect,' meaning originally · union,
“society,' of Sabæan and Himyarite merchants, whose
object was to exploit the incense and cinnamon coun-
tries. The chief scene of the activity of the Company
was the African coasts, the incense coast of Barbaria,
and further south on the coast-line which is described
as Azania. The Company had, however, also depôts
in various parts of Arabia, where they organised
themselves—as, for example, in the land of Mahdig. .
The lands situated on the African coast were known
to the Sabæans under the name of Habashat; in
earlier times the coast depôt district of Adulis, where
it is known that they had factories, may have been
included under this term. When the Aksumite kings
took possession of the whole of the coast district,
they then appear as the rightful successors of the
Habashat, and they would not give the name of
Habashat to the inconsiderable Aksum, but to the
mother country, whose worth they had already learnt
to prize. The development of the history of these
lands, from several points of view, is therefore to be
found impressed in both these words, Ethiopia and
Habashat.
The peculiar worth and peculiar significance and
importance of this old Semitic version of the inscrip-
tion of Aksum lies not so much on the historical side,
as that had been learnt already from the Greek text,
but in the script and language, about which we shall
speak later.
252
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
No. 2. The King's INSCRIPTION OF Aksum. (Impression
by Mr. Bent.)
Amongst Bent's most important finds is the
twenty-nine-lined inscription of Aksum, which also
is in Sabæan script from right to left. In distinction
to the bilingual of Aksum (No. 1), it is most ex-
tremely carefully worked and in a certain manner
adorned. The letters are neither obliterated nor
destroyed in spite of the extreme fineness of the
engraving, and the signs covering the stone are,
with very few exceptions, easily legible. What very
much diminishes the value of this inscription is the
fragmentary condition of the stone : the first six
lines lack a third part on the right-hand side ; from
the sixth line downwards, on the right and left-hand
side, half is lacking; the first five lines contain the
title of the king, which we can complete from the
bilingual inscription of Aksum and from both the
Gez inscriptions. From this we learn that the lines
had about thirty signs, in each of which in the upper
part of the inscription there remain ten, and in the
lower from fifteen to sixteen. How many lines are
missing below we cannot even guess.
The alphabet belongs, as that of the bilingual
inscription, to the latest period of the Sabæan epoch.
The sign 8 (th) does not occur; on the contrary &
(sh) does, which in Bent No. 1 is not to be found.
Besides this, there are two new signs, differentiated
from older ones, of which we will speak later on.
The next thing is to decide upon the relative age
INSCRIPTIONS FROM YEHA AND AKSUM
253
of this inscription. We must date it, on palæo-
graphic and linguistic grounds, between the bilin-
gual inscription and the two Gez inscriptions. It
need hardly be said that it is older than the Gez
inscription, where the formation of the old Ethio-
pian writing is fully carried out. That it is later
than the bilingual inscription is proved by the lack
of a Greek translation. The speech and script had
meanwhile taken a national character. This is not
only shown in the absence of a Greek translation,
but in the abandonment of older Sabaan words and
formations. Thus in the bilingual inscription we
have the earliest word for king (malik), whilst here
we have almost exclusively the word negous intro-
duced. The old Semitic word bin, “the son of,' is
here supplanted by the later “walad. This in-
scription shows also resemblance to the Gez inscrip-
tion, for neither of them has the addition kai
AĽOlórwv, so characteristic of the bilingual, and in
both the Bega stand before the Kasu. In the phra-
seology of the inscription I find certain echos of the
Gez inscription, of which I must here quote one,
No. 4: 'and when I raised myself up, I sent to him
ambassadors who should make known to him.
and similarly in No. 2: “and when he had raised
himself up he sent ambassadors to the King of .
and of Kasu, in order to say to him (?).
The conclusion that this inscription dates be-
tween the bilingual and Gez inscriptions is proved
by the name of a king, who, if I do not mistake
in reading A in the first line, should be written
254
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
S1801812 which I read Ela" Amîda”. And
We recall that the erector of the two Gez inscriptions
calls himself Zana, son of Elâ Amida. So if this
reading is correct, the erector of the inscription is
the same Ela Amida who was the father of the
erector of both the Gez inscriptions.
As far as the fragmentary condition of the in-
scription and the many doubtful words admit of an
opinion, this monument describes a war against the
Kasu, from which much booty was gained, after a
bloody slaughter of the enemy.
1
ון
בן
גון
Translation of No. 2.
1. [This inscription was erected] and established
by Ela" Amida”.
2. (King of Ak]sum" and of Homer" and of
Raydan
3. [and of Sabam] and of Salh[in]" and of Tiyam™
(and
4. of Bega and of] Kas”, King of Kings, son [of]
5. Mahrem, who is never triJumphed over by his
foes. After he had raised himself up, he sent
6. [ambassadors to the King of ...] and of
Kasu, when he spake (?)..
and after they had come to their brave
ones (?)
8.. to their insinuations. .
9. and after having put them in order, and
sent them
10. .. he brought them here with their tribute,
and .
7. .
No. II.
I.
5. 6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
II.
.
12.
3
০
[4.
HIH | | 117।
2. [5 k f}T I X } [ #1 | X o| I 1 [hhS16
3. ১০]] n [ 7 & X ০০ । # 111 | X ০০ [1 ॥ 1 || 11 | X o|
4. | প 1০| 1X771 | ১11T | X6 [I J X ০০ | T 10।ধ X
oc] ১৩। J 11X1 T} B 1 I h০০ [ I X 1 1 1 } # ]
k 71 0 0 71 1 6 1 X ০ |
[] ০০ [PI1০ | 18] ০০ | | ০০
| | XoX ০1 | X H 111
০ 12 ০ . [ ৩}}X
] ০}}X ০ ০ ০
f ০X + [] { ২। [ 1 { |
| | 11 | J 1 ] 11 | X
| ০ ০ ০ ৭ ০ ০০ | ০}}X ০ |
11 | J8 | ০ ০ ০২+Tধia []
X ০1 | ০ ০ ২ ০০1 |
}1০ |
I5.
{ 0 1 ]} 1 | ধ + D]
২ ] 1 1 1 1 0 1 | |}
{ | 118 on 0 X 1 1 1 1
8.
X 0 0 1 1 1 1 [ ] } + ০০ |
{1 1 1 1 IT Tk 1 1 0 0
0 21 {} [] | 1০ |
[ If alw | ধh 1 1 1 w I
[ {০ ০ XX ৰ 16 [[]
|| H I k| X 1 1 1 1 1 1.
২৭ [] ০০1 | ৭ দ 11 1 0 + ০
০ ০ T U c০ ০}১০ | 1]
o k০ I 7 8 I 6 ০০ | | J}X
| 0 1 0 1 2111 1 1 1 [
X7 ] } ] [ 11 ৰ ১০ |
. X ১০।
6.
17,
19..
?
20.
2.
০
22.
23.
24.
25.
26.
27.
৪
28.
29.
INSCRIPTIONS FROM YEHA AND AKSUNI
255
18..
11. . [and as they con]cealed (?) their camels
with their ..
12. . . . after he had ordered and sent them
13. . . . whilst they brought speaking and dumb
(men and cattle)
14. they all (?) and then ordered them.
15. (after they had warrjed upon their land,
after they had come to them
16. .
17.. and with them. ,
and their youths to four ...
19.. · their camp, when they had come to
them
20.. their district and their neighbourhood
(?)
21. ... when he
when he had completed them and was
come to them.
22. , when they had come to their walls and
farms (?)
23. [and he brought] them to a condition
of annihilation
24. . . . he gave them their (?) riches and .
25.. their camels, and he ordered them (?)
and sent
26.. their ... and their overthrow of the
foes (?
27. . and with them their King, and he fled
to them (?)
28. and with them their doorkeeper (?)
29. and ..
•
•
.
1
256
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
No. 3. Impression by Mr. Bent—Copies by Dr. E.
Rüppell and others.
In the year 1808 Mr. Salt discovered, in the
rubbish heaps of Aksum in proximity to the cele-
brated Greek inscription, three large limestone
tablets, each of which is 4 ft. 2 in. long, 1 ft. 8 in.
wide, and 5 in. thick, and on which old Ethiopian
inscriptions were engraved and remained more or
less in a good state of preservation. These have
been preserved in the house of a deftera at Aksum
in his granary, where they have escaped wilful
destruction.
Dr. Edward Rüppell copied the same in 1833,
and sent copies to Europe; but all his exertions to
get them translated by the celebrated European
orientalists, Silvester de Sacy, J. T. Platt of London,
and Herr Hoffmann in Jena, and by Abyssinian
priests, failed. In the year 1838 Dr. Rüppell pub-
lished the two best preserved in facsimile amongst
the illustrations of his travels in Abyssinia. By the
help of these copies Prof. Roedige succeeded in
deciphering a portion of them, and published his
results in the Allgemeine Litteratur-Zeitung. He gave
a consecutive translation of the first, and explained
several points of the second inscription, which was
larger but worse preserved. A rather fantastic but
in many respects correct translation was in the
meantime made by an Abyssinian priest in Cairo, ,
and Dr. Riippell published in the second volume of
his travels in Abyssinia both the translations from
INSCRIPTIONS FROM YEHA AND AKSUM
257
his
copy, and accompanied them by some remarks.
A considerable advance was made in the deciphering
of the inscriptions, especially the second one, in an
article by A. Dillmann in the Zeitschrift der Deutschen
Morgenländische Gesellschaft. (Vol. vii. 355 ff, 1853.)
With the exception of the Lazarist missionary
Sapeto who has made a fanciful translation of the
second inscription, and a professed copy of the same
on the spot which he however never published, only
M. Antoine d’Abbadie, of the many travellers who
have visited Abyssinia, attempted a revised copy.
In the year 1838 he copied them for the first time,
and took a second copy in 1842 and revised this
with the aid of a lettered Ethiopian five years later.
The results of these researches he set forth in a
paper in the Académie des Inscriptions et Belles Lettres.
(Series iv. Tom. v. p. 14–30 and 186–201.) In con-
sequence of this, Herr A. Dillmann in his treatise
on the origin of the Aksumite kingdom 1 took the
question up again and dealt with the two inscrip-
tions on pages 210–226, and made a series of fortu-
nate linguistic suggestions. He made the following
appeal to European travellers : Of all the numerous
European travellers who year by year visit Abys-
sinia, not a single one has been found to help science
so much as to take an impression of these important
documents, and I cannot forbear to express an
earnest wish that this may yet come to pass before
the inscriptions are entirely obliterated; as well also
1 Abhandlungen des königl. Akademie der Wissenschaften.
Berlin, 1878.
S
258
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
of other inscriptions which are yet visible and may
be found by seeking and excavations, so that they
may be more easily understood.'
Before I give the original text of the old Ethio-
pian inscriptions from the impressions brought back
by Mr. Bent, I must remark that the reading of the
first inscription and the translation of the same was
furthered by the zealous endeavours of d’Abbadie.
On the contrary, his copy of the second inscription
is far behind Rüppell's in accuracy.
D'Abbadie
appears to have depended far more on his Abys-
sinian assistant, and far too little on his own eyes,
when he says: “the copy of the inscription made by
Rüppell is so full of faults, that it was hardly any
use to us in our attempt at translation. This fact
proves the uselessness of his copy, which Dillmann
perceived with his fine critical tact.
It will easily be understood that many of Dill-
mann's hypotheses are satisfactorily verified by Mr.
Bent's impressions; whilst others, on the contrary,
are set aside. It was no light or mean service on
his part to give us such a relatively good text from
the copies of Rüppell and d'Abbadie.
i
No. 3
Translation.
1. ... Zaná, son of Ela-Amidâ, the man of
2. Halen, King of Aksum, and of Homêr
3. and of Raydan, and of Saba, and of Sal-
4. -hen and of Tsiyâmô and of Bejâ and of Kas
Inscription at Aksum
BoECKH, Corpus inscript. iii. 515.
1
2
3.
5.
6
7.
δ.
10.
12
13.
14
AE1ZANA BACΙΛΕΥ ΑΖΟΜΙΤΩΝ ΚΑΙ
(ΟΜΗΡΙΤΟΝ ΚΑΙ ΤΟΥ ΡΑΕΙΔΑΝ ΚΑΙ ΑΙ Θα
& ΟΠΟΝ ΚΑΙCΑΒΑΕΙ ΤΟΝ ΚΑΙ ΤΟΥ CΙΛΕ
A ΚΑΙ ΤΟΥΤΙΑΜ ΚΑΙ ΒΟΥΤΑΕΙ ΤΟΝ ΚΑΙ ΤΟ
ΚΑΟΥ BACHΛEYC BAcfΔΕΝ ΥΙΟСθε
ANIKHTOV APEWC ATA KTH CANT WN
KATA KALPQwToY covoro TWN BOTTACI
ΤωΝ ΑΠές ΥΑΛΑ ΜΕΝ ΤoΥC ΗΜΕΤΕΡΟΥ
9. ΑΔΕΛΦΟΥ ΑΙΑΖΑΝΑ ΚΑΙ ΤΟΝ ΑΔΗ φ Α.
OY TOYς ΠολεM HCΑΙ ΚΑΙ ΠΑΡΑΔΕΔω
KoTwΝ ΑΥΤΟΝ ΥΠΟΤΑΖΑΝΤ&C ΑΥΤΟΥ
Η ΓΑΙΟΝ ΠΡΟC Η MACMETA KAI TONθPE
MATWN AYTWN BOCNTE XIB KAIP
ΒΑΤΩΝ ΚΔ ΚΑΙ ΚΤΗΝωΝ NOTοφο Ρω
15. B PEYANTEC AY TOYC BOECINTE KALENIC TX
16. MWAN NaN NOTIZONTEC AVOTOYCZYTA TE
ΚΑ1 ΌINO KAI YAPEY MW CIN ΠΑΝΤΑ ICXOP
TACIAUTINEC HCAN TON APIOMON BACO,
CKo1Εξ, (ΥΝΤω οΧΛΟ ΑΥΤΟΝ ΤΟΝ ΑΡΙΘΜοΝ
20. INONEYOMENOI KNEIA CYHN HOXE PAN A.
Y(CITINOYC MB. KUMON ENIMHN A Knuth me
%AXΡειζOY AWA ΓΥC NAYTOYOΠPOCHMAC
W YN AWP.HCAMENWAYTOIC MANTAN
ΜΕ
I HATA KOMPIACANTEC AVTOVC.METOIKHCAN
KATECTHCAMENTINA TOMONTHCHMER PACX
αδΑΚΑΛΟΥΜΕΝΟΝ ΜAΤΛΙΑ ΚΕΚΛEY IN EN AVE
TOYC NAAN ANNWNEYECOAITTAPACX MENOR,
28. Tolc€ZACIN BACIΛΕICKoίc BoA: ΜΕ ΥΠΕΡΔΕ,
EXAPICTIAC TOV. DV INNHCANTOCANIKHTIYAPEW
Ww EOKAAYTW ANAPIANTA XPYCOVIA KAD
ΠΗ
κ. ΓΕΝΝΗλόμενάκη
2.
18.
19.
21
23.
24.
25.
26.
27.
29.
30
31.
INSCRIPTIONS FROM YEHA AND AKSUM
259
No. 8. TEXT.
8.
