The churches were not built up. They were carved down. In Lalibela, a town in Ethiopia’s Amhara Region, workers cut entire churches out of solid rock, digging trenches around blocks of stone and then hollowing them into chapels with windows, columns and altars. The most famous, the Church of St George, is shaped like a cross when seen from above.
King Lalibela and the churches
Tradition credits King Lalibela of the Zagwe dynasty, who ruled in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries, with creating the churches. He is said to have wanted a “new Jerusalem” for pilgrims who could not travel to the Holy Land. There are eleven main churches, arranged in groups connected by tunnels and trenches. Each has its own name and character.
Bete Giyorgis, the Church of St George, is carved into a cross-shaped block and sunk into the ground. It is the most photographed of the churches.
How they were made and how they are used
Bete Medhane Alem is often described as one of the largest monolithic churches in the world. Workers used hand tools to carve the soft volcanic rock. Scholars continue to study how long it took and how the work was organised. The churches are still used for Ethiopian Orthodox worship. Priests in robes, pilgrims in white shawls and chanting deacons fill them on feast days.
At Ethiopian Christmas, called Genna, in January, thousands of pilgrims gather at Lalibela.
UNESCO, preservation and conflict
The churches were declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1978, among the first sites listed. Protective shelters have been built over some churches to shield them from rain, though they have been controversial. The conflict in northern Ethiopia in 2021 raised fears for the site’s safety, though the churches were not seriously damaged. Each church has its own priests, who guard ancient crosses, manuscripts and paintings. Pilgrims walk barefoot through the tunnels, praying and kissing the stone walls.
Tourism and water channels
Before conflict and the pandemic, Lalibela was one of Ethiopia’s most visited tourist sites, and many local families depend on tourism for their income. The builders cut drainage channels and trenches around the churches to carry away rainwater, a sign of careful planning that helped the structures survive. Lalibela’s builders worked downward into the earth to reach heaven. Eight centuries later, their churches are still full of people praying.
