Keepers of the Lost Ark?
Christians in Ethiopia have long claimed to have the ark of the covenant. Our reporter investigated
- By Paul Raffaele
- Photographs by Paul Raffaele
- Smithsonian magazine, December 2007, Subscribe
(Page 4 of 6)
The road degenerated into a rutted, rocky pathway that twisted around the hillsides, and our SUV struggled to exceed ten miles per hour. I reached Aksum in darkness and shared the hotel dining room with United Nations peacekeepers from Uruguay and Jordan who told me they were monitoring a stretch of the Ethiopia-Eritrea border about an hour's drive away. The latest U.N. bulletin, they said, described the area as "volatile and tense."
The next day was hot and dusty. Except for the occasional camel and its driver, Aksum's streets were nearly empty. We weren't far from the Denakil Desert, which extends eastward into Eritrea and Djibouti.
By chance, in the lobby of my hotel I met Alem Abbay, an Aksum native who was on vacation from Frostburg State University in Maryland, where he teaches African history. Abbay took me to a stone tablet about eight feet high and covered in inscriptions in three languages—Greek; Geez, the ancient language of Ethiopia; and Sabaean, from across the Red Sea in southern Yemen, the true birthplace, some scholars believe, of the Queen of Sheba.
"King Ezana erected this stone tablet early in the fourth century, while still a pagan ruler," Abbay told me. His finger traced the strange-looking alphabets carved into the rock 16 centuries ago. "Here, the king praises the god of war after a victory over a rebel people." But sometime in the following decade Ezana was converted to Christianity.
Abbay led me to another stone tablet covered with inscriptions in the same three languages. "By now King Ezana is thanking 'the Lord of Heaven' for success in a military expedition into nearby Sudan," he said. "We know he meant Jesus because archaeological digs have turned up coins during Ezana's reign that feature the Cross of Christ around this time." Before that, they bore the pagan symbols of the sun and moon.
As we walked on, we passed a large reservoir, its surface covered with green scum. "According to tradition, it's Queen Sheba's bath," Abbay said. "Some believe there's an ancient curse on its waters."
Ahead was a towering stele, or column, 79 feet high and said to weigh 500 tons. Like other fallen and standing steles nearby, it was carved from a single slab of granite, perhaps as early as the first or second century A.D. Legend has it that the ark of the covenant's supreme power sliced it out of the rock and set it into place.
On our way to the chapel where the ark is said to be kept, we passed Sheba's bath again and saw about 50 people in white shawls crouched near the water. A boy had drowned there shortly before, and his parents and other relatives were waiting for the body to surface. "They say it will take one to two days," Abbay said. "They know this because many other boys have drowned here while swimming. They believe the curse has struck again."
Abbay and I made our way toward the office of the Neburq-ed, Aksum's high priest, who works out of a tin shed at a seminary close by the ark chapel. As the church administrator in Aksum, he would be able to tell us more about the guardian of the ark.
"We've had the guardian tradition from the beginning," the high priest told us. "He prays constantly by the ark, day and night, burning incense before it and paying tribute to God. Only he can see it; all others are forbidden to lay eyes on it or even go close to it." Over the centuries, a few Western travelers have claimed to have seen it; their descriptions are of tablets like those described in the Book of Exodus. But the Ethiopians say that is inconceivable—the visitors must have been shown fakes.
I asked how the guardian is chosen. "By Aksum's senior priests and the present guardian," he said. I told him I'd heard that in the mid-20th century a chosen guardian had run away, terrified, and had to be hauled back to Aksum. The Neburq-ed smiled, but did not answer. Instead, he pointed to a grassy slope studded with broken stone blocks—the remains of Zion Maryam cathedral, Ethiopia's oldest church, founded in the fourth century A.D. "It held the ark, but Arab invaders destroyed it," he said, adding that priests had hidden the ark from the invaders.
Now that I had come this far, I asked if we could meet the guardian of the ark. The Neburq-ed said no: "He is usually not accessible to ordinary people, just religious leaders."