0
•
1. ዘ ና | ወ ል ዳ | አ ለ 1 0 ዳ | ብ እ ስ የ
2. []ሌኒ | ኒኪ ሠ | አክሱD | ወ ዘ | ሕጫና |
8 [ው] ዘ | ና ይ ደ ነ | 9 H | ሰ በ አ ወ ዘ | ዕ ል
ሔነ | 0ዞ | ድቃሞ | ወዘ | ብ 2 | ወ ዘ| ኣዕ \
5. [9]ል ዳ | B ሕ ና ® | ዘ አ ደ ት መ ወ | ለ
6. ፀ ና | ፁ ብ ኩ | ና ኔ | መ ን ግ ዎ ቸ ው | 1
7. ደ] ኒ | ቤ | ሳ ፍ 0 1 | 9 ቀ ተ ል | ና ዐ
8 | ወ ሌ ም ዝ | ፀ በ እ ና ኡ | ወ እ መ ቀ ይ
9. ፊ ነ ው ነ | ሐ ራ ዎ ት | ዕ ና ቄ | ሕ ዘ\ ወ
10. ዕ ና ዌ | ዲ ስ ነ | 0 ዕ ና ዌ | ሐ ራ | ወ ላ ሌ
ii. i | ተ
ና | ተ ለ ው ና ወ ጎ ደ ና ና | ም ግ ባ ላ | D
12. ን ድ | ዑ ላ ሃ | ወ ስ ው ፈ ና ና | ሰ ራ ዊ ተ
13. ና | ወ ቀ ተ ል ይ | ወ 4 ወ ው ዎ | 9 B ህ ረ
14. ከ 2 | ወ ቀ ት ል ና | ሐ ዕ ኔ | 9 ጰ ወ ን ተ |
15. ወ ጮ | ወ ዘ ሐ ተ ና ለ እ ና በ ዕ ቱ | እ ና
16. ደ [ ወ አ ዝ \ ኣ ቤ ት ሃ | መ ስ ለ | ከ
17. ልኬ | ደ ቁ | ወ ጥ ና | ቀተለ ዕ ድ | ዘ[አደ]
18. 1 | የ [ ወ እት | 8 የ 8 | ወ ኮ | ን የ 4
19. 4 ዋ | ዕ ደ | ወ ስ ን ሰ ተ | . . . | 1 0 ዝ | ዕ
20. ድ | ማ | 9 አ ስ ት | ወ ደ ቄ ቅ የ ፕ ሩ |
21. ኮ ና | 8 የ £ | ጮ ህ ር ከ | ህ ም | [ B | የ ህያ
22. ማ ረ | እ ን ስ ታ | 0 0 ደ | T የ ጽ . . |ተ
| ወ ት
28. Bይ ጠ | ደኝና | ምስላ | ከሕዛበ | [ከ]ደ [3 |]
24. 0 ተ ከ ለ| ► ነ በ ረ| በ ዝ ም | በ መ ደ |
25. ከ ወ ሕ ፀ ነ ጮ | ለ 0 ስ ተ ና | ወ ለ በ ሩ ሩ
26. ጽ ጽ | ወ ለ መ ድ ና | ው እ መ ቦ | ዘ ና መ ቸ |
ና ቀ ሌ | ው እ ቱ 0 በ ሔ ሩ | ወ ዘ መ ዱ | ለ
28. ፈ ተ ና ቀ ል / ወ ደ ት ና መ ተ 1 አ ብ ሔ ሬ
29. ለ ደ ማ እ | 0
ተ ተ ሰ ለ መ ሐ
80. ና ም ዘ ወ ደ ና . ® . ለ 3 B | የ
27.
s 2
260
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
5. Son of Mahrem (Mars), who is not triumphed
over by
6. his foes. They advanced against the destroyer
of their kingdom, A-
7. [da]n, at the time of the overpowering and
murder of (our) merchants.
8. So we took the field against him, and from
Mekada
9. we sent the troops, the troop Mahaza and
10. the troop Dakan, and the troop Harâ, and we
11. ourselves followed after, and encamped at
the gathering place of the warrior
12. host in Alâ, and we sent out our army,
13. and they killed him (the enemy), made
prisoners and boo-
14. -ty, and we slaughtered down Sanî and
Tsawanto
15. and Gêmâ, and Zahtan, four nations,
16. and we took prisoners, Alîta, with both his
17. sons.
And the number of the slaughtered
men of A[dan] amounted to
18. 503, and the women 202, total 705
19. Prisoners of men and women of the camp
followers, men
20. 40, and women and children 165, to-
21. -tal 205. Booty of oxen 31,900 and
22. 47, and small cattle about 80,000. And he
23. returned back safe with the people of
[A]da[n],
24. and raised up the throne here in Sadâ
and
INSCRIPTIONS FROM YEHA AND AKSUM
261
25. placed it under the protection of Astar anil
of Barra-
26. -ts and of the Earth. And if anyone de-
stroys it and
27. roots it up, so shall he and his country and
his race be
28. rooted up and destroyed from out of his
country
29. Let him offer... to Mah
30. -rem who has begotten me . bulls 100.
Remarks on the Above.
It is not by chance that in these inscriptions the
names of the Abyssinian king and of his opponent
are obliterated. The king who sought to perpetuate
his fame in future ages, has been worked against
from the enemy's side. In the lapse of time a suc-
cessor of the enemy came to the throne of Aksum,
who wished to obliterate the name of his vanquished
ancestor as well as that of the victor. He did not
dare to take out the whole name for fear of a curse
which might fall upon the destroyer, so he changed
the name to Tazena, a name which appears on the
list of Ethiopian kings. Originally, as far as I can
read, stood Zana and not Zena, and this name is
clearly that of the victorious king. We are more
fortunate with the name of his opponent, for it ap-
pears three times on the stone ; in each place it is
mutilated, but by comparing all the three places we
can easily put together the name of Adan.
The title of the king on this tablet differs from
262
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
.
Αιθιόπων. .
the title of the king on the Greek inscription and its
Ethiopian reverse (No. 1) in two points. Firstly, in
the addition of the words “man of Halen.' In view
of the Greek influence which reigned in Aksum, and
in remembrance of the remark of the Periplus about
king Zoskalis, και γραμμάτων Ελληνικών έμπειρος, it
has been attempted to translate the Ethiopian phrase
Be 'sja Halen as piléinu, but already Dillmann has
rightly spoken against this rendering. According
to my idea the term applies to the representative of
a nome or race. • The man of Halen' means of the
race or nome of Halen. The second difference is in
the absence of the words - Waza Habaset,'translated
into Greek on the bilingual inscription as kai
The leaving out of this term is very
remarkable, for this term, occurring as it does in the
Inscriptions 1 and 2, proves that the opinion that
the Abyssinians did not know the word, but were
called Habaset only by the Arabians, is incorrect.
The theatre of the campaign alluded to in this
inscription appears, as d’Abbadie supposes it to be,
the province of Adiabo, where a place called Mikada
now exists.
The reading Em-mekada is certain, and
Em-kedma is quite excluded. The determination of
the locality of the battle rests only on this inscrip-
tion, and cannot, as d’Abbadie makes out, be placed
by the second inscription. After having sent the
troops forward from Mekada, the king followed him-
self, and camped at the gathering place of the troops
in Ala (not Ulaha); curious as the word sounds,
angad can only be translated “race.'
INSCRIPTIONS FROM YEHA AND AKSUM
263
1
By Sada (line 24) is probably meant the long
line of pedestals, which are found close to the spot
where the inscription came from, and which were
set up as monuments by the kings, forming a kind of
field of Mars.
This throne or monument and the inscription
were placed under the protection of the gods. As it
was the custom to place the Sabæan inscriptions
under the protection of three gods, Athar, Wadd,
and Nakrah, so also this monument was placed under
the protection of three gods, at the head of whom is
Astar, a male god, as he is also in Sabaan. Of the
other two gods, one is Medr, an earth god, and the
other is, curiously enough, the god Barrats (toni-
trans, micans), about whom we shall have more to
say in the remarks on the next inscription.
;
No. 4. Impression by Mr. Bent. Copies by Herr
Rüppell and M. d'Abbadie.
Of this inscription, as I have already said, there
is a translation by Sapeto which proves itself to be
a simple phantasy of the speculative Lazarist mis-
sionary. The most glaring instance is the translation
of the first line, which according to Sapeto is, ' By
the power of God, who spreads out the sky and the
earth, God in eternity who has made Tazena king.'
Also d'Abbadie has found in the first line (in which
Rüppell only believed he could recognise two letters),
1 king of Aksum and of Hamâ . . . Saba'. n.
In reality there is in this supposed first line, as
one can convince oneself absolutely by Mr. Bent's
264
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
-
squeeze, nothing at all, only some crookednesses and
flaws in the stone, which with some fancy can be
looked upon as letters, but are really nothing. The
inscription, therefore, consisted of fifty-one and not
fifty-two lines, but to avoid confusion I have retained
the old reckoning. There may, however, have been
two more lines, for the inscription begins with the
name of the king, like No. 1, and like the bilingual
of Aksum (Salt-Bent). I cannot here undertake an
analysis of the text, and a close examination into the
reading of d’Abbadie, but hope to do so on a future
occasion.
That I have appreciated the excellent work of
Dillmann, and what is of value in d’Abbadie's copy,
need not be said. I think, however, out of Mr.
Bent's impression, after repeated and careful trial, I
have been able to read much which neither Rüppell
nor d'Abbadie and his interpreter could read, and to
decipher a great deal of the rest more clearly and
with greater understanding.
No. 4.
Translation.
1. Irregularities in the stone.
2 2. . . . Nà, son of Ela-amidâ, man of Halen, king
of Aksum, and of Home-
3. -r and of Raydân, and of Saba, and of Salhên,
and of Tseyâmô, and of Begâ, and
4. of] Kasu. King of kings, son of Ela-Amidâ,
who is never triumphed over by his foes.
No. IV.
1.
2. ኖ | ወልደ | አለ | 0ሜደ | ብዕe | ሕልን | ን ጉ ሠ | ኣከኔ ጮ | ወዘ| ሕጫ
8. ና][ ወ ዘ | ደደን | ወ ዘ | ሰስእ | ወ ዘ ] ሰልሳን | ወ ዘ ] 8 ያ P | ወ ዘ | ብ 5 | 0
4. ዘ ]]ከሴ | ን ጉ ሠ | ናገምት ወልደ | አለ10ሜዳ } ዘ[ላ]የት ጨዋ ል | ለፀ ና
5. [ፀብስ | በኀ] | አ[ግዚ]| ዕማደ | ዘወሀበር | መናግመተ | ዘአሕዛብ] | ወልደ |
6 6. [መ ሐ ና]ጮ | ዘላ ደ ት መ ዋ | ላፅ ና | ቀ ድ የ | ዕ ደቁ ም | 0 ና
ፀ ና | 0
7. ተ ለ| ፀ ረ | በ ኀ ደ | እግዚ አብ ሔ ና ፀ በልኩ | ኖ ባ | ሶ ዐ [ገ 0 ]
•8. • ሕዘሰ | | ዕቤ / ተመከሕ | ወሊደ[OድO]] መተከዚ / ያ . . | ቀ ዘ .
19. . | ኖ ባ | ሰ በ | ባ 401 ኣሕዛ በ | መ ን ተ ና[e] | ወ ደ ዕ | ወ ስ ቲያ | ወ ጸረ ና
10. Jበ ዕፊ ጸ ሕ | ፀብስ | ወ ስማዕ ና ኪዕ በ | ወ ሀ ል | ለ ጮ
11. . ዕ ከ ሪ » | ደ ቀ ተ ል | እ ጎ ፈ ጸ | ወ ት ና ኢ ኣ ዚ ህ ወ ስ ዋ ያ ተ |[ፍ ና]
12 ጮኩ | ሎ ተ | ደ ዕ ጮ ዕ ድ | ሄ ደ ጮ | ወ በ ራቢ ና ጮ | ን ዋድድ | 0 ቸ ው |
18. ወ ደ ጮ] | ሶ ቤ | ላሊከያና | ሊዕ ጽ0ና | ወ ስበያ | ጎ ደ ባ ቤ ተ [ ጠ
l4. [ ወ ት ን ል ባ | ስ ም ዝ | 0 በ አ ከመ ው ነ ው ት ን ሠ አ ኪ | በ ኝ ደ ሊ| እ ግ ዚ ዕ
15. [ብ]ሔ ር | ወ ቀት ልኩ | በ ተ ከዚ ! በልዕ | ከመልኬ | ወንዝ ያ
16. ሒ ቆ b | ወተለው ኩ | ወተd | ዕ ፎ ራ| ወ ሠ ሌዕ | መዋዕለ | ከ | ን ዘ |
ቀ ተ ው | ወ ን ቤ ው ዎ | ወ ጮ ህ ረ ኮ | በ ው ደ | ን ደ ራ | H ) ፥ 8 ፋ ዋው
18. ጮ ህ ር ካ | ያ ገ ብ እ | ሕ ብ | ዘ ወ ፈ ረ / እ ን ዘ | ሕ ወ ዒ | ኢ ህ ት ሪ ጸ
19. H]ንድቀ | ወ ዘ | ሕሠና | ወ ደ በረብ ራ 1 እከሌ | ወ በረተ | ወኝ ጺ ና | []
20. ዕ | ወ ያ ማ ስኑ | ሠ ዕ ላ | ከ ብ ያ ቲ ጸ | ወ ሓ ዘ ግ ብ ት | ከ ል | 9 ጡ ሲ | ያ
21. ጽድቄ ይ | ሙዕተ | ፍ ለገ ሴ 4 | ወብ ዙ ኝ | ሞተ | በ ው ስ ተ | ደ | ዘ[ሊ ዕ]
22. እ]ጮ : \ ጸ ል ቀ ወ ን ዘ | ዕ ላ ማ ሪ ሆ ► | ያ ሰ ጠ ጡ | እ ን ዘ | መ ለዕ | ዕ ፊ
23. ን | ው ስ ቴ ቱ | ኢ ን ስት | ወ ዕ ድ | ወ ዜ ወ ዉ | ገ ብ ት / ክ ል እ ተ | ሶ በየ
24. መ ጽ ኡ | ስ ደ ን ተ | እ ን ዘ ደ ጰ 0 ኑ ! ዕ ና በ ዕ ተ / ወ ስ ሰ ሚ ቲ ህ D |
25. [c]ሴከ 10 | ቡታሌ 10 | ወስንገቤና | ወ [ ዘሕና | 01 ወ እሴሞተ | ብት
86. ደናከ |o | ደገሌ | 01 | | ሐዊሬ |o! ከናኮና | 0መፈሆጮ [[o |
17.
27. ሰ ል / 9 ሰ ለ በ ወ | ቀ ደ ደ | ብ ሩና | ወ ዕቀት 1 ወርቅ | ኮሩ | ሳ ብተ | እለ |
28. ሞቱ | £ ወማረ | 0 | ወበጸሐኩ | ከሴ | እንዘ | እቀተሎሙ | ወእደ[መቀጮ | በ]
29. B በ ር ተ / ስ ላ ግ | ዘ ሴ ደ 1 ወ ት ከ ሲ | ወ በ ሰ ተ | በ 8 ሕ ኩ [ሩ ና ]
30. [ኩ]] መ መ ደ | ሰ ና ዌ | Dሕዛ | ና ዌ | ሐ ራ | ወ ደ ጮ ወ ] ወፋለስ | ወጸረና |
31. ቅ ል ዕ ል ተ | ሲ ሳ ሴ ስ ህ ኑ ! ን ድ ቀ | ወ ዘ | ሠ ና | ስስ ማ ተ | ጸ !
82. [Hን ድ ቀ | አልወ | 01 ደ ና ! 0 | ወቀት ሌ | ወ 4 0 0 1 0 ዕጽ ደ ፋ ውስተ |
83. ማ ይ | ወ ደ ኝ ነ | ተ ው | አፍ ሪ ሆ | 0 ና ው | ወ ® ዋ ስጮ | በ ደ ሊ| እግ
34. ዚ ኣብ ሔ ና | ወ መ ኔ ጸ | ፍ ነ ው ኩ | ከ ረ ዌ | ሕ ል ኝ | ወ ዕ ና ዌ | ደ ከኝ | ወ
3፩. ሰ ና ዌ | ሰ በ ሬት | ወ ፋ ል ኪ | ወ ጽ ሬ ን | ቃ ተ ኸ ተ | ሴ ደ | ስ ህ ኑ ረ | ኖ ባ | H
36. ሕu ርl 0 1 ሩ ከ 1 0 1 አ ህ ሩ ረ / ድ ቀ | ዛከረ ወ ኖ በ 1 ና ሀዛት 1 0 1 8 .
INSCRIPTIONS FROM YEHA AND AKSUM
265
5. [In the strength of the Lord] of the heavens,
who has bestowed the lordship over the people, to
the son
6. of Mahrem who is never triumphed over by
his foes. Before me shall no enemy stand, and
7. . . . no enemy. In the strength of the Lord
of the world, I led the war against the Nuba, when
[they practised
8. violence] the people of Nuba, when they
boasted and did not cross the Takaze river. ...
The people
9. of Nuba ...
in that they did violence to the
peoples (under my protection] and .. and ..
hewed down
10. with axes, and ravaged for the second time,
and third time the .
