Ethiopia - Harar Jugol, the Fortified Historic Town

"The fortified historic town of Harar is located in the eastern part of the country on a plateau with deep gorges surrounded by deserts and savannah. The walls surrounding this sacred Muslim city were built between the 13th and 16th centuries. Harar Jugol, said to be the fourth holiest city of Islam, numbers 82 mosques, three of which date from the 10th century, and 102 shrines, but the townhouses with their exceptional interior design constitute the most spectacular part of Harar's cultural heritage. The impact of African and Islamic traditions on the development of the town's building types and urban layout make for its particular character and uniqueness." 

Source: UNESCO World Heritage

Postcard 1
Colorful shopping street in the walled town of Harar, Ethiopia. Thanks to Inigo of Spain.




Postcard 2
Aerial view of market place of Harar, Ethiopia. Thanks to Julie for mailing from Ethiopia.

Ethiopia - Aksum

"The ruins of the ancient city of Aksum are found close to Ethiopia's northern border. They mark the location of the heart of ancient Ethiopia, when the Kingdom of Aksum was the most powerful state between the Eastern Roman Empire and Persia. The massive ruins, dating from between the 1st and the 13th century A.D., include monolithic obelisks, giant stelae, royal tombs and the ruins of ancient castles. Long after its political decline in the 10th century, Ethiopian emperors continued to be crowned in Aksum." 

Source: UNESCO World Heritage

Postcard 1
21 meters tall monolithic steele of Aksum or Axum. Thanks to Adam of Ethiopia. Received in April 2019.

Postcard 2
Obelisk of Axum, Ethiopia. Thanks to Ivan of Czech Republic.

Postcard 3
Monolithic stella in ancient city of Axum. Thanks to Julie for mailing from Ethiopia.

Ehtiopia - Fasil Ghebbi, Gondar Region

"In the 16th and 17th centuries, the fortress-city of Fasil Ghebbi was the residence of the Ethiopian emperor Fasilides and his successors. Surrounded by a 900-m-long wall, the city contains palaces, churches, monasteries and unique public and private buildings marked by Hindu and Arab influences, subsequently transformed by the Baroque style brought to Gondar by the Jesuit missionaries." 

Source: UNESCO World Heritage

Postcard 1
Gondar or Fasilides Castle. Thanks to Adam of Ethiopia. Received in April 2019.

Postcard 2

The Fasil Ghibbi, Gonder, Ethiopia. Thanks to Ivan of Czech Republic.

Postcard 3

Gondor Castle. Thanks to Julie for mailing from Ethiopia.

Ethiopia - Tiya

"Tiya is among the most important of the roughly 160 archaeological sites discovered so far in the Soddo region, south of Addis Ababa. The site contains 36 monuments, including 32 carved stelae covered with symbols, most of which are difficult to decipher. They are the remains of an ancient Ethiopian culture whose age has not yet been precisely determined." 

Source: UNESCO World Heritage

Postcard 1
Stelae of Tiya, Ethiopia. Thanks to Inigo of Spain.

Postcard 2

Stella at Tiya. Thanks to Julie for mailing from Ethiopia.

Ethiopia - Lower Valley of the Awash

"The Awash valley contains one of the most important groupings of palaeontological sites on the African continent. The remains found at the site, the oldest of which date back at least 4 million years, provide evidence of human evolution which has modified our conception of the history of humankind. The most spectacular discovery came in 1974, when 52 fragments of a skeleton enabled the famous Lucy to be reconstructed."

Source: UNESCO World Heritage


Postcard 1
Lower Valley of Awash Fossil Site of Ethiopia. Thanks to Patrik of Estonia for mailing from Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Postcard received in December 2018.

Postcard 2

Received this postcard of Lucy, written stamped from Ethiopia by Solomon - thank you.

Postcard 3

The skeletons of Lucy at the National Museum of Ethiopia - the oldest hominid fossil 3.5 million years old female skeleton found at Afar, Ethiopia in 1974. Thanks to Reter of New Zealand.

Ethiopia - Konso Cultural Landscape

"Konso Cultural Landscape is a 55km2 arid property of stone walled terraces and fortified settlements in the Konso highlands of Ethiopia. It constitutes a spectacular example of a living cultural tradition stretching back 21 generations (more than 400 years) adapted to its dry hostile environment. The landscape demonstrates the shared values, social cohesion and engineering knowledge of its communities. The site also features anthropomorphic wooden statues - grouped to represent respected members of their communities and particularly heroic events - which are an exceptional living testimony to funerary traditions that are on the verge of disappearing. Stone steles in the towns express a complex system of marking the passing of generations of leaders." 

Source: UNESCO World Heritage

Konso Cultural Landscape in Ethiopia is a UNESCO World Heritage. Thanks to Patrik of Estonia for mailing from Ethiopia. Nice stamps but no postal cancellation on postcard.

Ethiopia - Rock-Hewn Churches, Lalibela

"The 11 medieval monolithic cave churches of this 13th-century 'New Jerusalem' are situated in a mountainous region in the heart of Ethiopia near a traditional village with circular-shaped dwellings. Lalibela is a high place of Ethiopian Christianity, still today a place of pilmigrage and devotion.

There are two main groups of churches – to the north of the river Jordan: Biete Medhani Alem (House of the Saviour of the World), Biete Mariam (House of Mary), Biete Maskal (House of the Cross), Biete Denagel (House of Virgins), Biete Golgotha Mikael (House of Golgotha Mikael); and to the south of the river, Biete Amanuel (House of Emmanuel), Biete Qeddus Mercoreus (House of St. Mercoreos), Biete Abba Libanos (House of Abbot Libanos), Biete Gabriel Raphael (House of Gabriel Raphael), and Biete Lehem (House of Holy Bread). The eleventh church, Biete Ghiorgis (House of St. George), is isolated from the others, but connected by a system of trenches" 

Source: UNESCO World Heritage

Postcard 1 - House of Emmanuel
Lalibela Rock-hewn Church Bet Emmnuel, Ethiopia. Thanks to Abbas of India-Nigeria for mailing this postcard with three stamps from Ethiopia.

Postcard 2 - House of St Georges 

Bet Giorgis, Lalibela is a UNESCO World Heritage in Ethiopia. Postcard written in Lalibelia on August 10, 2011 and arrived in Penang on September 15, 2011. Thanks to Jordi of Spain.

Postcard 3 

Priest at Lalibela, Ethiopia. Thanks to DAO of England for this colorful Ethiopian postcard.

Ethiopia - Simien National Park

"Massive erosion over the years on the Ethiopian plateau has created one of the most spectacular landscapes in the world, with jagged mountain peaks, deep valleys and sharp precipices dropping some 1,500 m. The park is home to some extremely rare animals such as the Gelada baboon, the Simien fox and the Walia ibex, a goat found nowhere else in the world." 

Source: UNESCO World Heritage

A cool postcard of Simien Mountains of Ethiopia. Simien National Park is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. A nice bushbuck deer stamp used. Thanks to Anna who is living in Bahir Dar, Ethiopia.