Alebachew Belay Birru

Rock-cut Architectural Heritages in Ethiopia and India: a Comparative Study Alebachew Belay Birru

This short and brief summary on the rock-cut architectural heritages of the two countries i.e Ethiopia and India, will obviously help to avoid the confusion about the origin of the tradition of converting rocks in to shrines especially in Ethiopia. Because, there are literature and individuals hypothesizing the involvement of Indian architects and their architectural style in the rock-cut church production of Ethiopia, particularly, the monolithic churches at Lalibela. In this regard, the author had direct exposure to the sites in both countries and tried to screen out areas of similarity and difference. Thus, it will give the real insight to those who are eager to know the fact. In addition, the book is also helpful for tourists who are willing to visit the rock-cut architectural heritage sites in both countries, in order to know where they have to pay special attention as there are numerous such heritages. Furthermore, archaeologists, art and architecture historians can also use it to go deeper in the same area and conduct comparative studies on similar heritages all over the world as well.