11. . . . killed his frontier neighbour. And
when I arose and sent ambassadors to him
12. in order to point out to him that they robbed
and plundered my possessions, and lay in wait
13. and shed [blood and] when he heeded not
our embassy, and delayed to depart and return
14. and to withdraw himself, then I took the
field against him, and arose in the strength of the
Lord of the world,
15. and I smote them at the Takaze beyond
Kamalkê. And then when they
16. withdrew themselves to à distance, then fol-
lowed I [during] three and twenty days, during
which I
17. smote him, and took from him prisoners and
266
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
booty, and took away from where the prisoners
dwelt
18. booty, and during which my people returned
who had gone to the war, and during which I burnt
their towns
19. of mason work and of straw, and they plun-
dered his crops and his iron and his ore and his cop-
20. -per, and destroyed the pictures (or statues)
in his temple, and the provisions of heaped up corn,
and threw
21. them into the river Seda, and many were
drowned in the water, who did not under-
22. -stand how to swim (?) because their boats
sank being full of a quantity
23. of men and women. And they made pri-
soners leaders of the same, as
24. they came on as spies, as they rode, four,
and their names are
25. Tesêka 1, Butalê 1, Engabênâ 1, Zahan 1,
and the leaders who perished were
26. Tenak 1, Dagalê 1, Azak 1, Hawîrê 1,
Karkâr ; their priest (or seer)
27. sal; and they took from him (as booty) a
chain of silver and a casket of gold. There were of
leaders
28. who perished five, and one priest, and I
reached to the Kasu and smote them and annihilated
them
29. at the confluence of the rivers Seda and
Takaze. And the day after I had arrived I sent out
30. a marauding party, the troop Mabaza and
INSCRIPTIONS FROM YEHA AND AKSUM
267
the troop Harâ, and they shed blood, and they
and they laid waste
31. up the Seda the towns of masonwork and of
straw; the names of the towns
32. of masonry, Alva 1, Darô 1, and they killed
and took prisoner and threw into the
33. water, and came in good condition back,
after they had terrified and conquered their enemy
in the strength
34. of the Lord of the world, and thereupon I
sent the troop Halen and the troop Dakân and
35. the troop Sabarât, and they plundered and
laid waste down the Seda the Nuba towns of
36. straw (houses) four, Nagûsô 1. Towns of
masonry of the Kasu and Noba, Naszato 1. D. v
37 -r tâli 1, and reached as far as the district of
the red Nôbâ, and in good condition returned
38. my people back after that they had made
prisoners, killed and taken booty in the strength of
the Lord of hea-
39. -Ven.
And I set up my throne within the
confluence of the river Seda and
40. Takaze, in sight of the town of masonry
the island, which the Lord of heaven has
41. given me. Captive men 241, captive women
415, total 629
42. Killed were men 702, killed women and chil-
dren 156, total 800 and
43. 58. Total of the killed and imprisoned 1,487,
and the booty of oxen 5
44. and fifty and of sheep 50, 150, and I
268
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
set up my throne here at the Seda through the
strength
45. of the Lord of heaven, who has helped me
and given me my kingdom, and the
46. Lord of heaven strengthened my kingdom,
and as He has conquered for me to-day may he
henceforth
47. for me conquer wherever I may go as he to-
day has conquered for me, and I will thank him
48. Barrats by justice and by right in that I will
not oppress the people, and I place in the protection
49. of the Lord of heaven, who has made me king
and of the earth which upholds it, this throne
50. which I have erected. If any one seeks to
tear it out or overthrow it, so shall he and his family
51. be torn out and be overthrown, and from his
place shall he be uprooted. And
52. I have set up this throne in the strength of
the Lord of heaven.
Remarks on the Inscription.
Also in this inscription the name of the king, who
set it up, is mutilated; there is, however, no doubt
that it was the same king who set up the last in-
scription.
It has been thought that there are traces of a
monotheistic belief, and even of biblical phraseology,
in the altered turn of this inscription, particularly in
the appearance of Egzia Samag and Egzia bher, Lord
of heaven and Lord of the world. But this supposi-
tion is unmercifully overthrown by the reading of
INSCRIPTIONS FROM YEHA AND AKSUJI
269
lines 47-49, which have been hitherto undeciphered :
6 and I thank him Barrats, by justice and right, in
that I will not oppress the people, and this throne
which I have erected I place in the protection of
the Lord of heaven, and the earth deity. Thus the
biblical sounding phrases cannot do away with the
fact that here, as in the last inscription (lines 25 and
26), three deities appear, of whom two, Barrats
(tonitrans, micans) and Medr, appear in both inscrip-
tions, only in this one, in place of Astar, stands Egzia
Samag, Lord of the leavens.
In addition to this my completion of lines 5 and
6, “son of the unconquered Mahram (Ares, Mars)'is
practically certain. We must therefore set aside,
first of all, all previous conclusions as to the nature
of the king's religious views, which are supplied to
us by the now filled up phrase. It appears that the
god Astar was worshipped in Paho as heaven, and
had the epithet ‘Lord of heaven, under which he
appears in this inscription, and the phrase "by jus-
tice and by right' can easily be found in Assyrian,
Babylonian, and other old Semitic inscriptions of
heathen times. There is, therefore, certainly no
trace of Monotheism, Judaism, or Christianity to be
found in this inscription.
Another weighty point to be fixed is the seat
of the war mentioned in this inscription. Though
Makeda, which lies in Adiabo, is mentioned in the
last inscription, I do not think it is a reason for
placing the scene of the campaign there. In this I
follow the views of Dillmann, who places it between
270
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
the Atbara (Takazze) and the Sêda (Nile). The war
is carried on against the people of Nuba, who ad-
vanced as far as the upper Atbara, and overran ter-
ritory belonging to the kingdom of Aksum (line 8).
They repeated their daring assaults a second and
a third time, and an embassy was sent to the leader
of Nuba, whose name is mutilated (line 10), which
failed; so the king took the field and pursued the
enemy twenty-three days on the other side of the
Takazze to the Seda river, where many foes were
drowned. He then advanced against the Kasu, and
gained a victory at the confluence of the two rivers,
in the neighbourhood of the present Damer. Up the
Seda he sent out marauding parties, and amongst
others the towns of Aloa and Daro were overthrown.
In the first, Dillmann has recognised the town which
gave its name to the monophysist kingdom of Aloa,
with its capital Saba. Daro he identifies with the
Daron of Ptol. iv. 7, 20, and the Diaron of Pliny vi.
191. By other parties down the Saba, the towns of
the Nuba and Kasu were also overthrown, amongst
others Nagusô, Nazzâto, and ... Stati, and then
they reached the district of the red Nuba. A throne
was raised up at the confluence of the Seda and
Takazze as a sign of lordship. After the counting of
the booty, follows the customary concluding formula.
INSCRIPTIONS FROM YEHA AND AKSUM
271
PART III—On the Script and Language of the
Inscriptions.
Inscriptions in three different kinds of script and
language have now been found in Abyssinia :-
1. Those from Yeha, which represent the oldest
form of Sabæan script, and belong, according to the
letters as well as by the Boustrophedon form of
writing, to the oldest period of Sabæan history,
namely, the mukrab period.
2. Two of the inscriptions from Aksum, Nos. 1
and 2, are written in the old Semitic way from right
to left, and in an alphabet belonging to the latest
period of Sabæan history.
3. Nos. 3 and 4 are written from left to right
in an alphabet with vowel points closely resembling
later Ethiopian.
As the oldest Ethiopian manuscripts are nearly
800 years later than Nos. 3 and 4, which up to this
date were the only Ethiopian texts preserved from
ancient times, and even now are the oldest extant
specimens of writing with the inherent vowels, it can
easily be judged of the intrinsic value of these dis-
coveries. The value of these texts was greatly
lessened by the faulty copies, and it was impossible
to reach any certain conclusion therefrom on account
of the hesitating use of the vowel points. But now
that we are able to complete an authentic text of the
inscriptions from the impressions brought back by Mr.
Theodore Bent, we are in a position to say with cer-
tainty that the inherent vowel system and its written
272
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
equivalent is formed in exactly the same way as it is
in the oldest manuscript. Hence the monuments of
the kings of Aksum now for the first time rise to
their peculiar importance in respect to the history
of script and language, and a claim may now be set
up from these inscriptions to form a conception of
the old Ethiopian language when the Aksumite king-
dom was at the height of its prosperity.
The inscriptions from Yeha, as well as Nos. 1 and
2 from Aksum, place us in a position to observe the
early development of the Ethiopian language before
the reform in writing and the introduction of the
inherent vowels.
First, therefore, let us examine Nos. 1 and 2 from
Aksum, in which the inherent vowels are not found,
and discover the medium by which this peculiar for-
mation has been reached.
It has already been shown that the old Ethiopian
tongue obtained its origin from a pure Semitic source,
brought by immigrants into Abyssinia from South
Arabia. The difference which existed between the
Sabæan and North Arabian dialects and the Ethiopian
with its inherent vowels made it difficult to clearly
establish the genealogical relation of the Ethiopian
to the dialects of North and South Arabia. For ex-
ample the lack in Ethiopian of the article, which is
formed differently in different Semitic languages, and
therefore cannot have originated in any common
Semitic antiquity, has been looked upon as a sign of
its greater age. Again, from palæographic grounds
1 A. Dillmann, Grammatik der äthiopischen Sprache, S. 2.
INSCRIPTIONS FROM YEHA AND AKSUM
273
there are a few signs in the Ethiopian alphabet which
appear to approach more nearly to the Phænician
than to the corresponding Sabæan, so that some
writers have been inclined to place the emigration of
the Southern Arabians into Abyssinia at a time when
the Sabæan script and writing as it is known on the
earliest monuments was not yet formed.
The two inscriptions (Nos. 1 and 2) from Aksum
put an end to this hypothesis, and since old Sabæan
inscriptions have been found at Yeha, which certainly
belong to the oldest epoch of Sabaan writing, there
can be no doubt about the early wanderings of
Sabaan merchants into Abyssinia, for in these frag-
ments from Yeha the script is always formed just
in the way it is found on Sabæan monuments in
Southern Arabia.
The Ethiopian is, as is well known, written from
left to right, and the vowels are expressed by slight
alterations in the consonants. As it has already been
pointed out, Nos. 3 and 4 show the same construction
and shape as the later Ethiopian, but Nos. 1 and 2,
on the contrary, are still written entirely in the
Sabæan consonant writing without inherent vowels
and from right to left. An examination of the forms
of the letters of 1 and 2, and a comparison of the same
with the Himyaritic inscriptions of the same period,
leave no doubt that the Ethiopian script, before its
reformation and the introduction of inherent vowels,
had remained in continual contact with Sabaan and
had not branched off into an independent line. The
characteristic signs of the letters m, s, and w, from
T
274
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
which one can always decide the age and character
of a Sabæan inscription, show the same form in Nos. 1
and 2 as they do in the latest inscriptions from
Southern Arabia, and also show the same worn-out
and irregular characters that we get in the latest
epoch.
The remarkable fact must now be noticed that at
the reformation of the Ethiopian script an older form
of the Sabæan alphabet, probably from old documents
in the State archives of Aksum, was adopted, and
from this we may conclude that the Ethiopian writing
descends from the Sabaan as it is preserved for us in
the inscriptions. Though the Ethiopian alphabet has
fewer signs than the Sabæan, we must not imagine
that the Sabæan only took these signs after its separa-
tion from the Ethiopian, but rather that these signs
were present in old Ethiopian, but have got lost in
the lapse of time. It is known that the following five
Sabuan signs are missing in the Ethiopian alphabet :
X, 8, X, h, ], and the supposition that these signs
were only introduced into Sabæan after its separation
from Ethiopian is set aside, quite independently of
other reasons, by the fact that three of these signs
appear in the inscriptions 1 and 2, and there can be
no doubt that the other two signs also existed in the
early Ethiopian alphabet.
At the reformation of the language these five
signs were left out. The question is, why was this
done? The loss of the four sibilants, 2, th, s, and ?,
which the Ethiopian alphabet suffered at this time,
must naturally be put down to popular grounds.
INSCRIPTIONS FROM YEHA AND AKSUM
275
At the reformation of the writing and the introduc-
tion of the inherent vowels, care must of course
have been taken to set aside all superfluous sounds,
because each sign with its inherent vowels would
offer seven different variants, but all signs which
were absolutely necessary to represent certain sounds
were certainly not thrown out. Even prior to the
reformation of the language certain sounds in pro-
nunciation, and consequently in writing, were in the
process of change. In fact, in both inscriptions,
especially in the bilingual (No. 1), there is great un-
certainty in the use of the sibilants : for example, X
and H are changed with one another; 8 is constantly
written like the Ethiopian , and where 8 appears
in some places it does not stand for the sound th, but
for z. The signs X and are changed for each other
in Sabæan, so it is not to be wondered at that when
the language was reformed both of them were omitted.
The signs 77 and h appear even before the reforma-
tion of writing to have been omitted, on account of
the loss of the corresponding sounds.
Having now discussed the sound and writing of
both the earliest inscriptions of Aksum, we must
study the character of the language with respect to
formation and syntax. A first glance at the bilingual
inscription would lead us to imagine that we had a
pure Sabæan text before us, for it can immediately
be perceived that the appellatives and proper names all
terminate with a mimation (i.e. terminal m). By
degrees, however, distinct Ethiopian roots and forma-
tions appear, but mixed with Sabæan words and ter-
T 2
276
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
minations, so that one might imagine that a Sabuan
writer who did not quite understand Ethiopian had
composed them.
A closer examination, however,
reveals the fact that they are in an Ethiopian dialect
composed of older forms and turns of sentences, which
probably at the time of the composition of the in-
scription (i.e. about the middle of the fourth century
A.D.) had fallen into disuse, but had certainly been
used in former times. It is first, therefore, best to
consider the distinct Ethiopian elements, and then to
examine the apparently foreign parts, whether they
belong distinctly to Ethiopian, or have been intro-
duced from outside
As regards sound, the Ethiopian character of the
language is betokened by the absence of both sound
and sign for 's and į; furthermore, by the variable-
ness in the pronunciation of and further in the
sounds s, s, and th, and also we may remark the
interchanging of 8 with h in the words mesla, 'with’;
sedest, 'six'; anest, ' a woman’; and other peculiarities
will be alluded to elsewhere. Real Ethiopian words
and forms are these :-negûs, 'king,' pl. nagåst ;
dakik, children’; anest, 'woman’; lahm, 'cattle';
bher, 'land'; dewawa, “to lead into exile'; tamawa'a,
' to be conquered'; mesla, “with’; enda, “when’;
wêda, 'where'; tanaša'cl, to raise themselves up';
fanawa, “to send’; dawal, "district'; daga, 'present’;
sabaht, "tribute'; basaha, reached.'
Quite a remarkable peculiarity which distinguishes
the Ethiopian from the old Semitic languages is the
use of an infinitive absolute to express an accessory
ز
INSCRIPTIONS FROM YEHA AND AKSUM
277
sentence. These are found repeatedly in both in-
scriptions.
A further Ethiopian peculiarity is in the expres-
sion of the numbers 3 to 10, not by consonants but
by apposition. The only case which we have occurs
in No. 1, line 4, “six kings,' where this peculiarity
Occurs.
The apparently irregular suffix form of the third
person plural, sometimes om and sometimes hom, is
xplained by the fact that the plural in Ethiopian has
à conjunctive vowel in it after which the h is not
elided.
In the causative h sometimes appears, sometimes
a as a prefix, which shows that the composer some-
times writes in the popular speech and sometimes in
the ancient.
After having thus firmly established the character
of the speech as Ethiopian upon the grounds of sound
form and syntax, we must now examine the forms of
speech which appear to be foreign.
The most peculiar characteristic which these in-
scriptions present is the existence of the mimation :
hitherto only rare and uncertain instances of this
have been found in Ethiopian. Not only proper
names, but also appellatives, have the terminal m, but
the rules in use in Sabæan for the mimation are not
observed here. They write Raydan"; wa Habaset" ;
wa Saba", contrary to the Sabaan custom, where the
form Sabam never occurs, no more does Raydan", so
it is absolutely impossible that a native of Southern
Arabia can have written these inscriptions. It would
1
278
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
܀
therefore appear that the mimation was no longer
actually in use, but is rather a relic of ancient times,
retained in official documents, and has here been used
as it would not have been in the living language.
Also the existence of the dual in the bilingual in-
scription need not be looked upon as imported, for
there are traces of its existence in later Ethiopian.
Another survival of ancient times is to be found
in the word malek, for nagûs, in No. 1, and malek
malakan for negus nagast, “king of kings'; and the
termination an is also to be remarked, which also
occurs in No. 2, line 4, and with the mimation fol-
lowing it in a curiously irregular manner. The word
bin, a son,' instead of walad in No. 1 is also a
survival.
