Ethiopia unveils ancient obelisk

The obelisk was surrounded by scaffolding for reassembly

Ethiopia is celebrating the unveiling of the reassembled Axum obelisk, one of the country's greatest treasures.

The obelisk, at least 1,700 years old, was looted by Italian troops in the 1930s and returned to Ethiopia in 2005.

A giant Ethiopian flag was removed from the obelisk in front of what organisers said was a crowd of tens of thousands in the ancient northern town of Axum.

The ceremony is the last big event of Ethiopia's millennium year, the year 2000 by the country's Coptic calendar.

The president and prime minister were among the officials attending.

Ancient empire

Intricately carved obelisks were erected at the tombs of Ethiopia's ancient kings when Axum was the centre of a great empire.

The obelisk shows the architectural talent of our ancestors Berhanu Kebede Ethiopian ambassador to the UK

But only one remained standing amid the tumbled blocks of its former companions, the BBC's Elizabeth Blunt reports from Ethiopia.

The Axum obelisk was taken by troops in 1937 during the Italian occupation.

The monument weighs more than 150 tonnes and was brought back from Italy in three pieces.

Its return followed decades of negotiations between the Italian and Ethiopian governments, and long delays in transporting the heavy stones from Rome.

The monument has now been restored and resurrected in its original home.

How the Axum obelisk was restored

It had been lying on the ground for centuries when the Italians found it, and some archaeologists argued it should have been replaced in that position to avoid damage to it or nearby networks of underground tombs.

But others have said Ethiopians should be able to see the obelisk in its original position.

Ethiopia's ambassador to the UK, Berhanu Kebede, told the BBC's Network Africa programme that the obelisk would help his country "to build a stronger and vibrant nation".

"We have fought a protracted battle to bring back our historical asset, and this is very important because it's a manifestation of who we are and it also shows what our ancestors have done," he said.

"The obelisk shows the architectural talent of our ancestors and modern architects are fascinated how the Ethiopians were able to do that during that period."

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/7597589.stm

Obelisk points to ancient Ethiopian glory

By Verity Murphy BBC News website

The obelisks mark the graves of Axum's ancient rulers

In northern Ethiopia, in the once-great city of Axum, final preparations are under way for the return of one of Africa's most remarkable archaeological treasures.

The Axum obelisk, a 1,700-year-old stone monolith, measuring 24-metres (78 feet) high and weighing 160 tons, is returning home after more than six decades adorning a square in the Italian capital, Rome.

It was looted by Italy's fascist dictator Benito Mussolini in 1937 during Italy's brief occupation of Ethiopia and has been a bone of contention between the two countries ever since.

The Ethiopian authorities accused Italy of foot-dragging over the issue, while Rome blamed the slow progress on the difficulty and cost of moving such a massive stone between two continents.

Trading empire

The obelisk is the finest of more than 100 stone monoliths which stood in Axum, capital city of the ancient Axumite kingdom and birthplace of the biblical Queen of Sheba.

The obelisk in Rome is one of the tallest and most highly decorated

In the 3rd Century AD, the Persian philosopher Mani described Axum as one of the four greatest kingdoms in the world, along with Rome, China and Persia.

Situated on the northern edge of present-day Ethiopia, Axum first rose to prominence in the 1st Century AD trading its rich natural resources through its Red Sea port Adulis.

A steady stream of textiles, animals, gold, ivory, precious jewels and spices passed through Adulis on their way to be sold in Arabia, India and throughout the Roman Empire.

Profiting from this trade Axum grew into the dominant force in the Red Sea area and an ally of Constantinople - eventual capital of the Greek-speaking, and Christian, Byzantine Empire.

Christian conversion

Cultural exchange with Constantinople meant Axum's elite also spoke Greek, inscriptions in the city even appeared in the language, and around AD325 Ezana, the King of Axum, converted to Christianity.

Ezana removed the crescent and disk motif from Axum's coins, replacing it with the Christian cross, and laid the foundations for the Christian conversion of the whole of Ethiopia.

The king is also believed to have ordered the building of seven massive stone monoliths, the largest of the 100 or so that were erected in the city in the 3rd and 4th Centuries AD.

Hewn from nepheline syenite, a hard-wearing granite-like rock, and varying in height from one metre to 30m, the obelisks were erected as funerary markers, or stelae, for deceased members of the aristocracy.

Intricate carvings

The stone returning from Rome is one of the group Ezana is believed to have erected.

These seven obelisks are significant not only for their huge size, but also their intricate decoration.

Carvings on the stones represent the windows and beams of a multi-storey building - the largest depicting 13 floors along its length.

False doors are carved on the base of the monolith

False stone doors at the bottoms of the pillars, some even bearing carved door locks, add to the impression that the solid pieces of rock are in fact buildings.

Axum continued to flourish until the 6th Century, when the rise of the Persian Empire and conquests by Muslim Arabs cut the city off from its international trade network and contact with other Christian countries.

But long after its political and economic decline, Axum remained the place where Ethiopia's emperors were crowned.

It also retained its prestige as the birthplace of Christianity in Ethiopia, enhanced by the legend that Menelik I, son of the Queen of Sheba and King Solomon, brought the Ark of the Covenant from Jerusalem to Axum.

Some believe that the Ark remains there to this day, now housed inside a small church built in 1965 on the orders of Haile Selassie, last Emperor of Ethiopia and claimed direct descendant of King Solomon himself.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/4376627.stm