File:Landscape with Church of Bet Giyorgis (3282501914).jpg
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| Description |
In this view, the 13th century rock-hewn Church of Bet Giyorgis almost literally recedes into the landscape. For a reminder that you're actually looking at the top of a huge building, see the photo below. It's amazing that someone had the vision to dig into this patch of rock on a hillside and create such a marvelous structure. I've read suggestions that part of the motivation behind the rock-hewn churches at Lalibela was defensive. Someone looking at this hillside from a distance, particularly from below, would see no signs of the 38-foot high church. On the other hand, it's my understanding Lalibela was promoted as a pilgrimage site starting with the Zagwe dynasty in Ethiopia (whose founder is credited with building the churches), so I doubt the existence of a complex of underground churches would have been a secret. In case of an incursion by hostile forces - and Lalibela probably saw a few - it's hard to believe the enemy wouldn't have learned about the churches through human intelligence beforehand. Now, since I didn't join the Military History Club in High School, I missed out on learning the basic principles of offense and defense along with all that other geeky stuff. Yet, something tells me in a conflict, I'd rather be on the high ground than below ground surface with few avenues of escape. So that would be another reason the complex of churches at Lalibela would not have been part of a defensive strategy. |
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Landscape with Church of Bet Giyorgis
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| Author | A. Davey from Where I Live Now: Pacific Northwest |
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This image, originally posted to Flickr, was reviewed on 5 October 2012 by the administrator or reviewer File Upload Bot (Magnus Manske), who confirmed that it was available on Flickr under the stated license on that date. |
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| Date/Time | Thumbnail | Dimensions | User | Comment | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| current | 17:50, 5 October 2012 | | 3,024 × 1,998 (2.26 MB) | File Upload Bot (Magnus Manske) (talk | contribs) | Transferred from Flickr by User:Elitre |
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