It is certainly not to be considered that inscrip-
tions 1 and 2 exactly represent the speech of Aksum
at the time of Aizanes, for even violent measures
could not have rooted out all traces of the older
speech in the relatively short time between the reign
of Aizanes and [Ta] Zana, son of Ela-Amida. . Nor
need we be surprised that Sabæan shapes of letters
and forms of sentences taken from antique models
disappeared after the reformation of the writing ;
for between the antique models and the popular
speech a great breach had sprung up, so that the
reformer had little trouble in casting them aside.
The inscriptions are by no means of less value
because they do not contain the popular speech of
Aksum in the fourth century after Christ, but
present to us older characters and forms. They are
INSCRIPTIONS FROM YEHA AND AKSUM
279
1
on the contrary more valuable because they reveal
to us a still older period of Ethiopian speech. It is
indifferent to us whether the mimation and the ter-
minal an were used in Aksum in the fourth century
or two centuries earlier : that at one time they were
in common use in Ethiopian, since the discovery of
these inscriptions there is no longer any doubt. We
can now no longer look upon the lack of the article
in Ethiopian as a sign of the antiquity of this
language,
ge, for it was once in use, as in the Sabæan;
but it was lost. The same has been the case with
the mimation and many other points, which are
found in Sabæan, but were lost in Ethiopian.
From this treatise that I have made on the de-
velopment of this script, the relative sounds and the
formation of the letters, we can definitely conclude
that the Ethiopian comes out of the Sabæan, but
that on a foreign ground, and under foreign in-
fluence, it has been considerably altered, and this
influence continued to work until the old Ethiopian
became the modern Amharic, the tongue of the
modern Abyssinians, the syntax of which bears a
closer resemblance to the Hamite languages than the
Sabaan.
During the reign of [Ta] Zana, son of Ela Amida,
there was probably present at Aksum an educated
Greek, who influenced the reform of the writing.
Up to this time they wrote, like the other Semitic
people, with the exception of the Babylonians and
the Assyrians, from left to right; following the ex-
ample of the Greeks, the right to left system was
280
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
introduced. The figures also on the Aksumite in-
scriptions are expressed by consonants; but the
chief feature of the reform was in the introduction of
the inherent vowels, and it is extremely strange that
they did not attempt to introduce vowel letters as in
Greek, and to establish a syllable system instead
of the inherent vowels; but in spite of the Greek
influence the fixity in the Semitic language of the
consonants and the living element was too strong
to be changed, and in no Semitic script has an
equal value been given to vowels and consonants,
and Ethiopian is only a variant of the other Semitic
script, like Arabic and Hebrew, where the vowels
appear like a flying column sometimes above, some-
times below, and sometimes in the middle of the
troop of consonants. In Ethiopian the vowels are
betokened by strokes, dots, or rings attached firmly
to the consonants, perhaps the result of some old
Hamite form of syllable writing of which we have
no traces left.
It certainly is a remarkable fact that the re-
former of the writing did not take as the basis of
his alphabet that existing in the monuments at
Aksum, but an older Sabæan alphabet; but it is not
to be wondered at, for as a rule in such reforms
older patterns of caligraphy are produced which
must have existed in the archives of Aksum. It is
self-evident that the reformer would omit those signs
which had no longer any adequate sound in the
language, and this accounts for the omission of the
five letters already referred to.
INSCRIPTIONS FROM YEHA AND AKSUM
281
To add the strokes, dots and rings, which
constituted the vowels, the reformer has in some
cases slightly altered the shape of the letters.
Herr Dillmann has most ably described the way
in which the vowels were expressed; only in the
betokening of the vowel e the impressions of Nos.
3 and 4 show that his statement was slightly in-
correct.
There is no doubt that the reformation of the
writing was a simultaneous work and done at one
time. Nos. 3 and 4 show, in the impressions brought
back by Mr. Theodore Bent, exactly the same system
of inherent vowels which obtains in the earliest Ethio-
pian MSS. Hence the theory that the system of
inherent vowels was only partially introduced in the
Gez inscriptions, and varied from the later system, is
overthrown by the impressions before us. In conclu-
sion, I may remark that, independently of the fact that
the right to left system of writing is introduced, the
introduction of Greek figures to express numbers
may be taken as an additional proof of the Greek
influence in the reform.
As regards the language of the Gez inscriptions
(Nos. 3 and 4), we find the same characteristics
which we get in the MSS. of the thirteenth and four-
teenth centuries. We are accustomed to remark a
greater conservatism in the Semitic than in the Indo-
Germanic tongues; centuries appear to roll over a
widely spread Semitic language without causing any
structural change in the formation of it. The
reasons for this we cannot discuss here, but the fact
282
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
is certain. In spite of this fact, it cannot but be
remarkable that the Ethiopian of both these Gez
inscriptions is in the main exactly the same as the
language used a thousand years later ; but as a
church language Ethiopian was securely fixed and
cared for, and hence the old forms and expressions
were maintained.
There are, however, as it befalls everything in
this world, changes to be remarked, and the Sabaan
influence exercised its power surely but slowly on
the Hamite-Abyssinian people. The changes which
the later Ethiopian shows in contrast to the two Gez
inscriptions of Aksum, I will here shortly touch
upon, for in doing so we shall best illustrate the old
speech of Aksum.
1. The strong Semitic roots did not get driven
out by the monosyllabic Hamite, but they on the
contrary drove out the weaker Hamite roots; but
at the same time they could not remain free from
the influence of the Hamite vocal organs, and
hence were developed the u possessing throat and
palate sounds, which we do not get elsewhere in the
Semitic languages. Our inscriptions show no trace
of this u sound, and hence the opinion is forced
upon us that at the time of the introduction of the
vowel writing they were not yet definitely formed,
and only in course of time came into definite use,
and were expressed in writing.
2. In the further development of the Ethiopian
alphabet two signs for the p sound were introduced,
but they are only to be found in foreign words. Also
INSCRIPTIONS FROM YEHA AND AKSUM
283
there are no traces of these signs in our Aksumite
inscriptions.
3. The contact with the Hamite-Abyssinian lan-
guage appears to have been especially destructive to
the Sabæan sibilants; for not less than four letters
are thrown out in the new alphabet, and indeed the
destroying influence seems to have been at work in
the remaining kindred sounds. In our old inscrip-
tions the signs and also the sounds are kept distinct.
4. Also the old h sounds (ļ and b) are distinctly
separated from each other, whereas in later texts con-
fusion frequently occurs.
That this h was with diffi-
culty pronounced by the Hamite organs of speech
is best proved by the fact that the Semitic ” is re-
presented by k.
5. In the later Ethiopian, the aspirates have had
various influences upon the vowels. In the first
place, there is a rule by which an aspirate causes
the vowel preceding it to be drawled, as if it had
given its breath to the vowel, and in so doing had
become weakened itself. Of the twenty-six cases
which occur in these inscriptions, only three can be
definitely stated to be dealt with according to this
rule, for the aspirants were anciently more firm, and
were not weakened by lengthening the sound of the
vowels.
6. Where the aspirate has another vowel such as
ů, å, in an immediately preceding open syllable, it is
corrupted into ě ; in the few cases of this kind
which occur in our inscriptions (rahik, laik, ûwåî) a
has not been corrupted into e.
284
THE SACRED CITY OF THE ETHIOPIANS
7. Roots with aspirates as the 3rd radical in all
instances where their 2nd radical is an open syllable
with an a sound, change this a into e. In the two
cases in our inscriptions (Ardåmi and falaha) this
change does not take place.
The Ethiopian language appears to have been
more influenced in respect of syntax than in sound
and formation by the Hamite, and a study of the
syntax of Amharic, where every Semitic phrase is
exactly inverted, would lead one to believe that this
reversing process had begun very early, and that the
Hamite element had been instrumental in bringing
this about.
The Hamite-Abyssinian tongue naturally assimi-
lated rapidly the language of the Sabæans with its
superior culture, and the compact Semite roots drove
out in many instances the weaker Hamite ones; but
the manner of thinking of the Hamite inhabitants
did not so easily change. To be sure the Semitic
syntax is still dominant in Ethiopia, but many traces
of a foreign influence may be pointed out, and a
great many variations and much decay in the forma-
tion can be explained by a contact with a foreign
syntax.
The existence in old Ethiopian of the article and
the mimation has been proved by a study of our two
oldest inscriptions from Aksum ; the abandonment
of both can only have followed on the introduction
of the Hamite dialect, which has neither article nor
sign of indetermination, and like Ethiopian only has
demonstrative pronouns.
1
INSCRIPTIONS FROM YEHA AND AKSUM
285
The loss of the dual, which exists in Sabaan and
North Arabian, and of which traces are yet to be
found in the diminutives, and of the elative, of
which in Sabæan there are countless examples in the
sense of intensive adjective, is easily explained by
the absence of this form in Hamite. The same is the
case with respect to numerus et genus, which in
Ethiopian is by no means so sharply observed as it is
in other Semitic languages. Also the use of the in-
finitive absolute and the addition of enclitics are to
be referred to Hamite-Abyssinian influence.
A searching examination into these inscriptions
will undoubtedly produce further important results.
286
APPENDIX
APPENDIX
ON THE MORPHOLOGICAL CHARACTERS OF THE
ABYSSINIANS
By J. G. GARSON, M.D., V.P.A.I., Corresp. Memb. Anth. Soc.,
Paris and Berlin.
1
It is with much pleasure that I submit the following account
of the morphological characters of the Abyssinians, compiled
from observations Mr. Bent has made during his recent
expedition to Abyssinia. These observations are of much
interest to me from two points of view. First, because I am
not aware of there being in existence any similar observations
on a series of the inhabitants of that part of Africa ; con-
sequently we learn, for the first time, from a number of
individual records what their characters are, and what varia-
tions they present.
Descriptive Characters
The number of natives examined was 46; of these 22
belonged to the Tigré tribe, 12 to the Amhara tribe, 6 to
the Galla tribe, 4 to the Hamasen tribe, 1 to the Barea, and
1 to the Bogos tribes respectively.
The observations were made upon men two-thirds of
whom were between the ages of 25 and 30 years, the extreme
limits being 20 and 40 years respectively.
In general condition of body, the subjects of observation
were of medium development, rather more inclined to be
1 Dr. Garson will publish a fuller account, and tables of measure-
ments, in the Journal of the Anthropological Institute.
MORPHOLOGICAL CHARACTERS OF ABYSSINIANS 287
thin than stout, only one being entered as stout, while about
a quarter of the whole number were decidedly thin.
Colour of Skin.—In the Tigré tribe the colour of the skin
is with two exceptions of a rich chocolate-brown. In one of
the exceptional cases the skin is darker, being of a sooty-
black colour, in the other it is lighter, being of a dark yellow-
brown or dark olive tint. The skin of the Hamasens is of
the same rich brown chocolate colour as the Tigré tribe.
Among the Amhara tribe only one case occurs of the lighter
hue, that is of the dark yellow or olive colour; all the other
members of that tribe examined are of the chocolate colour.
The Bogos is of the yellow-brown colour. The Gallas are
darker in colour, one being entered as absolutely black, the
others sooty-black, and only one is chocolate coloured. The
Barea is of the sooty colour. Thus three-quarters, or twenty-
two of the whole number examined, were of a chocolate
colour, seven were of a darker shade—more or less black-
while three were of a lighter shade, namely, dark olive or
dark yellow-brown colour.
Colour of Eyes.--. The colour of the iris is entered in every
case as dark. The term “dark’includes black, brown, and
dark hazel-coloured eyes.
The Eyelids.—The presence of a frænum or vertical band
extending from the upper eyelid which covers the caruncle or
fleshy-looking projection observable at the inner angle of our
own eyes, is a well-known character of the Mongolian race, in
whom we have it in its most exaggerated form. In other
races the frænum varies in size, and in the extent to which
it encroaches upon the inner angle of the eye till we find it
entirely absent in most Europeans, and the caruncle is en-
tirely exposed.
In the Abyssinians examined by Mr. Bent, the frænum
is absent in twenty-three cases, and a vestige of it remains
in the other twenty-three cases. Its presence and absence
does not appear to be special to any particular tribe.
Colour of Hair. -The hair is entered as uniformly 'black'
throughout all the persons examined.
288
APPENDIX
6
as
6
Character of hair.—The nature of the hair is also uniform,
being 'curly' in all cases except one, where it is entered
woolly. In another case it was between 'wavy' and
curly,' not quite so curly as in the others.
Amount of Hair on the Body.—The amount of hair on the
face and other parts of the body excluding the calvaria was
found to be for the most part scanty, and in some cases
absent; in one case it is noted as abundant on the face; in
nine cases it was of medium amount on the face; and in five
of these it was also medium in amount on the body.
Shape of race.—The form of the face shows consider-
able diversity. In nineteen cases it is of medium proportions
as regards breadth to length, neither particularly long nor
particularly short. In ten cases it was found to be long and
narrow;
in six cases short and broad; in ten cases it is
wedge-shaped in a downward direction ; and in one case it
was pyramidal, or narrowing upwards. The variations of the
form of face run equally through each of the tribes of which
we have a dozen records and upwards.
Profile of Nose.—The outline of the nose as seen in pro-
file is very uniformly straight; but in four cases it is concave;
and in two cases there is a tendency to the aquiline form, so
that they have been entered in the records as being between
the straight and the aquiline.
Prognathism.—The form of prognathism of most import-
ance in describing race characters is that in which the pro-
minence or forward projection of the face is situated in the
region of the mouth. In fourteen cases prominence in this
region is entirely absent; in the majority of cases there is
slight prognathism; and in two cases it is more marked. No
difference is observable in respect to this character in the
different tribes except the Gallas, who are rather more pro-
gnathous than the others.
Lips.-In only two cases were the lips noticed as thin';
in twenty-four cases they are of medium thickness; in one
case between 'thin' and 'medium'; in fourteen cases they
are thick, and in two of these everted; in five cases they are
MORPHOLOGICAL CHARACTERS OF ABYSSINIANS 289
intermediate between 'medium' and thick. Generally, it
may be said that the lips have a tendency to be thick. The
variations in the thickness of the lips are regularly distributed
amongst all the tribes, but, as a whole, the lips are slightly
thicker in the Gallas than in the others. -
Prominence of the Face. If we were to place a Mongolian
and an Englishman side by side we would find that in the
former the central part of the face is extremely flat, so that if
viewed from below (that is, with the head thrown well back)
the face, from cheekbone to cheekbone, would appear to be on
an even plane, or elevated table-land, broken only by the
elevation of the nose in the centre, the cheekbones being well
marked and angular. To this condition the term platy-
prosopic or flat-face is applied. In the Englishman, on the
other hand, the face from side to side would resemble the end
of an ellipse, with the nose projecting on the highest part of
the arch, the cheekbones not being perceptible. To this form
the term pro-prosopic is applied. In the English and the
Mongolians we have the two extreme degrees of variation of
this character between which all degrees of elevation or pro-
minence may be found.
Amongst the Abyssinians the platy-prosopic, or flat form
of face predominates, particularly among the Amhara tribe.
In the other tribes the face varies chiefly from the platy-
prosopic to the meso-prosopic or middle form. One case of
marked pro-prosopism, or extreme prominence, was observed;
two of moderate pro-prosopism; eighteen of meso-prosopism;
and twenty-five of well marked platy-prosopism ; in two of the
latter cases it approached the most extreme form.
Measurements
The cephalic index varies from 64 to 88, but chiefly
centres between 76 and 79, the mean index being 78.5, which
places them in the Mesaticephalic group. An examination
of the table attached, in which the several measurements and
indices have been worked out according to Mr. Francis
Galton's method of centennial grades, shows the variations at
U
290
APPENDIX
the 25th, 50th, and 75th places. The following table shows
the variations according to the international division of the
cephalic index in the skull :
Hyperdolichocephalic . 65-69-9 1= 2:2 per cent.
Dolichocephalic
70-74.9 6=13:0
Mesaticephalic
75 - 79.9 26 = 56.5
Brachycephalic
80-84:9 9=19.6
Hyperbrachycephalic . 85-89-9 4 = 8.7
The cephalic index is highest in the Amhara tribe, in
which it averages 81.4, placing them in the Brachycephalic
group. The other groups are Mesaticephalic, the index being
in the Tigré 78-2, and in the Galla 79.
Module of the Hend.—In order to obtain some idea of the
volume of the calvaria in different races Schmidt has shown
that it may be arrived at by adding the length, breadth, and
height together and dividing the sum thus obtained by three,
when the quotient will give the required module of the head
as he has termed it. In the living subject Topinard has
modified this procedure somewhat so as to obtain a similar
module, and has two methods by which it may be estimated.
