Rock-Hewn Churches of Lalibela, Lalibela

Lalibela in the Amhara region of northern Ethiopia is named after Saint Gebre Mesqel Lalibela, ruler of Ethiopia from the late 12th to the early 13th centuries. Ethiopia adopted Christianity at the beginning of the 4th century as one of the first countries in the world to do so, and Lalibela is generally understood to be an architectural reproduction of Jerusalem. One of Ethiopia’s holiest cities, Lalibela is particularly famed for its rock-hewn churches, each constructed from a single piece of rock hewn from the region`s rocky hills. Pinkish in hue, these 11 amazing edifices have been called “the eighth wonder of the world”; they have been an UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1978. The church of St. George, carved inside a huge volcanic rock, and the Bet Medhane Alem (the largest monolithic church in the world) are particularly worth a visit. Lalibela has its own airport, 25 km from the city center (at least 30 minutes, the road is very poor).

Orthodox Christian churches carved from solid rock in the mountains of Ethiopia. The 11 rock churches at Lalibela in the Amhara district of northern Ethiopia were probably built by King Gebre Meskel Lalibela, after whom the town is named. A member of the Zagwe dynasty, he ruled this mountainous area of Ethiopia about 900 years ago. A devout Christian of the Ethiopian Orthodox faith, he is said to have created the churches in response to the fall of Jerusalem to a Muslim army in 1187, intending the complex as a recreation of the holy city. Exceptional technique. Each of the churches was made by chiseling away soft, reddish volcanic rock to isolate a rectangular block. The workers then cut inward, hollowing the block to form a room inside. The largest church, Bete Medhane Alem, has rows of outer columns like a Greek temple. Bete Gyorgis, the best preserved, is in the shape of a cross. Designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1978, the churches are a living place of pilgrimage visited by thousands of worshippers each day.