Site visited in January 2024. Aksum is well covered by the previous reviewers, but since 8 years have passed since the latest review, I decided to add a new one.

Aksum is treated as the true cradle of Ethiopia, both in terms of state and religious power. State, because it was the first great kingdom in these areas, stretching from today's eastern Sudan to the footholds on the Arabian Peninsula. Religious, because Aksum in the 4th century adopted Christianity, which is still the dominant religion in Ethiopia. Aksum is home to the most important church in Ethiopia - the Church of Our Lady of Zion. In fact, there are two churches of this name - the old one, from the 17th century, and the new one, built on the orders of Emperor Haile Selassie in 1965. The old one is located within the monastery, so only men can enter it. The new one is available for women and men. In the Chapel of Tablets built between them, according to the Ethiopian tradition, there is the Ark of the Covenant, brought here supposedly by King Menelik I, son of Solomon and the Queen of Sheba. No one except monks can enter it. And right next to the Chapel of Tablets there are the ruins of the oldest temple, dating back to the 4th century.

Opposite the church there are monumental ruins with several stelae of incredible size. The largest one, weighing about 520 tons, collapsed (perhaps already at the time of construction, although our guide seemed to believe that it was deliberately destroyed), but the second largest one, 23 meters high and over a hundred tons, is still standing today. although for almost 70 years it resided elsewhere. It was stolen on Mussolini's orders during the short Italian occupation of Ethiopia and returned only in 2005.

Right next to it there is a third stele, slightly smaller than its predecessor, as well as the ruins of a royal tomb, once covered with a huge single block of stone weighing over 300 tons. As in the case of the Egyptian pyramids, scientists do not have a clear answer to the question of how such huge weights were transported and lifted up.

Completing the list of Aksum's monuments, it is worth mentioning the recently discovered royal tomb, which contains a sarcophagus that has not been opened until today, as well as the Dungur Palace, also called the palace of the Queen of Sheba - a monumental structure from the 3rd century BC.

I visited Aksum just over a year after the bloody war in Tigray. It is surprising, but also comforting, that today Tigray is a region where traveling is much easier than in Afar or eastern Oromia. Unlike the latter, there are almost no checkpoints in Tigray. The conflict is still smoldering - Eritrea has not withdrawn from the areas occupied during the war, and the conflict with Amhara over the so-called Western Zone or Mi'irabawi. Despite everything, Tigray currently seems very safe, the only visible traces of the war at first glance are broken windows in some cities. As for Aksum, it suffered rather little damage in the war, only ancient coins were stolen from the local museum. The sacral museum with its magnificent artifacts remained untouched.