Eastern Africa
Discover Biete Ghiorgis — Saint George’s Church, Blue Nile Falls — Tis Isat, Debre Berhan Selassie Church and more.
Explore 6 illustrated places, read the stories behind them and look closer on the globe.
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architecture
At Saint George’s church, the roof reveals the cross-shaped plan before you reach the doors below. Medieval craftspeople cut away the surrounding rock, leaving a monolithic church with walls, windows and a stepped base. It stands apart from Lalibela’s other rock-hewn churches, linked to them by trenches. This remarkable place is also part of a living religious landscape.
Source: whc.unesco.org
water
Known locally as Tis Isat, the Blue Nile Falls lie on the Blue Nile near Bahir Dar. Water drops over an irregular cliff roughly 45 metres high before collecting in the gorge below. The national tourism description highlights the spray during the rainy season.
architecture
Debre Berhan Selassie stands in Gondar. Its stone walls and broad thatched veranda give little hint of the rich painted interior for which the church is known. Timber, stone and deep shade make a different introduction to the building.
Source: Gondar City Culture and Tourism
history
Fasilides’ Castle is one of the principal palaces inside Fasil Ghebbi, Gondar’s royal enclosure. The seventeenth-century royal city brought palaces, churches and other buildings together. Here the compact castle’s towers, stairs and deep openings take centre stage.
Source: UNESCO World Heritage Centre
archaeology
The Great Temple of Yeha preserves unusually tall walls of finely cut stone. Fire and long weathering damaged the ancient building, and conservation work helps stabilise its surviving shell. The open ruin lets the masonry itself tell the story.
Source: German Archaeological Institute
architecture
In eastern Ethiopia, Harar Jugol's walls enclose mosques, shrines and distinctive townhouses. African and Islamic traditions helped shape its buildings and street plan. The interiors of traditional Harari houses are an especially significant part of this urban heritage, which remains connected to the community living there.
Source: UNESCO World Heritage Centre
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