The first of these, like that of Schmidt, is obtained by adding
the length and breadth measurements of the calvaria used in
calculating the cephalic index and the height from the vertex
to the tragus, adding fifteen more in males to represent the
distance from the tragus to the basion, and dividing the
whole sum by three. The other method Topinard adopts is
to add the length and breadth of the calvaria together and
divide by two.
In the Abyssinians the module of the head is by the first
method 158, the smallest head having a module of 145, and
the largest of 106, the majority of the figures being between
154 and 163. By the second method the mean module
is 16).
Nasal Indlec.-This index shows a good deal of variation,
there being several isolated cases beyond each end of the
central or most frequently occurring figures. Thus the index
is found to vary from 50 up to 120, while the most frequently
MORPHOLOGICAL CHARACTERS OF ABYSSINIANS 291
occurring indices fall between 63 and 76. The mean index is
68. This places the Abyssinians, in Broca's Leptorhine group
for the living (63–69). In two cases the index is high up in
the Platyrhine group, being in one 120 and in the other 115.
With respect to the latter I may say that his other characters
are markedly negroid; be belonged to the Galla tribe. The
former belonged to the Amhara tribe, but his other characters
do not show the same negroid affinities. Only one other case,
that of a Tigré, falls in Broca's Platyrhine group, his index
being 87.4, but he, likewise, does not show in his other
characters the same marked negroid relationships as the first
mentioned one. With respect to exceptional measurements
and indices it should be remembered that both in making the
measurements from which the indices are derived and inscrib-
ing them in the register errors are liable to occur, so that too
great importance should not be attributed to exceptional cases,
and that it is only the general result of all the measurements
which should be relied upon where errors in one direction are
counteracted by those in the opposite direction.
In the Tigré tribe the nasal index averages 68.1, in the
Amhara 74-2, and in the Galla 762. The Tigré are there-
fore Leptorhine, the other two groups are Mesorhine. It is
the greater number of observations on the Tigré tribe which
brings down the mean index of the whole series.
Stature. The mean
stature of the series is 1m693
(=66.6 inches) or about 1 c.m. less than that of the British
Isles at the same range of age, according to the report of the
Anthropometric Committee of the British Association, treated
by Mr. Galton's method, and about the same as the mean
stature of the industrial classes of this country. The mean
stature of mankind, according to Topinard, being 1m650,
these Abyssinians belong to Topinard's first group above the
mean, and almost attain to his tall group (1.700 and up-
wards). The variations in stature met with in this series of
Abyssinians are considerable, the shortest measuring 1.593,
and the tallest 1.870 (=62:7 and 73.6 inches). The stature
of the majority of the series ranges from 1.610 to 1.740,
U 2
292
APPENDIX
especially between 1.670 and 1.720. Between the Amhara
and Tigré tribes there is a difference of fully 3 c.m., the
former being the taller on the average by that amount.
Amongst them occurs the shortest person measured and two
exceptionally tall men, but even excluding these three excep-
tional individuals, their average is fully 2 c.m. above that of
the Tigré tribe.
The length of the leg and height of the foot were obtained
by subtraction from the kneeling height. Whatever may be
the objections to this measurement for the purpose, I have
found it to be trustworthy, and to give a reliable means of
comparison, since it can be accurately made by persons who
would be quite unable to take the direct anatomical measure-
ments of the parts.
In the Abyssinians the leg and height of the foot is 26.5 per
cent. of the stature. As the lower limbs are, 3s previously
stated, 49.7 per cent. of the stature, it follows that the por-
tion of the femur from the ischial plane downwards is 23-2 per
cent. of the stature.
The length of the foot is 14.5 per cent. of the stature.
The proportions of the upper limb to the stature are as fol-
lows:–The entire limb from the acromion to the top of the
medius finger is 44.9 per cent., the cubit 27-8 per cent., and
the hand 11.2 per cent. of the stature. These percentages
are from the corrected means of direct measurements of the
respective parts, and not got by, subtraction of the length of
one part from another. The upper arm, or humeral segment,
is 17.2 per cent., and the forearm 16-2 per cent. of the
stature. The span of the arms has the proportion of 103.7
to the stature.
The proportions of the proximal segments of the limbs to
the distal cannot be as accurately compared on the living as
in the skeleton, especially in the lower limbs, owing to the
impossibility of measuring the actual length of the bones of
each segment, but a relative comparison of them may be
made. Thus we may compare the length of the forearm with
that of the upper arm from the upper level of the olecranon
MORPHOLOGICAL CHARACTERS OF ABYSSINIANS 293
upwards, and the length of the leg with the portion of the
thigh between the knee and ischial plane.
In the Abyssinians the forearm has the proportion to the
upper arm of 96 to 100. With respect to the lower ex-
tremity I have only the means of comparing the length of
leg and height of foot combined. With the thigh portion
this gives an index of 114-3, while the corresponding index
in ourselves I have found from the reports of the Anthropo-
metric Laboratory of this Association to be 113. An exami-
nation of the proportions of each of these segments shows
that the difference between this index in ourselves and
in the Abyssinians is due to the length of the leg and foot
being greater proportionately than the upper or thigh seg-
ment.
These being the principal morphological characters shown
by the observations of Mr. Bent, we have now to consider
what they indicate the affinities of the Abyssinians to be in
relation to other races of men.
Professor Keane, in his paper on the 'Ethnology of the
Egyptian Sudan,' published in the Journal of the Anthropo-
logical Institute, 1884, has given a valuable tabulated scheme
of all the Eastern Sudanese and contiguous ethnical groups
with their chief subdivisions and geographical positions,
which has been of much assistance to me in this matter.
The Tigré, the Amhara, and Bogos are classed by Professor
Keane as belonging to the Himyaritic branch of Semites,
while the Gallas are Hamites, and the Barea are placed
among the, as yet, unclassified groups. The Tigré are the
predominant race in North Abyssinia, while the Amhara
occupy the same position in South Abyssinia, though politi-
cally subject to the Tigré. The Bogos inhabit the north-
eastern frontier inland from Mădăn. They have been classed
by Reinisch as Hamites, but Professor Keane thinks the evi-
dence is against that being correct, and that they are Semites.
He does not mention the Hamasen, but doubtless they are
included among the other tribes of the Himyaritic Semites.
The Gallas belong to the southern branch of the Hamites.
294
APPENDIX
The Hamites, though remote kinsmen of the Semites as com-
mon members of the Caucasian family, he considers to be the
ue indigenous element in North Africa, while the Semites
are recent intruders from Arabia, whose origin he appears to
ascribe, chiefly from linguistic evidence, to South Arabia.
They inhabit the country east of the Nile, and appear to have
been longer settled in the country than the Ishmaelitic
branch or Arabs proper who occupy the country west of the
Nile, and who have chiefly taken up their abode there since
the seventh century. The Barea, wbose geographical posi-
tion is about the middle course of the Mareb and head-
waters of the Barka on the north frontier of Abyssinia, he
states appear to be the true aborigines of Abyssinia.' About
the affinities of this latter tribe there appears to be a conflict
of evidence. Professor Keane says: 'As described by F. L.
James (" Wild Tribes of the Sudán," London, 1883), they
seem distinctly negroid. In the preface of that work they
are stated to be of a totally different type, much blacker and
more closely allied to the pure negro than any of their neigh-
bours. Yet Munziger, one of our best authorities on these
fragmentary ethnical groups on the north and north-east
frontiers of Abyssinia, asserts that the Sogennante Naeger-
typus fehlt.
ness.
As we have observations on only one member of the Barea
tribe, we will deal with him first. The colour of his skin being
sooty-black and his hair black and curly indicate negro charac-
ters; the profile of the nose is straight; on the other hand, there
is absence of prognathism, and the lips are of medium thick-
His cephalic index is only 64.7, which is the lowest of
the whole series, and shows him to be highly dolichocephalic,
while the series as a whole is mesaticephalic; the nasal index
is 76-7, which places him in Broca's Mesorhine group for the
living, while the mean of the series is 68 and that of negroes
is 88-101 or Platyrhine; the index of his forearm to upper
arm is 95.2 and of his leg to thigh 130 in the former agree-
ing with the mean of the series, and in the latter considerably
exceeding it, and therefore negro-like. It will thus be seen
MORPHOLOGICAL CIIARACTERS OF ABYSSINIANS
295
that he shows some characters which are negro-like, but others
that are not those of typical negroes. Professor Keane, in
the paper referred to, says : ' Although grouped as negroes,
very few of the Nilotic people present the ideal type of the
blacks such as we find it among the Ashantis and other in-
habitants of Upper Guinea ; the complexion is, in general,
less black, the nose less flat, the lips less protruding, the hair
less woolly, dolichocephaly and prognathism less marked-
in a word, the salient features of the negro race are less
prominent than elsewhere.' It would appear to me that he
is of very mixed descent, like most of the tribes of this region ;
the negroid element is stronger in him than usual in the
northern tribes of Abyssinia, and may even be said to pre-
dominate, though greatly modified in some respects. Little
reliance should be placed on the characters of this single
specimen as indicating the characters of his tribe. As repre-
senting, according to Professor Keane and other authorities,
the older and true indigenous element of Northern Africa, the
Galla tribe of the Hannitic group is of much interest to us,
and it is to be regretted that we have only got six records of
these characters and measurements, a number totally in
sufficient from which to make any reliable comparison of their
characters with those of the Himyaritic Semites represented
by the Tigré, Amhara, Bogos, and Hamasen tribes.
The colour of the skin in the Gallas is darker than that
of the Himyaritic tribes, their lips are thicker, the upper jaw
is slightly more prognathous, and the nasal index is higher,
all of which characters show that the negro element is
stronger in them than in the Himyaritic tribes. This is
probably to be expected from the geographical position they
occupy and from longer contact with the negro. The average
cephalic index of the Gallas is very nearly the same as in the
Tigré, but lower than in the Amhara, while their average
nasal index is higher than that of either the Tigré or Am-
hara tribes. The average index of the fore-arm to the upper
arm is 84.7 in the Gallas and 73-7 in the Amhara, while the
length of the leg to that of the thigh averages 104:6 in the
296
APPENDIX
Galla, 111:2 in the Amhara, and it is still higher in the
Tigré.
We now pass on to the Himyaritic group, predominating
in Northern Abyssinia. In the Tigré, the Amhara, the
Hamasen, and the Bogos, we find the colour of the skin, in
several cases, shades from the rich chocolate colour, which is
the predominant tint, into a dark yellow-brown, or dark olive
colour, while those of the Galla shade, as we have just seen,
in the other direction towards the sooty-black tint; the lips
are somewhat thinner; the cheek-bones are, if anything,
more pronounced, especially in the Amhara tribe; and the
face may be said to be almost orthognathous—that is to say,
without prominence of the jaws. So far the characters of all
the Semitic tribes closely agree. In the form of the head
there is considerable difference between the Tigré and Amhara
tribes, and also in the proportion of the nose, the head being
rounder and the nose broader in proportion to its length in
the Ainhara than in the Tigré. Chiefly on account of the
nose being considerably more leptorhine, I am inclined to
regard the Tigré as possessing less admixture of negroid
blood, and therefore the purer of these two chief Himyaritic
groups of Semites of Abyssinia. A most important point to
be determined is the relationship they bear to the inhabitants
of South Arabia, which, if language is to be relied upon in
tracing ethnographical relationships, would appear to be the
probable cradle of their origin. This comparison I am quite
unable to make, as there does not exist as yet any recorded
data for the purpose. Indeed, I feel convinced that we are
not likely to be able to unravel the anthropography of
North-eastern Africa until such time as ample records have
been obtained regarding that of Arabia and the countries
north of the Persian Gulf.

High & undulatirg/plateau
Ma Adnan
Mountaitis over 6500 feet
MAP TO ILLUSTRATE M THEODORE BENT'S JOURNEY THROUGH ABYSSINIA, .
M
Sceleg
Lava
47626 Jantares
R. Sciakat-kai
BOCU
B
Anbeba
S
PIANURA DESERT
traghele
R.Desser
R: O choro
o
Lesse
0
Mero
N
without trees
R. Agbalo
K
1305
30
30
ozbog
7
Buri
HINDA
lado galet
Supposed course of the River Bark
30'
39°
30'
M M
S A
Senhoto
Ras Harz
6383 Asciatia
Debras
4323 HEREN
6393 Convent
Ambaraso
Emberemi
Fabio
GMerdet
Desset
Az Teclesano
Kubbet es Saladů
GRIMME GAN
Torpe
Ras Dogan
OR DEMDE SAN
Moncullo
Abd el Kader Peninsula
convent or
Pointed
isolated
M
Dagali
Zadonsha
Baumbo, MASSAUA
mountains
Akuai
Sohad.
Žagar
o Scek SaidI.
Af Degius
Allet
159
666
Archico
Res Ghedem
Saborgina
shuma
Negous
S
M: Danabu
Dissein
9709
I.
Dongotila
Anha Derho
M. Corimba - Guada
3201
5263
Az Nefass
High Plateau
Me Gheden
Bizen
O
M. Bizer
Addi David
8158
M. Assauli
Corwent orche Vision
Hidoy
ZA ZEGA) Asmara s
7832
Zazega šGodaif
Zalot
Plateau
7596
788594
Aculis puisies
Iittle known region
Addi Rasi Dapo Caribus
Ba adaga
Zala
Malkatto
Addi Auisde
Walia
Nebaghede
Marshy distruoti where
Addi Calcatio
High Plateau
the river Borka pises,
VI'Abala
Add. Halo
Gof Damba
MySaik Ara
7508
according to wastigations.
9597
1.V. Multer
Addi Bardo
Alouro
Hevo
Debaroa
B085 Farum
o la anta
Az thereto Mai Aida
Halat Malu
15
Sagarsiti
Vanuto oSabanazago
Tesinn
Meotsa
6015
Hilabo
Digsa
Semut
o Dera
MYAidale
7589
Scia a Maija
Bakato 0
fins oor
Ruins Coloe
Addi Ogree Godotelassi
6461
Ada Kaia High Platzan
* Main
of Kokosto
Tacondal
Mna Hieta
s
R Rar
Mountains of Tukl
(over 5000 feet)
M. Tahuila
Souaira
PLAIN
OF
ZAMA
Senafe
07596
R Hada dia
Ad-Haso
M Kesciad
8974
8676
R
Add Dochala
ob & Addi Kola
Álighede
ANNESLEY S GULF
BORI PENINSULA
22 or Souvet
2. Dara
H н
Kansas 8062
Wala
ata Mt
GARANTA
PASS
Vaaraba
Inradocco
Gura
15
Adi Nefas
78520
R
Mai Sarau
R. Darrowa
Α.
R
951
B
R. Obel
A. Hamez
R. Serena
K
Endeli
Harmada
y Gundet
Mai Zabra
B. Baltul
Guda Gudi
30!
30"
Mb Asimba
20.309
R Mana
RIVER MARE B
Magusa
Mahugyan
ADIRBATE OR AZ DERBATI-
Fertile but whealthy region
Lala a
Plžinor HAMEDO
f.Mehaguan
Debra damos
omac
4418
A
G
DARO
TA CHLE
sisat
Mar
Sursu
Daro Tachia
peberto
M. Sobni
U
R. Sumar
M. Augar
9801
Adigrått
Sarsai
Plateau
Ma Komauzo
GASHI WORKEH
6629. PASS
(Abba Alze (andert Avo)
R. Moret
Mai Muse Rab
Addi Aburg Memsa
M. Mambar
M! Buza) Deo sina
7780
7675
Mt Scellota
8226
Fremonat
8387
M! Ualta Azim
5786
Addi Moi Reloste
Alba Garima
9610
PADUA
AKSUM
6445
7226
•Donor .
dion
Bet Johannis
12 Toch
Abung
Pantaleon
M. Zombuke
Hauser
M
Amba Sion
29876
PLAIN OF
HARAMAT
o Lace
Dembebabidao
Adid Jesus
G
R
Forras
AY
1
M
R
А
Asam
A
T
H
Damo Galila Me
8672
14°1
(14)
30'
39° Longitude East of Greenwich.
30'
F.S. Weller,
lith
London; Longmans Green & Co., London & New York.
Author's toute thus
Boundary of Abyssinia
Heights in English Feet.
Scale, 1:767,720.
