Below is an easy-to-browse gallery
of books that cater to those who are interested in visiting Ethiopia or learning
more about its ancient past. The majority of descriptions below are by independent
editors. Feel free to purchase these books directly from Amazon.com!
Ancient
Churches of Ethiopia:
...This landmark book is the first to integrate historical, archaeological, and
art-historical evidence to provide a comprehensive account of Ethiopian Christian
civilization and its churches—both built and rock-hewn—from the Aksumite
period to the 13th century. David W. Phillipson, a foremost authority on Ethiopia’s
archaeology, situates these churches within the development of Ethiopian society,
illuminating the exceptional continuity of the country’s Christian civilization.
He offers a fresh view of the processes which gave rise to this unique
African culture as well as the most detailed treatment of the rock-hewn churches
at Lalibela World Heritage Site ever published. Abundantly illustrated, filled
with original insights, and incorporating new chronological findings, this book
will be of enormous interest to a wide international circle of students, scholars,
and travelers.
"Stanley Burstein has researched, compiled, and translated with commentary
the most significant Greek and Roman sources concerning Black Africa. The result
is a fascinating book about the people of the southern part of the Nile Valley,
the gold mines of Nubia, and the Hellenistic city of Meroe, capital of the Ethiopian
Empire of Kush, with its own highly developed culture (300 BCE to 300 CE). This
book is a masterpiece of scholarship and historical research." - Midwest
Book Review".
Aksum: An African Civilization of Late Antiquity :
In the 3rd century AD a Persian commentator described the Ethiopian kingdom of
Aksum as one of the most powerful civilizations in the world, third only to Persia
and Rome. This volume provides a detailed survey of Aksum's architecture, artistic
life, material culture, history and religion. It contains a chronology for the
first seven centuries of the civilization, based upon the author's access to the
largest collection of Aksumite gold coins in the world. The aim of the text is
to place the Aksumite kingdom as one of the most important in African and world
history.
Sign and the Seal: The Quest for the Lost Ark of the Covenant:
English journalist
Hancock retells the circumstances and thoughts that led to his discovery that
the Lost Ark of the Covenant really exists...off he went to Axum, deep in the
desert, to see the temples and statuary of the Black Jews of Ethiopia. What he
found was a sect that claimed to have the original Ark of the Covenant...Built
at the foot of Mount Sinai, Hancock tells us, it ``was deposited [around 955 B.C.]
by Solomon in the Holy of Holies of the First Temple.''
The Ark of the Covenant is the greatest treasure the world has ever know, and
the oldest sacred relic in the religious iconography of the Hebrews. It is the
least understood object of worship. Where is the Ark of the Covenant today? Through
this book, the reader will trace its route from the Holy Land to America.
African Ark: People and Ancient Cultures of Ethiopia and the
Horn of Africa:
Two talented photographers focus on the Horn of Africa--an "ark" that
shelters an astonishing variety of landscapes and human societies. Starting with
the Christian Amharas of Lalibela and Axum and the Falashas of Lake Tana, they
complete an arc that takes them to the seacoast of Eritrea, Djibouti and Somalia,
as far south as Lamu in Kenya, and finally to the remote peoples of the Southeast
who still engage in stick fighting, body painting, scarification and the wearing
of lip plates... Copyright 1990 Reed Business Information, Inc.
...This landmark book is the first to integrate historical, archaeological, and
art-historical evidence to provide a comprehensive account of Ethiopian Christian
civilization and its churches—both built and rock-hewn—from the Aksumite
period to the 13th century. David W. Phillipson, a foremost authority on Ethiopia’s
archaeology, situates these churches within the development of Ethiopian society,
illuminating the exceptional continuity of the country’s Christian civilization.
"Stanley Burstein has researched, compiled, and translated with commentary
the most significant Greek and Roman sources concerning Black Africa. The result
is a fascinating book about the people of the southern part of the Nile Valley,
the gold mines of Nubia, and the Hellenistic city of Meroe, capital of the Ethiopian
Empire of Kush, with its own highly developed culture (300 BCE to 300 CE). This
book is a masterpiece of scholarship and historical research." - Midwest
Book Review". 
In the 3rd century AD a Persian commentator described the Ethiopian kingdom of
Aksum as one of the most powerful civilizations in the world, third only to Persia
and Rome. This volume provides a detailed survey of Aksum's architecture, artistic
life, material culture, history and religion. It contains a chronology for the
first seven centuries of the civilization, based upon the author's access to the
largest collection of Aksumite gold coins in the world. The aim of the text is
to place the Aksumite kingdom as one of the most important in African and world
history. 
English journalist
Hancock retells the circumstances and thoughts that led to his discovery that
the Lost Ark of the Covenant really exists...off he went to Axum, deep in the
desert, to see the temples and statuary of the Black Jews of Ethiopia. What he
found was a sect that claimed to have the original Ark of the Covenant...Built
at the foot of Mount Sinai, Hancock tells us, it ``was deposited [around 955 B.C.]
by Solomon in the Holy of Holies of the First Temple.'' 
The Ark of the Covenant is the greatest treasure the world has ever know, and
the oldest sacred relic in the religious iconography of the Hebrews. It is the
least understood object of worship. Where is the Ark of the Covenant today? Through
this book, the reader will trace its route from the Holy Land to America. 
Two talented photographers focus on the Horn of Africa--an "ark" that
shelters an astonishing variety of landscapes and human societies. Starting with
the Christian Amharas of Lalibela and Axum and the Falashas of Lake Tana, they
complete an arc that takes them to the seacoast of Eritrea, Djibouti and Somalia,
as far south as Lamu in Kenya, and finally to the remote peoples of the Southeast
who still engage in stick fighting, body painting, scarification and the wearing
of lip plates... Copyright 1990 Reed Business Information, Inc.