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Comments (582)
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Great blog. Keep up the good work. A new discovery has caused much excitement amongst many archaeologists from around the globe and causing some debate on this issue as it was previously thought that the Ark of the Covenant was permanently lost. Of all places in the world Panama it would seem to be the most unlikely place to have discovered this ancient relic the Ark of the Covenant, however new evidence substantiates the claims that the lost Ark of the Covenant was smuggled to Mesoamerica by Malchiah using the Phoenicians and was hidden in a cave in Volcan Chiriqui in the republic of Panama. Check out their link at The Ark of the Covenant Website Chiriqui archaeological sites.
Posted by arkofthecovenants on February 4,2013 | 02:19 PM
The serenity of the Mountain has appealed immensely to the spiritual imagination of different sages from different civilizations throughout history. For instance, the Egyptian myth that came down around 15,000 BC and 10,000 BC spoke of lands of gods and paradise in the south. The old Egyptian paradise in the south was called Ta Neteru in reference to Mount Kenya, where the three Egyptian principle gods were known to live long before the president of the land of the south made voyage to Egypt. This is an elaborate and complete Nile Valley system and at later dates the dispersal of man from the cradle of mankind. It must be noted when the myth came over it is not the years that the principle gods and the president of the land of the south made voyage. The myth is in reference to periods before the creation of man when gods had habitation in the Nile valley. The legends are a reflection of collective memory that recognizes the movements of blacks or Inu from Mount Kenya region or East Africa to the North. There lacks clear water line to determine when gods left and when men arrived because their history is shrouded in mystery and intertwined personalities in anthromorphic nature. www.yamumbi.com copyright 2012
Posted by kamau on December 21,2012 | 02:56 AM
where ever the arc may lie it should be left in peace for it is a holy object not ment for public display and in the wrong hands a dangerous weapon
Posted by hope on December 11,2012 | 03:23 PM
Very Iteresting!
Posted by Jon reed Evans on September 23,2012 | 05:07 PM
Only God knows where the ark of covenant is located now only time will tell folks or my dear christian brothers and sisters.
Posted by on August 5,2012 | 08:24 PM
Hi my name is gage Laubscher I start this comment by saying the ark of the covenant has always been a huge intrest to me I do believe it was taken to Ethiopia and I do believe it is in that chapel gaurded by the gaurdian of the ark you must of felt honered and privliged to be in his presence and only yards away from one of the biggest mysteries wrapped inside an inigma in the history of human beings, one of the most religous and sacred items that still exist I wonder what that priest does everyday I wonder how it feels to be the only person to know the exact where abouts of the ark of the covenant he wakes up with it only feet away from him. And gets to be in its presence of it everyday he pretty much admitted it was the saying no one can see it besides him you and me both know that its in there I think another trip should be made and you should go back and try to talk to him again this time be like off the record just for my own curiosity and for my own religous beliefes is the ark of the covenant inside that chapel. I also would like to kno what the ark looks like if he has seen the capabilities of the power of the ark I would love to stand outside the chapel where its supose to be held just so I could be that much closer to something more powerful than any man somethin with that much history somethin directly related to god. I would give it my all to try to ask that guardian any questions concerning the ark
Posted by gage laubscher on August 4,2012 | 12:12 AM
@how about some evidence... You do realize that the minute a person becomes skeptical that God will pull away from the person right? Skepticism according to every religious leader and mystic that I have contacted is considered a POISON to God that harms faith. In short had you managed in theory to go back in time and witness the raising of Jarus' daughter and had been there, Jesus would not have been able to raise her until you left the house as your skepticism would have hindered him. God will never act for or near a skeptic as the source of the poison (Socrates) got his teachings from a demonic witch. In short anyone who is a skeptic is doomed never to see any evidence from God becuase it requires faith before evidence something your school of thought forbids.
Posted by RSM on August 1,2012 | 07:52 AM
Oh Jah stand for rightious and uplift the opressed ones like I.
