Ancient manuscripts: Ethiopian Quest to preserve their heritageAncient parchment manuscripts are disappearing from Ethiopian culture, hence it's a high time to go back and preserve the country's heritage.
by Agence France-Presse
31-05-2023 14:13
in Culture
Ethiopian quest to preserve manuscripts.
Image: commons.wikimedia.org
Armed with a bamboo ink pen and a steady hand, Ethiopian Orthodox priest Zelalem Mola carefully copies text in the ancient Ge'ez language from a religious book onto a goatskin parchment. This painstaking task is preserving an ancient tradition, all the while bringing him closer to God, says the 42-year-old.
--
At the Hamere Berhan Institute in Addis Ababa, priests and lay worshippers work by hand to replicate sometimes centuries-old religious manuscripts and sacred artwork. The parchments, pens and inks are all prepared at the institute, which lies in the Piasa district in the historic heart of the Ethiopian capital. Yeshiemebet Sisay, 29, who is in charge of communications at Hamere Berhan, says the work began four years ago.
ALSO READ: Ancient tradition: Ethiopian quest recreation of ancient manuscript
ALSO READ: Homecoming ceremony for Senegalese colonial-era soldiers
--
Ancient parchment manuscripts are disappearing from our culture, which motivated us to start this project, she says. The precious works are kept mainly in monasteries, where prayers or religious chants are conducted using only parchment rather than paper manuscripts. However, this custom is rapidly fading We thought if we could learn skills from our priests, we could work on it ourselves, so that is how we began, adds Yeshiemebet.
It's hard work to deal with manuscripts In the institute's courtyard, workers stretch the goatskins tightly over metal frames to dry under a weak sun which barely pierces the milky sky. After the goatskin is immersed in the water for three to four days, we make holes on the edge of the skin and tie it to the metal so that it can stretch, says Tinsaye Chere Ayele. After that, we remove the extra layer of fat on the skin's inside to make it clean.
Alongside two other colleagues, the 20-year-old carries out his task using a makeshift scraper, seemingly oblivious to the stench emanating from the animal hide. Once clean and dry, the skins are stripped of the goat hair and then cut to the desired size for use as pages of a book or for painting. Yeshiemebet says most of the manuscripts are commissioned by individuals who then donate them to churches or monasteries.
--
ALSO READ: Tigray village incredibly survived the devastating war in Ethiopia
ALSO READ: Sudan's capital: no access to safe drinking water, risk to death
Some customers order for themselves small collections of prayers or paintings to have reproductions of ancient Ethiopian works , she adds. Small books can take one or two months. If it is a collective work, large books can take one to two years. If it's an individual task, it can take even longer, she says, leafing through books clad in red leather, their texts adorned with brightly coloured illuminations and religious images.
Sitting in one of the institute's rooms, with parchment pages placed on his knees, Zelalem patiently copies a book entitled Zena Selassie ( History of the Trinity ). It is going to take a lot of time. It's hard work, starting with the preparation of the parchment and the inks. This one could take up to six months to complete, the priest says. We make a stylus from bamboo, sharpening the tip with a razor blade. The scribes use different pens for each colour used in the text black or red and either a fine or broad tip, with the inks made from various local plants.
ALSO READ: How to be a Revolutionary': CA Davids' mission against forgetting
ALSO READ: A Book of Ryhmes': Unseen for a century, a poetry collection goes on sale
Talking to saints and God' Like most other religious works, Zena Selassie is written in Ge'ez. This dead language remains the liturgical language of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church and its alpha syllabic system where the characters represent syllables is still used to write Ethiopia's national language Amharic as well as Tigrinya, which is spoken in Tigray and neighbouring Eritrea.
We copy from paper to parchment to preserve (the writings) as the paper book can be easily damaged, while this one will last a long time if we protect it from water and fire, says Zelalem. Replicating the manuscripts needs patience and focus. It begins with a prayer in the morning, at lunchtime, and ends with prayer. It is difficult for an individual to write and finish a book, just to sit the whole day, but thanks to our devotion, a light shines brightly within us, Zelalem adds.
It takes so much effort that it makes us worthy in the eyes of God. This spiritual dimension also guides Lidetu Tasew, who is in charge of education and training at the institute, where he teaches painting and illuminations. Spending time here painting saints is like talking to saints and God, says the 26-year-old, who was brought up in a church. We have been taught that wherever we paint saints, there is the spirit of God.
ayv/txw/np/leg
Agence France-Presse
SOCCER QUIZ | FIVE simple answers could win you R500 in cash! ENTER HERE
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
06/09/2026
June 9 2026, 23:00 (PDT) Dolby and MagentaTV Bring Fans Closer to the FIFA Worl...
04/08/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...
04/07/2026
April 7 2026, 19:00 (PDT) Detective Conan: Fallen Angel of the Highway Opens in...
01/07/2026
Broadcast Management Group (BMG) has announced the appointment of Kathy Samuels ...
