King Ezana's Inscription

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On the way up to the tombs of Kings Kaleb and Gebre Meskel, you’ll pass a small shack containing a remarkable find that three farmers stumbled upon in 1988: an Ethiopian version of the Rosetta Stone. The pillar, inscribed in Sabaean, Ge’ez and Greek, dates from between AD 330 and AD 350 and records the honorary titles and military victories of the king over his ‘enemies and rebels’.

One section thanks the God of War, thus placing the stone’s age before Ezana’s conversion to Christianity.

The guardian who opens the hut expects a small tip (Birr10 to Birr20).

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