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Harari baskets
These two baskets are especially important for the Harari people of eastern Ethiopia. They are part of a dowry set that a bride must bring to her wedding ceremony. A traditional Harari set today consists of fifteen baskets, each of them designed for…
Pottery jug
Handmade jug with a flattened bottom, rounded body and straight neck. Most Ethiopian pottery is either black or natural clay colored. The black color is achieved by coating the object in oil and then firing it. This is why the bottom is darker than…
Fly-whisk
This fly-whisk is used to swat or disturb flies. It is made of white horse hair and has a looped handle. Covered in an unknown material, possibly plant fiber, the handle is braided in black and white stripes.
Ear pick
This very small object, made of steel, consists of a rectangular body, with a suspension loop end on one side, and a spoon-like end opposite to it. Both the front and the back are covered with steel decorations. The little spoon was used to remove…
Basket Set II
These three baskets are part of a set of four similar baskets. They were woven using a coiling technique, using traditionally Ethiopian colors and designs. One of them is shaped as a plate with a footed base, and two are shaped as bowls. In addition…
Book "L’Art Ethiopien"
The art books from the Hess Collection were crucial in the identification of recent donations from the Hess family. The book displayed here features photographs and descriptions of the Abuna Yemata Guh monolithic church.
Isaac, Abraham, and Jacob
Inside the Abuna Yemata Guh church, there are well-preserved frescoes adorning two small domes. This picture is part of one of the cupolas, and represents Isaac, Abraham, and Jacob. It dates from the 15th century.
A game scene
In this scene, many people appear to play a game, while a dignitary sits on a chair, and watches them. In a small rectangle on the left, there are a few lines written in the Ge’ez (South Semitic language) alphabet.
A scene of the fields
Six men cross the fields mounted on horses. They go towards the Virgin Mary, Jesus, and two other male figures.
The Coronation of Virgin Mary
Mary became an extremely important figure in the Ethiopian church when Emperor Zar’a Ya’eqob (r. 1434–68) mandated the reading of the Miracles of the Virgin Mary and that she be honored at most of the thirty feast days in the liturgical year. Zar’a…