Things to do in Lalibela

No. 5 of Best Things to Do in Ethiopia

Rock-Hewn Churches, Lalibela

Lalibela Rock Church was built around 1000 BC and is known as the "African Miracle". It was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1979. Legend has it that in the 12th century, the seventh king of Ethiopia, Lalibela, received an oracle in a dream: "Build a new city of Jerusalem in Ethiopia and ask to build a church with a single piece of rock". So Lalibela took 24 years to chisel 11 rock churches on the rock plateau at an altitude of 2,600 meters in northern Ethiopia according to the oracle. People call it Lalibela. Since then, Lalibela has become a famous place for Ethiopians. These churches sit in huge deep pits in the rock. The intricately carved churches resemble massive sculptures, hewn from solid rock like the temples of Ellora. Perhaps the most striking of the churches in Lalibela is the Church of Jesus Christ, which is 33 meters long, 23 meters wide and 11 meters high, with intricately carved cornices supported by 34 square columns.

Bete Medhane Alem

Bete Amanuel

Asheton St. Maryam Monastery | አሽተን ቅድስት ማርያም ገዳም

Bete Abba Libanos

Bete Maryam

Tomb of Adam

St. Neakuto Leab Monastery | ቅዱስ ነአኩቶ ለአብ ገዳም

Beta Gabriel Raphael ቤተ ገብርኤል ወሩፋኤል

Lalibela Museum