|
Lalibela is a strikingly singular town famed for its
12th century rock-hewn churches. No matter if you've
visited other rock-hewn churches in the rest of the
world; nothing will prepare you for these.
Lalibela, previously known as Roha, is named after
king Lalibela himself at the end of 12th century.
Lalibela is considered to be a New Jerusalem as a
pilgrimage to the real Jerusalem wasn't possible At
the end of the 12th and beginning of the 13th
centuries, King Lalibela of the Zaghwe dynasty built
a series of eleven rock hewn churches, carved into
the rugged mountainsides. The churches are carved
below ground level and they are ringed by trenches
and courtyards and connected to each other by a
tangled maze of tunnels and passages. In size and
scope, the church complex feels like a subterranean
village. These churches are, and what they have been
for at least 800 years, an active Christian shrine,
and the spiritual centre of a town's religious life.
Lalibela would rightly be celebrated as one of the
wonders of the world.
The mountains around Lalibela are also studded with
medieval monasteries and churches. Many of them are
very different from their Lalibela counterparts and
can be visited as straightforward day trips from the
town like Ashetun Mariam and the cave churches of
Yemrehane Christos and Naakuto laab.
|
