Ethiopia: Axum – Church of St Mary of Zion (New & Old)

These are the two most sacred churches in Ethiopia – the Old and the New. Arc of the Covenant (the chest with the rock slabs with Ten Commandments on them) is supposedly stored here. Multiple frescos and paintings throughout the Christian history point to the arc being transported from Jerusalem to Ethiopia for safekeeping. Nobody has ever seen it though and no one is allowed into the storage crypt. Coincidentally, the storage crypt is badly leaking from rainwater and since the repairmen can’t come in – a new crypt is being built nearby. Then the monk that lives in the crypt will secretly move it. Huh? There is also a very badly lit and organized museum of the treasures of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church – there is probably more pure gold here that in Versailles – and it’s lovely protected by a simple lock on the outside door.
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