GIRONA, Spain, JAN. 23, 2001 (Zenit.org)
.- Until March 31 the city of Girona has on display a little-known collection of “The Treasures of the Land of the Queen of Sheba,” which offers the viewer about 100 pieces of Ethiopian Christian art, spanning the period between the 12th and 19th centuries.
The exhibition, held in the Cultural Center of the Caixa de Girona La Fontana d´Or, includes sacred books, paintings on fabric and wood, silver and gold pieces, and other objects used for the liturgy. Many of the pieces have never been exhibited outside of Ethiopia.
Jacques Mercier, the exhibition´s commissioner, said that the singularity of this art is due to the fact that “Ethiopia is the only African country that was not colonized.” The country´s isolation fostered a type of art influenced by Eastern aesthetics and African traditions.
The Ethiopian Christian Church, one of the oldest in the world, coexists in this country of East Africa with Islam and with native African religions.
