| Abstrakt: |
Summary: In a chapel in the old crenellated church of Mary of Zion in Aksum, Ethiopia, is kept an object that emperors, patriarchs and priests have assured the world is the most important religious relic of all time: the Tabota Seyon, Ark of the Covenant, the Ark of Zion. This Ark is alleged to be no less than the Ark that Moses had constructed at Sinai and which destroyed the walls of Jericho. It was brought into Jerusalem by King David and installed in a magnificent temple by King Solomon. Then, the story goes, it came to Ethiopia of its own choice with the half-Ethiopian, half-Jewish son of Solomon and the Queen of Sheba. Are the legends true? From ancient texts to local stories, from the Bible to the writings of sixteenth and seventeenth-century Jesuits, Munro-Hay traces the extraordinary legend of Ethiopia's Ark in what is a triumph of historical detective work. He scrutinises every mention of the Ark in Ethiopian records and tests every theory before reaching his shocking conclusion.Nobody is better qualified to consider these points than Munro-Hay...The subject is fascinating...and the setting as exotic as could be asked for. This book is to be commended to anyone interested in Ethiopia, biblical historyor the process of scholarly investigation. Philip Ziegler The SpectatorActing as something of a modern-day Indiana Jones...Munro-Hay offers a charming glimpse into the Ethiopian side of this story. Publishers Weekly. |
