Heard of Aksum?. The Kingdom of Aksum, a powerful state that thrived from roughly 100-940 CE in Africa, was one of the most important kingdoms you have never heard of. Located in northern Ethiopia and Eritrea along the Red Sea, Aksum was a major trading nation.
By this, we mean that its economy was almost entirely dependent on export and international trade. Aksum was a major facilitator of trade in the ancient world, responsible for moving goods between the eastern and western worlds that came from civilizations as distant as Rome and India.According to historical evidences, Aksum is amongst the ancient and historical towns in Ethiopia and Africa and the capital for the great and civilized Aksumite Kingdom. Some of the evidences are the ancient achievements such as the Stelae, the underground buildings and various relics still found here. Since 4370 B.C, Aksum was the seat of Ethiopian Kings. Situated in the highlands of northern Ethiopia, Aksum symbolizes the wealth and importance of the civilization of the ancient Aksumite kingdom, which lasted from the 1st to the 8th centuries AD. Aksumite Kingdom was one of the four great powers along with Persia, Rome, and China. It is the Aksumite Kingdom that built the “Stelae” that are on show near the town’s center and a must visit destination. Several stelae survive in the town of Aksum dating between the 3rd and 4th centuries AD. The largest standing obelisk rises to a height of over 23 meters and is exquisitely carved to represent a nine-storey building of the Aksumites. It stands at the entrance of the main stelae area. The largest obelisk of some 33 meters long lies where it fell, perhaps during the process of erection. It is possibly the largest monolithic stele that ancient human beings ever attempted to erect. A series of inscription on stone tablets have proved to be of immense importance to historians of the ancient world. Some of them include trilingual text in Greek, Sabaean and Ge’ez (Classical Ethiopian), inscribed by King Ezana in the 4th century AD. The introduction of Christianity in the 4th century AD resulted in the building of churches, such as Saint Mary of Zion, rebuilt in the Gondarian period, in the 17th century AD, which is believed to hold the Ark of the Covenant.
The civilization was particularly dynamicduring the reign of queen of Sheba, due to foreign trade relations, administration, religion and other social institutions. The queen of Sheba also entered in to good diplomatic relationship with the biblical King Solomon (The Wise). According to the legend, the queen went to greet King Solomon in Jerusalem and to gain knowledge, as she had heard he was the wisest king on earth. There she conceived the future King Menelik I and on her return to Aksum, introduced new developments to her country. Later her son King Menelik went to Jerusalem to meet his Father and brought the real Arc of the Covenant into Ethiopia. During this long history, Aksum greatly contributed to human development. The Stelae, the rock tombs, the temples, the stone thrones and sculptured stone monuments are some of the ancient evidences for its resourcefulness. From a religious point of view Axum is the home of the Church of St. Mary of Zion, the Ark of the Covenant as well as the site for the First Christian Church in Africa.Aksum is the center and origin of the Ethiopian Orthodox Churchand there are presently three head churches in the town, including the cathedral of Mariam Tsion, the church of the four animals and church of Jesus Christ. Axum is more than just ancient ruins and churches; Axum has a feeling of a small rural town with heart and friendliness.