La chiesa che, secondo la tradizione etiope, custodisce l’Arca dell’Alleanza — sorvegliata da un monaco che non ne uscirà mai vivo
La chiesa originaria di Santa Maria di Sion si ritiene sia stata costruita durante il regno di Ezana, primo sovrano cristiano del Regno di Axum, nel IV secolo d.C., sotto l’episcopato di Frumenzio, primo vescovo di Axum; da allora fu distrutta e ricostruita almeno una o due volte, secondo la tradizione. Secondo la fede della Chiesa ortodossa etiope, la regina di Saba proveniva proprio da questa regione, e quando suo figlio Menelik I andò a trovare il padre Salomone in Palestina, avrebbe portato con sé, al ritorno, l’Arca dell’Alleanza, mettendola in salvo ad Axum intorno al 950 a.C. Oggi l’Arca sarebbe custodita in una piccola cappella adiacente alla chiesa, accessibile a un solo uomo: il monaco guardiano, che vi si ritira per il resto della propria vita, pregando davanti all’Arca e offrendo incenso, senza mai più uscirne fino alla morte. Se il guardiano muore senza aver designato un successore, i monaci del monastero ne eleggono uno nuovo. La maggior parte degli storici non ritiene attendibile questa tradizione, ma i cristiani ortodossi etiopi locali continuano a crederla con assoluta fermezza.
About the Church of Our Lady Mary of Zion
The Church of Our Lady Mary of Zion, an Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo church in the town of Axum in Ethiopia’s Tigray Region, is believed to have been originally built during the reign of Ezana, the first Christian ruler of the Kingdom of Axum, in the 4th century CE, under the episcopacy of Frumentius, the first Bishop of Axum. Since its founding, the church has been destroyed and rebuilt at least once, and according to tradition possibly twice, reflecting the region’s long and often turbulent history. The church’s extraordinary fame rests above all on its claimed connection to the Ark of the Covenant, the sacred biblical vessel said to contain the tablets of the Ten Commandments. According to deeply held Ethiopian Orthodox tradition, the Queen of Sheba herself originated from this region, and when her son Menelik I travelled to visit his father, King Solomon, in ancient Israel, he is said to have brought the Ark back with him to Ethiopia for safekeeping, arriving in Axum around 950 BCE. Ethiopian Orthodox belief holds that the Ark has remained in Axum ever since, now kept within a small, heavily guarded chapel standing adjacent to the main church complex — a structure that only a single individual is permitted to enter. This designated guardian monk, once appointed, is confined to the chapel of the Ark for the remainder of his life, spending his days in prayer before the sacred object and offering incense, never again leaving the chapel until his death. Should the incumbent guardian die without having named a successor, the monastery’s wider community of monks convenes to elect a replacement. While most professional historians remain unconvinced of the claim’s historical authenticity, finding no independent verification that the Ark was ever physically transported to Ethiopia, the belief remains an unshakeable article of faith among Ethiopian Orthodox Christians, for whom Axum’s status as guardian of the Ark forms a central pillar of national and religious identity.
Key facts
- 4th century CE: original church founded under King Ezana of Axum
- Tradition: Menelik I, son of Solomon and the Queen of Sheba, brings the Ark to Axum c. 950 BCE
- Chapel of the Ark: a separate structure accessible only to the guardian monk
- Guardian’s role: lifelong confinement, praying before the Ark until death
- Succession: a new guardian elected by the monastery’s monks if none is named
- 1960s: “New Church” built at the site under Emperor Haile Selassie
- Scholarly view: most historians consider the Ark tradition unverified
History
The tradition linking Axum to the Ark of the Covenant via Menelik I forms one of the foundational narratives of Ethiopian national and religious identity, recorded in the Kebra Nagast, the medieval Ethiopian national epic, and reinforced across centuries of Ethiopian Orthodox liturgical and cultural practice. Axum’s status as the ancient capital of the powerful Kingdom of Axum, one of the major trading civilisations of the late antique world, lends historical weight to the site’s broader significance even where the specific Ark tradition remains historically unverified.
The institution of a single lifelong guardian, permanently confined to the chapel and permitted no successor’s designation without the monastic community’s formal election, represents an extraordinarily rare and rigorous form of religious custodianship, one of the strictest and most enduring guardianship traditions associated with any claimed sacred relic anywhere in the world.
What you see
The complex today includes the Old Church, largely reflecting 17th-century restoration work with its own frescoes, and the New Church, a large domed structure built in the 1960s under Emperor Haile Selassie specifically to accommodate greater numbers of worshippers and pilgrims. The small, separate Chapel of the Ark, closed to all but the guardian monk, stands within the wider church precinct, its interior never seen by outside visitors or, indeed, by any other member of the church hierarchy.
Practical information
- Opening hours: the main church complex is generally open to visitors with seasonal variation; the Chapel of the Ark itself is never open to visitors; check current hours before visiting
- Address: Center Market area, Axum, Tigray Region, Ethiopia
Getting there
The Church of Our Lady Mary of Zion stands in the town of Axum, in Ethiopia’s northern Tigray Region, reachable by domestic flight to Axum Airport or by road. GPS: 14.1295° N, 38.7193° E.
Nearby
- Obelisks of Axum — UNESCO-listed ancient stelae, in the centre of Axum
- Queen of Sheba’s Palace ruins — archaeological site associated with the legendary queen, nearby
- Axum Archaeological Site — the wider ancient royal complex surrounding the town
Sources
- Wikipedia — “Church of Our Lady Mary of Zion” (en.wikipedia.org)
- Live Science — “Sorry Indiana Jones, the Ark of the Covenant Is Not Inside This Ethiopian Church” (livescience.com)
- Tablet Magazine — “Is the Ark of the Covenant in Ethiopia?” (tabletmag.com)
Find it on the map
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