The rock-hewn churches of Lalibela

A "New Jerusalem"

In the highlands of northern Ethiopia, eleven medieval churches were carved directly out of the rock. Ethiopian tradition credits them to King Gebre Mesqel Lalibela of the Zagwe dynasty, who reigned around 1181 to 1221. His hagiography says he carved them over 24 years with the help of angels. UNESCO's description reports that Lalibela meant to build a "New Jerusalem" at a time when Muslim conquests had made pilgrimage to the Holy Land difficult. The town, once a political center called Roha, later took the king's name.

Dating

The traditional account is not the whole story. According to the Metropolitan Museum's essay by Kristen Windmuller-Luna, scholars generally agree that the complex was cut in four or five phases between the 7th and 13th centuries, and exact dates are still debated. Some of the earliest structures, such as Biete Mercoreus and Biete Gabriel Rafael, may first have been civic buildings, such as palaces or fortifications, before the site became a religious center. UNESCO's own page places the churches in both the 12th and the 13th century.

Layout and construction

A channel named the Yordannos (Jordan) divides the churches into two main groups:

• North: Biete Medhani Alem, Biete Mariam, Biete Maskal, Biete Denagel and Biete Golgotha Mikael.
• South: Biete Amanuel, Biete Qeddus Mercoreus, Biete Abba Libanos, Biete Gabriel Rafael and Biete Lehem.
• Apart: Biete Ghiorgis (St. George), carved in the shape of a cross and linked to the others by trenches.

Workers cut the churches from the top down out of soft volcanic rock, using chisels and axes. They first traced an outline, then cut trenches to free the main block, then hollowed the interior and finished the exterior. Because of this method, the last part carved was at the bottom, the reverse of ordinary building. Drainage channels, cisterns and baptismal pools were cut into the rock as well. Biete Golgotha holds replicas of the holy tombs and of the Nativity crib, reinforcing the site's role as a substitute Jerusalem and Bethlehem.

Living sanctuary

Lalibela has seen continuous religious practice since the 12th century. A large community of Ethiopian Orthodox priests and nuns still lives there. It is a major pilgrimage site, with especially large crowds on feast days such as Genna, Orthodox Christmas, on 7 January.

Conservation

UNESCO inscribed the site on the World Heritage List in 1978. Water is the main threat. Drainage ditches lay buried for centuries and were cleared only in the 20th century, and UNESCO reports that most churches are in critical condition and that paintings and carvings have deteriorated badly. In 2007 temporary steel shelters were raised over four churches. They keep rain off but are visually intrusive, and the World Monuments Fund hopes eventually to make them unnecessary. Working with Ethiopian heritage authorities, the Fund conserved Beta Gabriel Rafael (completed 2015) and the twin churches of Beta Golgotha and Mika'el (completed 2018).