Posted by Simphiwe W Vena on July 11,2012 | 09:23 AM
Many of scholars have no confidant on what the ethiopian claims on ancient history .Lack of deep research creats confussion and mistrust.not only the ARK,there are many documenties hiden to our modern world in order to reserve for unkown time. Recently ethiopian government tried to abolish all the documents where it might be suspected to stored. Readers must put their intention that many of the bibical records were taken from ethiopia to stablish this today's bibile book.still ethiopia has many documents remain uncoverd which can not be dismised by Authorties repression. Not only the ark,ethiopian is the only were broght a gift for new born jesus,the king of kings meant many kings (country-state )under the king of Ethiopia by the prist Maji three countrs which were under the rule of ethiopia present there gift to the born son
Posted by goban gergo on July 2,2012 | 07:24 PM
I havent foud the ark but i know where the covenant is, leviticus is one of the tablets and deuteronomy is the other. leviticus instructs the israelites to construct the national temple, and deuteronomy is the law for the formation of national government. and numbers calls for the seperation of church and state. the covenant of God is the seperation of church and state on which the colonist established the United States.
Posted by Russell on June 27,2012 | 07:24 AM
Suppose for a moment that the ark isn't there - then for Ethiopians, all their suffering is in vain, just another desperately poor, war-torn hell-hole. Who wants to face that? They believe out of NEED. But this makes them no different than other religious believers. If I were to ask "for all this supposed ark's power, why did it prove so useless while the Babylonians were sacking Jerusalem?", I'm sure a logical answer will be provided. "God had forsaken the Jews because of their wickedness" or some such pathological nonsense. Maybe the Ethiopians should focus on what's real? They do have stewardship of an important slice of the Rift Valley, which in time will tell us more about human history than all the worlds delusional books combined!
Posted by Johnny on May 12,2012 | 02:17 AM
I am not surprised at the ignorance shown in the comments on this subject. Christians are not under the Law covenant, only the Jews were. One cannot be "Kosher" & Christian at the same time . Ludicrous! The Queen of Sheba traveled to see David because she had heard of his wisdom and that his people lived in peace & safety & abundance, not to be impregnated by him. If there had been a son born by them, he would have not been recognized as a legal heir of David because he would have been illegitimate. If the story were true, no one but Levites could have transported the Ark, and it had to be moved as prescribed by the regulations given in the Bible. No one could touch the Ark or they would die, not by it's power, but by disobeying the God Jehovah who ordered the Ark be constructed. And the falsehood that Mary was the "Queen of Heaven" or "the Mother of God", were names given to pagan goddesses and used even to this day as misnomers. The Bible is a very clear record of the events and anything else is made-up falsehoods. It is not necessary to see and know everything to believe that Jesus was the true Messiah and the "Son of God" as the Bible recorded. The worship of Jehovah, not His son, continues today directed by those who know exactly who they worship and they are the only people who have taken up Jehovah's name as his Christian Witnesses and they alone are obeying the command Jesus gave his true followers in Matthew 24:14, to preach the good news of God's kingdom as the only hope of this world today.
Posted by Kay Fitzgerald on April 24,2012 | 10:30 AM
I believe the Ethiopians. Blacks were written out of the Bible (according to the Naked Archaeologist) so as a result we think we have no importance but there is also a tribe of people called the Lemba in Africa that carry the genes of Aaron, Moses' brother they also claimed to be jews, there is alot of mystery concerning Black people and GOD.
Posted by christle on April 6,2012 | 08:21 AM
bible record attested that the babylonians carried away all the utensils for the temple worship in jerusalem to babylon. therefore its not hard to presume that the ark went w/ it.all the jews were exiled to babylon too so there's no reason to believe that some group of jews went to ethiopia w/ the ark,very improbable by looking at the situation then. by the time that persian ruler allowed the jews to return to jerusalem to rebuilt it,along w/ the temple utensils,there were no mention of the ark anymore & no inquiry, till the jerusalem were fully rebuilt & pure worship restored.by the time of jesus ministry the the focus is on jesus as the one being sent by god,the anointed one, as god's instrument of salvation for all mankind.the focus is the christ not the ark.if the ark is in aksum or not is no longer important for god's worshipper today. everything is centered in christ jesus.
Posted by diosdado z. sasil on March 22,2012 | 09:23 AM
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