English Miles
5
10
20
30
INDEX
ABB
ABY
ABBADIE, M. A. d', attempt at
translation of Aksum inscrip-
tions, 257
Aboulfeda, early Arabian geo-
grapher, 179
Abouna, the head of Abyssinian
Church, 102
Abyssinia, Author's object in
visiting, 1; Christianity among
the natives, ib.; politics, 2;
succession of Menelek II. as
emperor, 3; Italian occupa-
tion and rule, ib.; coral islets,
4; Father Lobo's travels, 9;
meeting a cavalcade, 11; civil
war, famine, and cholera, ib.;
encampments near Massowah,
ib. ; village near Sabargouma,
ib.; mountain robbers, 12;
habits and customs of natives,
14; climate, ib.; healthiness
of the high plateau, 17 ; un-
healthiness of valleys, ib.
native troops at Asmara, 18;
silver filigree work of natives,
20; fugitives in Asmara, ib.;
charms to ward off the evil
eye, 21; emblems of Christi-
anity, ib.; anklets and mule
trappings, 22; dress of native
and their love of
jewellery, 23, 124; horn cups
for drinking purposes, 24;
houses at Asmara, ib.; wooden
neck-pillows used by women,
ib.; musical instruments of
natives, 25; sacred pictures in
churches, 26 ; 'asmari,' or
wandering minstrels, ib.; re-
ligious dances, 27, 35, 56 ;
sacred books of priests, 28;
veneration for umbrellas, 29,
30; austerities of Lenten fast,
30; Bishop of Tua as head of
the Church, ib.; complicated
marriage system, ib.; peculiar
custom at meals, 32; singing
and dancing of priests, 35;
promiscuous intercourse, 36;
polygamy and divorce, ib.;
syphilitic diseases
among
Christians, ib.; house and
church architecture, ib.; dirt
and filth in native houses,
37; women's apartments, ib.;
cooking and bread-baking, 38;
native loom for weaving, ib.;
clothing and etiquette, 39;
native churches, ib.; church-
yard or sacred grove, 40; pil-
grim nun at Jerusalem and
Mount of Olives, 41; church
bells, ib.; the Holy of Holies
in native churches, ib.; Byzan-
tium art, 42; expedition to
Bizen monastery, 44; expedi-
tions of Bruce and Poncet, 45;
bibliography of, 49 ; native
books and cases, 50; Jesuit
influence, 51; Mohammedan-
ism, ib.; Dean Stanley on the
native church, ib.; church
paraphernalia, 55; embroid-
ered robes of chiefs, 58; native
horsemanship, ib.; native beer,
59; religious life and super-
stition, ib., paintings in church
at Addi Ras, 60; decoration of
church walls, 61; priest's fly-
flap, 64; decoration of saddles
and head-gear, 69; game of
'gabattà,' 73; sycamores as
women
298
INDEX
ABY
ADO
re-
hostelries, 75 ; market at
Keren, 79; ancient Church
catechism, 83; festival of the
cross, ib.; bonfires and slaugh-
ter of oxen at festival, 83, 84;
sites of former towns, 88; the
king's highway, ib. ; endu-
rance of natives, 89, 201 ;
method of winnowing grain,
91; slaughter of Egyptians by
Emperor John, 92; reputed
cure of hydrophobia by na-
tives, 93 ; skill in herbal
treatment of fevers, ib.; Portu-
guese travellers, 104; country
ravaged by Mohammed Gran,
105 ; devastating internal
wars, 107; legend concerning
introduction of Christianity,
109; general revolt against
the Jesuits, 113; native know-
ledge of botany, 115; compo-
sition of body politic, 116;
description of a native meal,
118 ; native manufactures,
123; Persian influence on
architecture, 128 ; grotesque
anachronisms in native art,
132 ; Arabian influence and
colonisation, 134; early geo-
graphical information, 143;
principal Church function-
aries, 160; parchment charms
worn by natives, 161; foreign
interference resented, ib. ;
defteras,' or lay assistants in
Church ceremonies, ib.; early
knowledge of building, 168;
baptism of children, ib. ; stone
bullets and iron gun-rest, 172;
Author's exit under flag of
Italy, 200; sad condition of
peasantry,202; sacred streams,
203; not a land of milk and
honey, 205; uncleanliness of
natives, ib.; superstition re-
garding blacksmiths, 212; in-
constancy of Roman Catholic
converts, 213; European tra-
vellers, 257; inorphological
characters of the natives, 286.
See also Ethiopia
Addas valley, descent into, 226
Addi Abouna, residence of head
of Abyssinian Church, 101;
priestly blessing at, ib.
Addi David, village of, 67; St.
George's Church, ib. ; Indian
breed of cattle at, ib.; bread-
making, ib.
Addi Kola, village warfare at,
90
Addi Ougri, Italian fort and cul-
tivation at, 88, 203; ruins of
ancient village, 88; the king's
highway into Abyssinia, ib.;
the Emni Haïella, or heavy
stone, 89
Addi Quala, village warfare at,
90; Italian station, ib.; win-
nowing grain, 91; cholera
scourge, ib.; fertility of dis-
trict, ib.; Mohammedan en-
campment, 92 ; escort of
Author from, ib.; ride from
Mareb valley to, 202 ;
joicings at safe return of
troops, ib. ; hospitality of
Lieut. Mulazzani, ib.
Addi Ras, or village of the
prince, 59; healing spring for
invalids, ib. ; visit to St.
Michael's Church, ib.; paint-
ings in St. Michael's Church,
60; bathing in the sacred
stream, 62; an epileptic pa-
tient, 63; visit to monks and
priest, 65 ; lunch in native
cottage, ib.
Adoua, Greek silversmiths at,
21; Ras Mangashah's troops
escort Author to, 85; brigands
on road to, 85, 95; village
ruins near, 98; murder of
bishop by brigands, ib.; wel-
come of governor, ib.; inac-
cessibility of mountains, 99 ;
mountain monasteries, ib.;
springs of water on inountain
summits, ib.; hospitality at,
115; peculiar method of wash-
ing clothes, ib.; native soap
manufacture, ib.; ruined by
pestilence, famine, and war,
116; fertility of soil, ib.; visit
to the Dejetch Ambeh, or
INDEX
299
ADU
AKS
governor, 116 ; governor's
opinion of Ras Alula, 117;
presents to and from gover-
nor, ib.; inspection of native
houses, 120; Ras Alula's resi.
dence, ib.; native basket work,
ib. ; leather water-jug and
silver seal, 121; scarcity of
grain, 122; mutilations for
political offences, ib. ; salt
negotiable as money, ib.; na-
tive commodities in market,
ib. ; working silversmiths,
123 ; leather-worker's shop,
ib.; visit to native merchant,
125; churches, 126; tomb of
Bishop Kyrillos, 127 ; Church
of the Saviour of the World,
128; pictures and musical in-
struments, 129; purchase of
church picture (now in British
Museum), 130; water supply,
132 ; supposed discovery of
gold by a German geologist,
ib.; environs of town, ib.;
insecurity of life and pro-
perty, 133; scanty cultivation
around, 135; ruined villages
in proximity, ib.; Church of
St. Michael, ib.; town gibbet,
ib.; uncultivated valleys, 146;
expected raid of Ras Alula,
and panic of inhabitants, 149;
preparations for visit to Ak-
sum, 151 ; ride to Aksum,
1.53; war imminent, and Au-
thor's possible detention for
an indefinite period, ib.; flight
of Europeans, 199; perilous
adventures, and rescue by
Italian troops, 200
Adulis, old caravan road to Ak-
sum, 225; result of expedition
to, 228; town of, 229; early
historians' account of, ib.;
systematic excavation might
yield untold treasure, 230
Adulitan inscription alludes to
snow-clad mountains seen by
Author, 154
Africa, partition of, 1
Agatharcides' account of the
Troglodytæ, 146
Aizanes, King, stone erected by,
with Greek and Sabaan in.
scription, 180
Aksum, ancient capital of Ethi-
opia, 1; Abyssinian lyre ob-
tained at, 25; monastery at,
44; friendship between rival
chiefs restored, 85; ravages
of Mohammed Gran, 105;
Queen of Sbeba's supposed
tomb, 112; the sacred city of
the Ethiopians, 152; ride from
Adoua, 153 ; archæology of,
ib.; ark of the covenant in
the cathedral, ib. ; situation
of town, 154 ; Adulitan in-
scription alludes to snow-clad
mountains seen by Author,
ib.; massive sycamores in
vicinity, ib. ; description of
houses, 155; water supply of
inhabitants, ib.; superstitious
veneration for shrines, ib.;
visit to political governor, ib.;
family of governor, 156; ex-
change of presents, 157; go-
vernor an adherent of Ras
Alula, ib. ; filthy huts as resi-
dences, ib.; hyenas a constant
source of danger, ib.; visit to
bishop, ib. ; the bishop as
house agent, 158; description
of Author's abode, ib.; Mrs.
Bent's photographic work, ib.;
the bishop's home and hospi-
tality, 159; beggars round
doorway, 160 ; garden of
bishop, ib.; purchase of neck.
lace from a nun, 161 ; the
sacred inclosure, 162; inter-
nal peace and tranquillity,
163; cattle and flocks of in-
habitants, ib. ; description of
church, ib. ; church vaults,
,
165 ; curious key of the
church, ib. ; treasure-houses
for relics and valuables, ib.;
drums, banners, and crutches
for use of church worshippers,
ib. ; all-night devotions of
priests, ib.; Alvarez' account
of church, 166 ; Queen of
Sheba's abode, ib. ; church
300
INDEX
ALE
ASB
105 ;
for women, 168 ; baptismal
font, ib.; law courts, ib.; the
Nebrid's son on a marauding
expedition, ib.; excursions in
vicinity, ib.; lion carved on
rock, ib.; market day, 169;
scarcity of food, ib.; purchase
of Abyssinian scales, ib. ; as-
sembly of armed troops, ib.;
friendly visits of military
officers, 170; their delight at
French toys, ib.; panic and
departure from, 173; journey
from, and safe arrival at,
Adoua, 174; antiquities of
town and vicinity, 175; Him-
yaritic founders, 175; Greek
much spoken in early days,
176 ; native expeditions to
Sasou gold-mines, 177; vic-
tories of natives, 178; Aksum-
ites driven out of Arabia, ib. ;
granite monoliths near town,
180; statues of precious metal,
181; stone obelisks still stand-
ing, 182; altars at bases of
monoliths, 185; religious pur-
port of monoliths, ib.; ancient
stones laid down as pavement,
192; points of interest in val-
ley, 193; great tank or reser-
voir, ib.; tombs of Kaleb, 194;
extent and size of the ancient
town, 195 ; lioness carved on
granite boulder, ib.; field for
archæological work in district,
197; old caravan road from
Adulis, 225; bilingual inscrip-
tion, 238 ; translations, 240,
254, 258, 264; tablets dis-
covered by Mr. Salt, 256 ; at
war with Nuba, 270; native
army on the Seda river, ib.;
victory over the Kasu, ib.;
script and language of the in-
scriptions, 271
Alexandrian monks in Ethiopia, 9
Almeyda, Father, on the pro-
gress of Ethiopian conversion,
110; on fortress of Fremona,
ib.
Aloa, Aksumitan capture of town
of, 270
Alula, Ras, Abyssinian chief, 2;
character of, 3 ; bis victories,
ib.; as Viceroy of Tigre, ib.;
summoned to resign, ib.; re-
sistance of, ib.; defeated by
Italians at Dogali, 7; huts of,
at Asmara, 18; palace at As-
mara, 19; church restoration
by, 60; conquers Keren, 66;
subjugation of Egyptians, 79;
his residence in Adoua, 120 ;
in his fastness at Tembien,
150; house at Aksum, 155
Alvarez, early Portuguese tra-
veller in Ethiopia, 9; Dr.
Johnson's extracts from works
of, ib.; embassy in Abyssinia,
Lord Stanley of Alderley's
translation of narrative, 9,
expedition to Bizen
monastery, 45; description of
Debarroa village, 87; on fer-
tility and antiquities of Yeha,
1.42 ; description of the church
at Aquaxumo, or Aksum, 166,
167
Amba Derlo, village of, 68; in-
spection of church at, ib.;
church paraphernalia, ib.;
village feast, 69; European
bell, ib.
Aphilas, king of Ethiopia, 176
Apostoli, M., and his Abyssinian
children, 22
Arab dhows at Massowah, 5
Arabia, Ethiopians originally
from, 14; inscriptions in
Ethiopia, ib. ; influence in
Ethiopia, 15; legends con-
cerning Bilkis, queen of the
Sabæans, 166 ; Ethiopian
Christians of Arabian descent,
167; colonists at Yeha, 175;
enmity against Ethiopia, 178;
early Christians in, ib.; Ak-
sumitans driven out of, ib. ;
early geographers of, 179;
King Kaleb's victories in, 194
Arakel Pasha at Gudda Guddi,
4; killed in battle, 92
Arkiko, Author's arrival at, 228
Asboroum, Kantiba, at Maraba,
hospitality of, 207; his furni-.
INDEX
301
ASF
BOG
ture, 207; presents an Abys-
sinian chair to Author, 208;
Author's return present, ib.
Asfé, Abba, Egyptian priest in
Abyssinia, 142
Asmara, road to, 12; steep ascent
near, 15; extraordinary out-
look from the high plateau,
16; altitude of high plateau,
ib.; climate of, ib; Author's
stay of three weeks, ib.;
Italian basis of operations, 18;
Italian governor's residence,
ib. ; native troops, ib.; farm-
ing at, ib.; Ras Alula's huts,
ib.; adjacent villages, ib.; Ras
Alula's palace, 19; prosperity
of, 20; fugitives in, ib.; col-
lection of personal ornaments,
ib.; daily market, ib.; descrip-
tion of native church, 20, 39;
mountains of rubbish at old
village, 20; photographic
work, ib., silver filigree work
of natives, ib.; curious sights
in market, 22; native barber,
ib.; visits to native houses,
24; description of native lady's
overcloak, ib.; weddings, 30;
marriage festivities, 31; festi-
val in honour of a lion slayer,
32; marriage of a priest, 33 ;
baptism of the cross, 53;
Epiphany festivities,
sacred picture, 55; visit to
Addi Ras, 59; additions to
Author's caravan for Adoua,
85 ; Egyptian flight to, 92
Assab, Italian prison at, 80
Assam river at Adoua, 132
Astapus river, source of the, 224
Athos, mount, female exclusion
on
BAAL worship in Abyssinia, 83
Baalbec, colossal architecture at,
190
Bahr-negous, or King of the
Sea, 36
Barattiere, Colonel, Italian go-
vernor at Massowah, 2; inter-
view with, ib.
Barka, mountains of, 71 ; Be-
douins at Keren market, 79
Barreto, John Numez, Portu-
guese missionary in Ethiopia,
107; his reception by the
Emperor Claudius, ib.
Bayanèh, Lij, turbulent village
chief, 90; in Italian prison at
Assab, ib.
Bedouins at Keren market, 79
Bermudez, a Portuguese patri-
arch, 99 ; his struggle for the
conversion of Abyssinians in
sixteenth century, ib.; descrip-
tion of imprisonment
mountain 'amba,' ib.; made
patriarch of Ethiopia by Pope
Paul III., 105 ; his proselytis-
ing work, 106; experiences in
Ethiopia, 107
Betmariam, village of, 18;
Italian fortress at, ib.
Bettini, Captain, murder of, 71
Bilkis, queen of the Sabæans,
Arabian legend concerning,
166; the harem of, at Marib,
167
Bizen, altitude of monastery,
44; revenue of monks, ib.;
Author's journey to, 45;
Alvarez' account of monas-
tery, ib.; Mr. Salt's descrip-
tion of ruins, 46; exclusion
of females at, 47; terrible
reception of Mrs. Bent, ib.;
inspection of monastery, 48;
European and stone bells at,
50; kitchens and barns, 51;
cells of monks, ib. ; gardens
and diet of monks, ib.; descent
from, 53
Boeckh's Corpus Inscriptionum,'
229
Bogos, province of, 66; history,
76; entry into district, ib.;
ib.;
at, 48
Ava, five thousand elephants at,
143; origin of naine, 145;
Sabæan colony at, ib.
Avalite gulf, 145
Azteklesan, village of, 80; cli-
mate of, ib.; chief's house and
church, ib.; a peep into the
Kedesta Kedestan, or Holy of
Holies, 81; church parapher-
nalia at, 82
302
INDEX
ΕΤΙΙ
BOU
black and white tombs, 77;
superstition of inhabitants,
ib.; religious toleration, 79
Boulikas, Ethiopian naval sta-
tion, 178
· Bruce's Travels,' Murray's
commentary on, 14; expedi-
tion in Abyssinia, 45
CASTELLANI, Cavaliere, at Mas-
sowah, 7
Christianity in Ethiopia, 1, 9;
Abyssinian emblems of, 21;
dispute between Abyssinians
and Alexandrians, 102
Claudius, Emperor, favours the
Portuguese, 106; death of,
107; his son successor,
ib.
