New Rock-Hewn Churches of Ethiopia

Co-ordinates: Unknown

Location:

The church lies south-west of Sälla Dǝngay. The new church is carved at the foot of a cliff, slightly north east of the built church of Ayanä Mika’el. A disused rock church, said to date from the 18th Century, is found immediately opposite the built church. There are also several carved hermit cells in the vicinity.

 

Site Description:

(by Tarn Philipp)

Church Description

The new church is in the early phase of excavation and borrows its name from the built church of Ayanä Mika’el, believed to have been established by mämhǝr Agnaṭǝyos, who is also attributed with carving the now disused rock church. The new church consists of a thirty-meter-long tunnel, some three metres in height and width. String is used to mark out the spaces between columns on the northeast wall, the rock of which is to be removed as the church extends east. Excavation began in October 2017 (or February 2010 Ethiopian Calendar) and the complete church is envisioned to measure thirty by sixty metres.

This ambitious undertaking is being funded by Mika’el Gebru, a wealthy patron from Addis Ababa. It should be noted that this is the only site outside Tǝgray where such patronage has been identified. The contracted master craftsman is Täsfa Boggalä, who had no previous experience but has so far proved capable. Somewhat surprising is the use of an architectural model (based on a Moscow metro station), which is kept at the built church. There are also said to be computer generated renders of the proposed church, although these were not seen. This approach has not been identified elsewhere and represents the unusual marrying of the ancient craft and tradition with contemporary design methodology.

 

Getting There:

Ayanä Mika’el is a forty-five-minute drive from Ṭarma Barr, the roadside town before the tunnel, on the road from Däbrä Bǝrhan to Däbrä Sina. In Sälla Dǝngay, take the first left, heading south-west, past the Tourism and Culture office. The road soon forks - veer right. After fifteen-minutes, the road ends and a footpath descends into the valley. It takes ten minutes to reach the church.