UNESCO Ancient Civilizations of Africa (Editor G. Mokhtar)

The civilization of Aksum from the first to the seventh century
and stepped basements of rectangular structures which are surrounded by
outbuildings. Sundstrom called the one he uncovered a 'palace'. It is a vast
complex 38 metres long and 22 wide, and thus covers an area more extensive
than that of Enda-Semon, the castle in Aksum, where the central dwelling
was 35 metres long. Over the basement, two rows of pillars divide the
building lengthwise into three sections, and two more rows of pillars divide
the width in the same fashion. Such a basilical plan suggests not a palace
but a Christian sanctuary.
The basement revealed to the west of this complex by Paribeni displays
the same architectural features. It is about i8| metres long. The upper part
was covered by a pavement, and comprised the remains of the pillars of
a nave. At the eastern end, a semi-circular apse between two rooms was
a sufficient indication that the ruins were those of a basilica. A lower
level of the building belonged to an older structure which the Italian
archaeologist called the Altar of the Sun. In the light of other evidence,
we may now regard it as the remains of a building, probably religious,
belonging to an earlier period than the basilica constructed over it.
To the east of Sundstrom's discovery, Paribeni found the basement of
another church 25 metres long, with traces of a semi-circular apse. There
were two striking features: a baptismal tank in the room south of the
apse and, in the centre of the building, the remains of eight pillars arranged
octagonally. A square plan and a rectangular plan are thus combined in the
same building.
On the Erythrean plateau, 135 kilometres south of Asmara, near Sénafé,
there is one of the oldest archaeological sites in Ethiopia: its lowest levels
belong to a large building of the south Arabian period.
The Institute of Archaeology carried out systematic excavations of the
Matara site between 1959 and 1970, but there is still a great deal to discover.
The pre-Aksumite levels have only been subjected to soundings, mainly
because there are many other structures of architectural interest lying above
them. About half the Aksumite level has been explored. These digs have
revealed four large villas, three Christian churches, and an ordinary residential
quarter consisting of some thirty houses. The four villas are of the
now familiar type, with a main dwelling constructed over a tiered basement
and surrounded by outhouses. As elsewhere, masonry piers buried under
the rooms of the main building served as bases for the posts supporting the
vestibules. The steps leading up to the main entrances must have been protected
by porch roofs: there are cavities at the corners of each flight of steps
which may have held wooden uprights.
The ordinary houses consist of two or three rooms. The walls are of an
average thickness of 70 centimetres. Remains of hearths, brick ovens and
numerous receptacles have made it possible to locate the living quarters.
There is another type of house intermediate in size between the villas
and the ordinary dwellings. This type has some features in common with
the central building of the villas - a similar lay-out and stepped walls.
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