DABRA TSION CHURCH (ABOUNA ABRAHAM)
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This large rectangular church features a wide, partially carved façade and is decorated from floor to ceiling.
It is one of the most important rock-hewn churches in Tigray. A track starting 1 km to the left before the village of Degoum (coming from Wikro) takes you up to the foot of the sandstone mountain. From here, it's an hour's walk up to the church, which can be a little steep.
Dedicated to Abouna Abraham, a 4th-century ascetic monk who is said to have excavated it, Dabra Tsion was probably completed during the reign of King Dawit I in the 14th century. Perched on the cliffside like an eagle's nest, the rectangular church features a wide, partially sculpted façade. The interior, a true delight, is decorated from floor to ceiling. The walls and six cruciform pillars are covered with paintings on rock or parchment, while arches, ceilings and domes are carved with geometric motifs and bas-reliefs. These original 14th- and 15th-century paintings depict episodes from the lives of local saints and are fairly well preserved, but are threatened by water infiltration. A deeper tunnel in the rock leads to a small chapel, also richly decorated. It is traditionally regarded as the founder's place of prayer. All around the church, cavities are inhabited by monks. A remarkable thirty-four-faceted fan, depicting saints and apostles, is the pride of the church's treasures, whose feast day is generally celebrated on November 30.
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