01/07/2026
Shade has announced Custom Objects and Automations, a platform expansion releasing June 29, 2026, that adds database and workflow automation capabilities direct...
01/07/2026
FOR-A America has announced the addition of Jaz Wray and Fernando Cruz to its U.S. sales team. Both report to Ernie Leon, Senior VP and Head of Sales and Strate...
01/07/2026
NBC Sports will air all 15 MLB games nationally on Sunday, July 5, across NBC, P...
01/07/2026
Clear-Com has announced a wireless communications upgrade for Jeopardy! and Wheel of Fortune, deploying FreeSpeak II and FreeSpeak Icon systems across both prod...
01/07/2026
England's performance team will use Sony's STATSports APEX GPS tracking system to monitor player physical data in real time during FIFA World Cup 2026 m...
01/07/2026
Adder Technology has announced the appointment of Neil Hillier as Chief Executive Officer, effective July 1, 2026. Hillier succeeds Adrian Dickens, who transiti...
01/07/2026
Bitcentral, Inc. has announced a strategic transaction creating two separate companies. The Production and Playout business will continue as Bitcentral, now own...
01/07/2026
DAZN has announced results from DAZN48, its creator initiative for the FIFA World Cup 2026. Launched in April 2026, the program received thousands of applicatio...
01/07/2026
Sarah Rose, VP, global services, Daktronics (NASDAQ: DAKT), will be inducted into the Information Display and Entertainment Association (IDEA) Hall of Fame at t...
01/07/2026
Gravity Media and the World Economic Forum's production team provided broadc...
01/07/2026
Insight Productions has announced the launch of Insight Storm, a 53-foot mobile broadcast unit built for esports production. The truck is built around a Ross Vi...
01/07/2026
ESPN has announced several content initiatives marking America's 250th anniversary, as part of The Walt Disney Company's Disney Celebrates America pro...
01/07/2026
Eleven production kits, REMI workflows, and cloud distribution bring 40 World Cu...
01/07/2026
The conference also discussed the opportunities offered an industry that is endu...
01/07/2026
The Mountain West Conference has announced the launch of MW , a direct-to-consumer streaming platform powered by Kiswe. The platform will carry live Mountain We...
01/07/2026
New AI Assistant, Multi-channel Audio, ARA2 improvements & more
Tracktion's DAW software has just received its latest major update, gaining a selection ...
01/07/2026
Stammering, stuttering, strangulated tones
The Crow Hill Company's latest creation promises to be the most original sound set they've produced to d...
01/07/2026
Exclusive run of limited-edition modelling pedals
Sweetwater and Andertons M...
01/07/2026
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF) is pleased to announce that the ca...
01/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/07/2026
Manfrotto Introduces UNCOVER, the new premium camera bag collection for modern h...
01/07/2026
Blackmagic Design Powers Houston Tamil Sangam Literacy Competition
Brie Clayton July 1, 2026
0 Comments
Volunteers use ATEM Mini Pro, Blackmagic Desig...
01/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/07/2026
PlayBox Technology has published State of Broadcast Infrastructure 2026, an in-depth industry research report examining the technologies, operational challenges...
01/07/2026
LONDON, UK, 1 JULY Jigsaw24 has appointed Alan Henry as Head of Sales for Media and Entertainment, reinforcing its continued investment in helping broadcaster...
01/07/2026
Content Vault, the patent-pending secure content distribution platform protecting high-value media from disclosures, theft and unauthorised access, today announ...
01/07/2026
Bitcentral, Inc. a leading provider of enterprise software and digital media solutions for news, sports and entertainment broadcasters, as well as streaming pla...
01/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/07/2026
Groundbreaking First Nations Screen Business Accelerator launched through nation...
01/07/2026
Chyron Launches the All-New Chyron Academy: A Reimagined, Hands-On Learning Expe...
01/07/2026
Amplium Captures Kawasaki Brave Thunders Game with Blackmagic URSA Cine Immersiv...
01/07/2026
Boris FX Optics Expands Plugin Support to Apple Photos, Capture One, and Affinit...
01/07/2026
UKTV has today announced the appointment of Matt Berry to the newly created role of General Manager - Marketing, effective 1 July.
Matt will take on this senio...
01/07/2026
Sky Zero Footprint Fund-backed TV campaign featuring Deborah Meaden challenges consumers to rethink everyday bathroom wasteWednesday 1 July 2026
Fussy asks Bri...
01/07/2026
Constituency-level analysis reveals where girls miss out most on sport - and where targeted action could unlock more than £640 million in economic and health be...
01/07/2026
Wuppertal July 1, 2026
Riedel and SKAARHOJ Expand Collaboration With SimplyLive IntegrationRiedel Communications today announced an expanded collaboration wit...
01/07/2026
Apple today introduced power-packed updates to Apple Creator Studio, a groundbre...
Ancient manuscripts: Ethiopian Quest to preserve their heritageAncient parchment manuscripts are disappearing from Ethiopian culture, hence it's a high time to go back and preserve the country's heritage.