Constantine's embassy to Ethi-
opia, 179
Cosmas Indicopleustes, Adulitan
inscription copied by, 144; on
the city of Adulis, 229
Covilham, Pedro de, in Abys-
sinia, 104
monks, 74; Author's wife in
disguise at monastery, ib.
Deghetch Ambeh, governor of
Adoua, 98
Dejetchmatch Hatva, chief of
Amba Derho, 68
Dervishes, defeat of, 3; raids at
Gondar, 12
Digsa, residence of the Bahr-
negous at, 36 ; quolquol and
juniper trees, 210; sacred
sycamore tree, ib.; supersti-
tion of pilgrims, ib.; feast in
honour of St. Tekla Haima-
nout, ib. ; native blacksmith
at work, 211; method of iron-
smelting, ib.; purchase of
native trumpet, 212
Dillman, A., on Ethiopian chro-
nology, 245; on the origin of
the Aksumite kingdom, 257;
on Aksum inscriptions, ib.
Dogali, Italian victory over Ras
Alula at, 7; Italian monu-
ments at, ib.
as
DARO, Aksumite capture of town
of, 270
Daro-tachle, ruins of village at,
98
David II., Emperor of Abyssinia,
104; his embassy to Portugal,
ib.
Debarroa, Alvarez' description
of, 87; decimation by cholera
at, ib.; Author's arrival at vil-
lage, ib.; Portuguese mission,
111
Debra Libanos, monastery at,
44; tomb of St. Tekla Haima-
nout, 203
Debra Sina, mountain monas-
tery at, 71; insurrection of
dervishes, ib.; Italian repri-
sals at monastery, ib.; be-
haviour of native troops, 72 ;
wild beasts in valley, ib.;
tropical vegetation, ib.; rocky
summit of, 73; description of
church, 74; dwellings of
EDRISI, early Arabian geo-
grapher, 179
Egyptian palace at Massowah,
4; architecture at Massowah,
6 ; supremacy at Keren, 79;
subjugation by Ras Alula, ib.;
obelisks at Medun, 186
Eleberet, magnificent sycamores
at, 75
Elephas, Mount, 146
Epiphany festivities at Asmara,
53
Ethiopia, past, present, and
future of, 8; Greek influence
in, 9; Alexandrian inonks, ib.;
Christianity in, ib.; Latin in-
Huence, ib.; Portuguese in,
ib.; Italian enterprise, ib.;
Christian Church in, ib.;
dervish and Galla raids, 12;
wretched condition of the
natives, ib. ; imminent danger
of depopulation, ib.; flora of,
13; wanderings over the high
plateau, ib.; climate of, 14 ;
Hirnyaritic and Arabian in-
INDEX
303
GOD
Father Paës at, 110; Portu-
guese mission and Jesuit
fathers, 111
French, the, at Obock,
Frumentius, introduction of
Christianity into Abyssinia
by, 109
FAS
scriptions, 14; Arabian origin
of inhabitants, ib.; similarity
of natives with those of Ma-
shonaland, ib.; Arabian in-
fluence, 15; poisonous nature
of quolquol trees, ib.; use of
quolquol wood for building
purposes, ib.; plain of the high
plateau, 16; corn extractors,
21; beauties at a wedding, 34;
apocryphal literature, 49;
religious processions, 54; in-
vasion by Cambyses, 84;
mystery surrounding, ib.;
Portuguese episode, 103; Ber-
mudez' account of his experi-
ences, 107; work of Father
Paës, 108; spread of Chris-
tianity, 110; downfall of
Jesuits, 111; expulsion and
martyrdom of Jesuits, 113;
papalsupremacy a failure, 114;
description of the sacred city,
152; snow-covered mountains
of Semyen, 153; Ludolphus
on native origin, 175; Greek
legends around coins, 176;
Kosmas and Nonnosus on
commerce, 177; naval station
of Boulikas, 178; importation
of Syrians, 179; Gibbon on
racial origin, ib.; the name
* Habashat' given to the
country by Sabæans, 180;
inscriptions translated by
Prof. Müller, 181; existence
of Judaism prior to Christi.
anity, ib.; influence of Greek
paganism, ib.; verification of
Genesis x. concerning peoples,
231; Sabaan migration, ib.;
examples of Sabæan art, 232;
inscriptions in Mukrab period,
233. See also Abyssinia
-ורוג
GALLA raids in Ethiopia, 12
Gama, Don Christoforo de, in
Abyssinia, 106; his victories
over Gran, ib.; subsequent
reverses and death, ib.
Gama, Estevan de, Portuguese
fleet under command of, 106
Garson, Dr., on the morpho-
logical characters of the Abys-
sinians, 286
Gashiwarkeh Pass, dangers of,
98 ; murders by brigands, ib.;
perilous position of camp in,
200
Genesis X., Ethiopians a verifi-
cation of, 231
Gez inscriptions, 252
Ghinda, ascent to, 12; fertility
of, ib.; quolquol forests near,
13
Gibbon on reception accorded to
Emperor Justinian's
bassador to King of Aksum,
143; on the origin of the
Ethiopians, 179
Giorghis, Nebrid Dejetch Weldu,
political governor of Aksum,
155
Giorghis, Nebrid Tekla, head of
the Abyssinian priesthood,
160; his residence and family,
ib.; Author's visit to, ib.; ex-
change of presents with, ib.
Giorgis, Tekla, Abyssinian re-
bellion fostered by, 112; ex-
ecution of, ib.
Glaser, Dr. E., on South Arabian
legends, 245
Gobederah mount, lioness carved
on granite boulder at, 195
Godofelassi, squalor and misery
of town, 203; church and
Holy of Holies, ib.; represen-
tations of Abyssinian saint, ib.;
+
FASILADAS, Emperor of Ethiopia,
113; expulsion of Jesuits by,
ib.
I''remona, Jesuit missionaries at,
103; death of Oviedo at, 107;
nomenclature of, 109; Portu-
guese fortress, ib.; death of
304
INDEX
GOE
JER
213;
native houses, 204; a wild-
looking woman, ib.; children's
silver necklaces, ib.; descrip-
tion of native honey, 205
Goez, Damiano, Portuguese
· historian, 104
Gogo river at Adoua, 132
Gondar, churches at, 12; decay
of, ib.; Portuguese palaces, 12,
46; Dervish raids on, 12, 102;
Greek silversmiths, 21; Aboul-
na's former dwelling place,
102; king's palace, 108;
Roman Catholic mission, 114;
brutal treatinent of mission-
aries, ib.
Gran, Mohammed, Abyssinia
ravaged by hordes of, 105; his
defeat and death, 106
Greek interpreter at Massowah,
6; influence in Ethiopia, 9,
189; silversmiths at Adoua
and Gondar, 21; assembly at
Keren market, 79; influence
on Abyssinian art,
legends around early Ethio-
pian coins, 176; the fashion-
able language of the early
Aksumitans, ib.
Gregentius, Bishop, in Ethiopia,
178
Gudda Guddi, slaughter at, 4
Gundet village in Mareb valley,
93; view of Adoua mountains
from, ib.; uncompromising
heat at, 94; native treatment
of mules, ib.; a night in camp,
201 ; terrible thunderstorms,
ib.
Gura district, Italian cultivation
in, 206; growth of mushrooms,
more at Digsa dedicated to,
210; annual feast in honour
of, ib.
Halai, visit to ruins of, 203;
climate of,
Italian
military station, ib., religious
feuds and inconstancy of
Roman Catholic converts, ib.;
Italian escort furnished by
Capt. Odone, 214; cultiva-
tion by Italian colonists, ib.;
wonderful gorge of Mai Kashi,
army of baboons in
vicinity, 215
Hamasen, Italian colony at, 2;
province of, 36; native houses,
37; mountains, 88
Harpy tomb from Xanthus in
Lycia, 222
Herodotus on the invasion of
Ethiopia by Cambyses, 84
Himyarītic inscriptions in Ethio-
pia, 14, 140
Hyenas a constant danger at
Aksum, 157
ib.;
132;
IBN SAID, early Arabian geogra-
pher, 179
Islam conquests in Abyssinia,
105
Italian footing on Red Sea, 1;
occupation of Abyssinia, 3;
buildings in Massowah, 4;
hospitality in Ethiopia, 7;
railway at Massowah, ib.;
casino at Sahati, 8; enterprise
in Ethiopia, 9; School of
Agriculture at Asmara, 18;
fortress at Betmariam, ib.;
rule at Keren, 66; traders at
Keren market, 79; defeat of
Ras Alula at Keren, ib.; culti-
vation at Addi Ougri, 88;
station at Addi Quala, 90;
control of native troops, 200
ib.
HADGHAMBASSAH, chief of Azte-
klesan, 80; church patronage
of, ib.; his stronghold, ib.;
depredations and cruelty, ib.;
assaults Captain Bettini, ib. ;
taken prisoner by Italian
troops, ib.
Haimanout, St. Tekla, Egyptian
monk in Ethiopia, 110; syca-
JAMES, F. L., on the Wild
Tribes of the Sudan,' 294
Jerusalem, Abyssinian nun at,
40; King Menelek at, 42;
INDEX
305
JES
MAR
visit of Abyssinian priests to,
86
Jesuit influence in Abyssinia,
51
Jews at Keren market, 79
John, Emperor, reign of, 2;
Egyptians in Mareb valley
slaughtered by, 92
John, Fitaurari, Author's meet.
ing with, 11
Johnson, Dr., translation of
Father Lobo's work on Abys-
sinia by, 9, 112 ; his extracts
froin Alvarez, 9; story of
Rasselas, ib.
LAH-LAH-AH, blue birds, monkeys,
and bees at, 97; presents of
milk and bread from villagers,
98
Latin influence in Ethiopia, 9
Lobo, Father, on Abyssinia, 9;
Dr. Johnson's translation of
his work, 112
Longpérier on Ethiopian coins
in • Revue numismatique,'
176
Ludolphus on the history of the
Ethiopian Church, 83; on the
origin of the Ethiopian, 175
KALEB, King, victory of, 178;
tombs of, 194
Kasu, victory of Aksumites over,
270
Keane, Prof., on the 'Ethnology
of the Egyptian Sudan,'
293
Keren conquered by Ras Alula,
66; Italian rule at, ib.;
journey to, 67, 75; Chris-
tianity at, ib.; monasteries in,
ib.; Italian colonists at, 76;
roadside tombs near, 77; de-
scription of town, 78; Roman
Catholic mission at, ib.; vari-
ous nationalities at market,
79; Egyptian buildings, ib.,
revolt of dervishes, ib. ; Italian
conquest, ib.; gigantic baobab
trees, ib.; elaborate system
of irrigation, ib.; fertility
of valley, ib.; cordiality of
Christians and Mussulmans,
ib.
Kilus, Bishop of Tua, 30
Kohaito, plateau of, 215; brigands
captured in vicinity, 217; de-
scription of ruins, 218
Koloe, ancient dam at, 220;
sandstone columns, 221; ivory
market, 223
Kosmas on the trade of Ethiopia,
177
Kyrillos, Bishop, murder of,
128;
his tomb at Adoua,
ib.
MAHIo, village of, 227; Arab-
speaking Mussulman inhabi-
tants, ib.; market for grain,
ib.; rope manufacture froin
aloes, ib.
Mai Kashi, wonderful gorge at
Halai, 214
Mai Ositt stream at Debra Sina,
71
Mai Shum river at Aksum, 190
,
Mai Velers stream near Adoua,
135
Malak Sagad I., death of, 107
Malak Sagad II., see Wahag
Malak Sagad III., coronation of,
108. See also Susenyos
Mangashah, Fitaurari, and his
escort of Author to Adoua, 96;
on Abyssinian decay, 98
Mangashah, Ras, Abyssinian
chief, 2; appointed viceroy
of Tigrè, 3; embassy to the
• Colonia Eritrea,' 11; letter
to Author, with royal seal,
170; invitation from, ib.; his
military camp in Tembien, ib.
Manthaios, Author's Greek
servant, 6
Maraba, village of, 207; impo-
sing-looking houses, ib.; hos-
pitality of headman, ib. See
also Asboroum
Mareb valley from the high
plateau, 16; river at Debarroit,
87; remarkable view of valley,
90; haunt of elephants, py-
thons and apes, ib.; slaughter
X
306
INDEX
MAR
ODO
of Egyptians, 92 ; descent
of caravan into, ib.; danger
of travelling in wet weather,
93; Ras Mangashah's escort
to Adoua, 95; farewell to
Italian escort, ib.; mountains
swarming with brigands, 173;
Author's safe return under
escort, 201
Marib, harem of Bilkis' at,
167
Marko, Author's Abyssinian in-
terpreter, 6
Mars, dedication of statues to,
110
Martino, Captain de, Italian
resident at Adona, 115; hospi-
tality of, ib.; his house and
garden, ib.; in jeopardy, 149;
despatches à inessenger to
Addi Kola for assistance, 198;
flight from Adona, 199
Mashonaland, quolquol trees in,
13
Massowah, governor of, 2;
landing at, 4; description of
town, ib.; Egyptian palace,
ib.; Italian buildings, 26.;
residence of Italian governor,
ib.; Arab dhows, 5; military
club, ib., streets and bazaars,
ib.; open-air theatre, ib.;
climate of, ib.; mountains in
proximity, ib.; sea - fishing,
ib.; sharks, 6; Manthaios,
Author's Greek servant, ib.;
purchase of mules, ib.; Egyp-
tian architecture, ib.; tombs
of saints, ib.; engagement of
interpreter and muleteers, ib.;
Italian railway to Sahati, 7 ;
money deposited with Cava-
liere Castellani, ib.; Abys-
sinian encampments near, 11;
Portuguese fleet at, 106; ter-
mination of Author's wander-
ings at, 230
Matthew, the Armenian, in
Abyssinia, 104
Meduz, obelisks at, 186
Mendez, Father Alfonso, Port1-
griese patriarch of Ethiopia.
112
Menelek II., Emperor of Abys-
sinia, 3; his jealousy of Ras
Alula's power, ib.; orders him
to resign, and appoints Ras
Mangashab as viceroy of Tigré,
ib.; in seclusion at Shon, 12,
97; visits Jerusalem, 42; at
Aksum, 153
Mensa Bedouins at Keren
market, 79
Meshsashah, Fitaurari, vanity
of, 171; sits for his photo-
graph, ib.
Michael, Ras, church building
by, 135
Michael, St., church of, at Adoua,
135
Mohammedanism in Abyssinia,
51
Moncullo, Swedish mission at, 7
Mulazzani, Lieutenant, inarches
to rescue of Italian resident
and friends at Adoua, 199;
joyful meeting in Gashiwarkeh
pass, 200; native troops under
the flag of Italy, 200; his
hospitality at Addi Quala,
202
Müller, Professor I). H., on Yeha
inscriptions, 145, 231; his
translations, 181; on Aksum
inscriptions, 238
Munziger on the ethnical groups
of Abyssinia, 294
Murray, Mr. A. S., on Ethiopian
origin, 14; on the Harpy tomb
from Xanthus in Lycia, 222
Mussulman troops at Asmara,
18
Nile river, Abyssinian sources
of the, 144
Nonnosus, Justinian's ambassa-
dor to Aksum, 143; grandeur
of his reception, ib. ; on the
trade of Ethiopia, 177
Nuba, war between Aksum and,
270
(ROCK, French designs on, ?
Odone, Cipt., furnishes Author
INDEX
307
OKU
SCH
on
with Italian escort at Halai,
214
Okule Kusai, Italian colonists in,
2; district of, 36; character-
istics of province, 206; the
Bahr-negous as ruler, ib.; its
flourishing condition, 207;
Roman Catholic mission, 209
Otumlo, village of, 7
Oviedo, Andrea, succeeds Ber-
mudez as patriarch of the
Ethiopian Church, 107; ex-
iled to mountains by emperor,
ib.; death of, ib.
Red Sea, Italian footing
the, 1
*Revue numismatique' on early
Ethiopian coins, 176
Roedige, Prof., on Aksum in-
scriptions, 256
Ruttinus on Abyssinian Christi-
anity, 109
Rüppell, Dr. E., on Aksuin in-
scriptions, 256
ib. ;
Paës, Father, misfortunes and
hardships of, 107; constructs
Portuguese buildings in Abys-
sinia, 108; his death at Fre-
mona, 110
Pantaleon, St., monastery of,
153
Periplus of the Red Sea,' anony-
mous author of, 152 ; on early
knowledge of Greek, 177 ;
mentions Koloe as an ivory
market, 223; his account of
Adulis, 229
Persico, Captain, hospitality of,
71
Philostorgius on Constantine's
embassy to Ethiopia, 179
• Photii Biblioteca' on journey
of Nonnosus, 143
Poncet's expedition to Abyssinia,
45
Portuguese in Ethiopia, 9, 103;
palaces at Gondar, 12, 40;
travellers in Abyssinia, 104
Prester John, home of, 9;
Author's exciting exit from
realms of, 202
Procopius, author of De Bello
Persiao,' 178
Ptolemy, Claudius, on the Trog.
lodyte region, 146 ; on the
position of Koloe, 223
Ptolemy Euergetes and his con-
quests, 144
SABÆAN sun and star worship,
83, 141; inscriptions at Yeha,
137; colony at Ava, 145; trade
with the Avalitæ, 146; migra-
tion into Ethiopia, 231 ; iu-
scriptions under protection of
the gods; 263
Sabargouma, ride to, 10; Abys-
sinian village near, 11; route
to Asmara, 12
Sada, thrones erected by Aksum-
ite kings in, 181
Saganeiti
, huge sycamore at, 89;
village of, 208; Roman Catho-
licinission, 209; funeral feast,
festivities in Italian
colony,ib.; Ethiopian Roman
Catholic priests, ib.; service
in Latin, ib. ; journey to
Digsa, 210
Sahati, railway terminus at, 7 ;
hospitality of Italian officers,
ib. ; Italian casino at, 8
Sallaba, mountain village of, 72;
artists in cow-dung at, ib.;
wildness of peasants, ib.; hos-
pitality of inhabitants, 74
Salt, Mr., on Ethiopian origin,
14; on ruins of Bizen, 40;
his “Voyage in Abyssinia,'
232 ; his discovery of tablets
at Aksum, 256
Samhar country, railway
through, 7
Sapeto, Lazarist missionary, on
Aksum inscriptions, 257
Sasou, gold-mines of, 177
Sayce, Prof., on the Troglo-
dytic, 147
Schimper family at Adona,
flight of, 199
RASSELAS and Dr. Johnson, 9
308
INDEX
SCH
YEH
Schiré, Author visited by a
general from, 170
Seda river, Aksumite victories
on the, 270
Sela, Ras, half-brother of the
emperor, 10, 112
Semen, mountains of, 144
Semitic inscriptions at Aksum,
241
Semyen range, altitude of, 16;
snow.covered, 153
Sheba, Queen of, supposed tomb
at Aksum, 112; residence at
Aksum, 166
Sheikh Seid, coral islet of, 4
Shia, ride to village of, 205;
hovels overgrown with toma-
toes, ib. ; its former import-
Tekla Haimanout, Abyssinian
saint, representations of, at
Godofelassi, 203; his tomb at
Debra Libanos, ib.
Tellezius, Balthazar, account of
coronation at Aksum by,
108
Tembien, Ras Alula's mountain
in, 4; home of Ras Alula, 150;
military camp of Ras Manga-
shah, 170
Theodore I., Abyssinian legend
concerning, 156
Tigrè, rival chiefs in, 2 ; Ras
Alula as Viceroy, 3; appoint-
ment of Ras Mangashah as
Viceroy, ib.; quarrels of rival
chiefs, 12; arrival of Author's
presents for distribution, 85;
Portuguese missions in, 111
Troglodytäe, Agatharcides' de-
scription of, 146; Prof. Sayce's
account of, 147
Tsad Amba, dangerous approach
to monastery, 75
Tua, Bishop of, 30
Tzana lake, doubts concerning,
224
ance, 206
Shoa, Emperor Menelek at, 12,
97
Shohos, huts of, 7
Shuma Negous, camping at vil-
lage of, 82; present of bread
and honey, ib.; Vigil of the
Blessed Virgin, 83
Shumfaitou, stupendous de-
scent from, 226
Solomon, King, supposed de-
scent of Ethiopian royal
family from, 170; house of,
near Aksum, 196
Stanley, Dean, on the Abys.
sinian Church, 51
Stanley of Alderley, Lord, trans-
lation of Alvarez by, 9
• Sudan, Ethnology of the Egyp-
tian,' by Prof. Keane, 293
Susenyos, Negous, or Malak
Sagad III., at Aksum, 108;
abdication and death of, 113
Swedish mission at Moncullo, 7
Syrian importations into Ethi-
opia, 179
VECCHI, Lieut., escorts Author
to Debra Sina, 71
Vincent, Dean, on • Commerce
and Navigation of the An-
cients,' 144
WAHAG SAGAD II., Emperor of
Ethiopia, 107 ; his ill-treat-
ment of Portuguese mission-
aries, ib.
Werka Terha, Abyssinian inter-
preter, 6
Wild Tribes of the Sudan,' by
F. L. James, 294
TACAZZEH valley from the high
plateau, 16; river, 153
Taconda, village of, 216; Chris-
tians and churches at, ib. ;
industry of inhabitants, ib.
Tantarouga, village of, 79
Taulud, coral islet of, 4
YAKOB, Emperor of Ethiopia,
108
Yeha, expedition to, 134 ; im-
portance of ruins at, ib.; ob-
jects of interest on road to,
135 ; prosperous cultivation
INDEX
309
YEH
ZUL
soil, 146; cattle and grain
caves in the hills, ib.; hyenas
a source of constant danger,
148; Author's departure from,
149; ark of the covenant at,
153; translations of inscrip-
tions, 234, 235, 237 ; script
and language of the inscrip-
tions, 271
at, 137, 148; native court of
justice, 137 ; inquisitiveness
of inhabitants, ib.; monastery
and priests, ib.; Sabæan in-
scriptions, ib. ; superstition
concerning buried treasure,
ib.; description of temple, 138;
Himyaritic inscriptions, 140;
monoliths and altar, ib.; frag-
ments of dressed stones, 141;
ruins of colossal building, ib.;
interesting spot for excavation,
ib.; ancient and modern ac-
counts of antiquities, 142; an-
cient irrigation, ib.; Prof. D.
H. Müller on inscriptions, 145,
231; Arabian colony of traders
at, 146, 175; removal of capi-
tal to Aksum, 146; fertility of
ZEILA, Avalites of, 146
Zimbabwe, Mashonaland, legend
concerning Queen of Sheba at,
166
Zoskales, King of Ethiopia,
kuowledge of Greek by, 177
Zula, journey to, 228; sheikh of,
229
PRINTED BY
SPOTTISWOODE AXD) CO., XTH STREET SQUARE
LONDON
AUGUST, 1893
A
CLASSIFIED CATALOGUE
OF WORKS IN
GENERAL LITERATURE
PAGE
9
BADMINTON LIBRARY (THE) ·
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FICTION, HUMOUR, ETC.
HISTORY, POLITICS, POLITY, AND POLITICAL MEMOIRS
INDEX OF AUTHORS
LANGUAGE, HISTORY AND SCIENCE OF
MENTAL, MORAL, AND POLITICAL PHILOSOPHY
MISCELLANEOUS AND CRITICAL WORKS
POETRY AND THE DRAMA
2
13
IO
23
15
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LONDON
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INDEX OF AUTHORS.
1
7, 23 Plato
-
21
14, 16
-
4
1
1
12
1
24
(
9
14
14
24
24
24
5, 6
13
12
23
11
Page
Page
Page:
Abbott (Evelyn)
3, 14 Halliwell-Phillipps (J. O.)
14
(T. K.)
10 Harrison (Mary)
23 Pole (W.)
IO
Acland (A. H. D.)
3 Harrison (Jane E.)
14 Pollock (W. H.)
9
Acton (Eliza)
22 Harte (Bret)
17
Poole (W. H. and Mrs.)
23
Æschylus
14 Hartwig (G.)
18, 19 Praeger (F.)
7
Allingham (W.)
15 Hassall (A.)
6 Pratt (A. E.)
8
Anstey (F.)
16 Hearn (W. E.)
4, II Prendergast (J. P.) -
5
Aristophanes
14 Heathcote (J. M. & C. J.)
9
Proctor (Richard A.) IO, 19, 24
Aristotle
10 Helmholtz (Prof.)
19
Raine (James) -
4
Armstrong (E.)
3 Henry (W.)
Ransome (Cyril)
9
3
=
(G. F. Savage)
15 Hodgson (Shadworth H.)-
II, 24 Reader (E. Ė.)
(E. J.)
6, 15, 23 Hooper (G.)
6 Rhoades (J.)
Arnold (Sir Edwin) -
7, 15 Hopkins (E. P.)
10 Ribot (T.)
I2
Arnold (T.)
3 Horley (E.)
Rich (A.) -
14
Ashley (W.J.)
13 | Howard (B. D.)
8 Richardson (Sir B. Ward) 24
Atelier du Lys (Author of) 16 Howitt (William)
8 Rickaby (John)
Bacon
6, 11 Hullah (John) -
(Joseph)
12
Bagehot (Walter)
6, 13, 23 Hume (David) -
IT Riley (J. W.)
16
Bagwell (R.)
3
Hunt (W.)
4
(A.) -
8
Bain (Alexander)
II Hutchinson (Horace G.) -
Robertson (A.)
18
Baker (James)
16 Huth (A. H.)
Roget (John Lewis)
24
Baker (Sir S. W.)
7 Hyne (C. J. C.)
17
(Peter M.)
13
Ball (J. T.)
3 Ingelow (Jean)
- ,
15, 20 Romanes (G. J.)
Baring-Gould (S.)
23 Jefferies (Richard)
Ronalds (A.)
10
· Barrow (Sir J. Croker)
15 Jewsbury (Geraldine)
Roosevelt (T.) -
4
Beaconsfield (Earl of) · 16, 17 Johnson (J. & J. H.)
Rossetti (M. F.)
24
Beaufort (Duke of) -
9 Johnstone (L.)
II
Round (J. H.) -
5
Becker (Prof.)
14 Jones (E. E. C.)
Il Seebohm (F.)
Bell (Mrs. Hugh)
15 Jordan (W. L.)
Sewell (Eliz. M.)
18
Bent J. Theodore) -
7 Joyce (P. W.)
Shakespeare
16
Björnsen (B.)
15 Justinian -
II Shearman (M.)
9
Boase (C. W.)
4 Kant (I.)
11 Shirres (L. P.) -
13
Boedder (B.)
12 Killick (A. H.) -
II Sidgwick (Alfred)
Boyd (A. K. H.)
6, 23 Kitchin (G. W.)
Sinclair (A.)
4
9
Brassey (Lady)
2 Knight (E. F.)
8 Sinith (R. Bosworth)
)
5
Bray (C. and Mrs.)
II Ladd (G. T.)
Il Sophocles
14
Brenda'
20 Lang (Andrew) 4, 10, 14, 15, 17, 20, 24 Southey (R.)
24
Buckle (H. T.)
3 Lavişse (E.)
4
Spedding (J.)
6
Bull (T.)
22 Lear (H. L. Sidney)
Stanley (Bishop)
19
Burrows (Montagu)
4 Lecky (W. E. H.)
4, 16 Steel (A. G.)
9
Bury (Viscount
9 Lees (J. A.)
8 Stephen (Sir James)
7
Butler (E. A.)
18 Leslie (T. E. C.)
C.)
13 Stephens (H. C.)
5
(Samuel)
23 Lewes (G. H.)
(H. Morse)
5
Campbell-Walker (A.)
8 Leyton (F.)
16 (T.)
5-
Carlyle (Thomas)
23 Lodge (H, C.)
4 4
Stevenson (Robert Louis) 16, 18, 21
Caroe (W. D.) -
4 Loftie (W. J.)
4
Stock (St. George)
Chesney (Sir G.)
3 Logeman (W. S.)
13
Strong (H. A.)
13
Chetwynd (Sir G.)
8 Longman (F. W.)
10 Stubbs (J. W.)
5
Chilton (E.)
17 Longmore (Sir T.) -
7
Sturgis (Julian)
18
Cholmondeley-Pennell (H.) 9 Lubbock (Sir John)
14
Suffolk and Berkshire (Earl of) 9
Cicero
14 Lyall (Edna)
1 Sully (James)
Clarke (R. F.)
12 Lydekker (R.).
10 Suttner (Baron von)
Clerke (Agnes M.)
14 Lyttelton (R. H.)
Swinburne (A. J.)
9
12
Clodd (Edward)
14 Lytton (Earl of)
16 Symes (J. E.)
13
Clutterbuck (W. J.)
8 Macaulay (Lord)
5, 16 Thompson (Annie)
18
Comyn (L. N.)
17 Macfarren (Sir G. A.)
24
(D. G.)
Conington (John)
14 Mackail (J. W.)
Thomson (Archbishop)
I2
Cox (Harding)
9 Macleod (H. D.)
13
Tirebuck (W.) -
18
Crake (A. D.) -
20 Maher (M.)
12 Todd (A.)
6
Creighton (Bishop) -
4 Mannering (G. E.):
8 Toynbee (A.)
13
Crozier (J. B.) -
Il Marbot (Baron de)
6 Trevelyan (Sir G. O.)
.6
Crump (A.)
3, 13 | Marshman (J. C.)
6 Trollope (Anthony)
18
Curzon (Hon. G. N.)
8 Martin (A. P.) -
7 | Tupper (C. L.)
6
Cutts (E. L.)
4 Matthews (Brander)
17, 24 Tyrrell (R. Y.).
14
Dante
15 Maunder (S.)
20 Verney (Francis P.)
Davidson (W. L.)
- II, 13 Max Müller (F.)
II, 13, 24 Virgil
14
Deland (Mrs.)
17 May (Sir T. Erskine)
5
Wade (G. W.)
13
Dent (C. T.)
9 Meath (Earl of)
13 Wakeman (H. O.)
6
De Salis (Mrs.)
- 22, 23 Meade (L. T.)
- 20, 21 Walford (Mrs.)
De Tocqueville (A.)
Melville (G. J. Whyte)
17 Wallaschek (R.)
24
Devas (C. S.)
13 Mendelssohn
24 Walpole (Spencer)
6
Dougall (L.)
17 Merivale (Dean)
5
Walsingham (Lord)
9
Dowell (S.)
13 Mill (James)
12
Walter (J.)
7
Doyle (A. Conan)
17 Mill (John Stuart)
Watson (A. E. T.)
9
Falkener (E.)
TO Milner (G.)
24 Webb (T. E.)
Farnell (G. S.)
14 Molesworth (Mrs.)
21
Weir (R.)
9
Farrar (Archdeacon)
· 13, 17 Monck (H. S.) -
12
West (C.) -
23
Fitzpatrick (W. J.) -
3 Moore (E.)
6 Weyman (Stanley J.)
18
Ford (H.)-
10 Nansen (F.)
8 Whately (Archbishop)
I2
Francis (Francis)
10 Nesbit (E.)
16
(E. J.)
13
Freeman (Edward A.)
3 Norton (C. L.)
8 Wheeler (B. I.)
13
Froude (James A.) 4, 6, 8, 17 O'Brien (W.)
17 | Whishaw (F. J.)
8
Furneaux (W.)
18 Oliphant (Mrs.)
18 Wilcocks (J. C.)
Gardiner (Samuel Rawson) 4 Osbourne (L) -
18 Wilkin (G) )
L4
Gleig (G. R.)
2 Parkes (Sir H.)
Willich (C. M.)
Goethe
15 Parr (Mrs.)
18 Wilson (A. J.) -
13
Gordon (E. J. A.)
4 Paul (H.) -
13 Wishart (G.) )
6
Graham (G. F.)
13 Payn (James)
18 Wolff (H. W.)
Graves (R. P.) -
6 Payne-Gallwey (Sir R.) 9, 10 Woodgate (W. B.)
9
Green (T. Hill)
11 Pembroke (Earl of)
9 Wood (J. G.)
19
Greville (C. C. F.)
+ Perring (Sir P.)
21 Wordsworth (Bishop Charles) 7
Haggard (H. Rider)
17 Phillipps-Wolley (C.)
9, 18 | Wylie I. H.)
6
(Ella)
15 | Piatt (S. & J. J.)
16 | Zeller (E.)
IZ
12.
1
I2
It
-
7
.
1
7, 18
12, 13
1
12
IO
20
cow sun COO
1
8, 13
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