Thursday, June 11, 2015

Ethiopian Sleeping Beauty

I GUESS PRINCE CHARMING WAS LATE: The grave of Sleeping Beauty: 2,000-year-old Ethiopian site reveals 'beautiful and adored' woman seemingly asleep on her side - and staring into a mirror
  • She was found curled up on her side, with her chin resting on her hand
  • Next to her was a bronze cosmetics spoon with a lump of kohl eyeliner
  • Excavation also uncovered Roman vessels and pieces of ornate jewellery
  • It provides evidence that the Romans traded with the Aksumite kingdom hundreds of years earlier than thought
( Ellie Zolfagharifard, Daily Mail)

"Sleeping Beauty" would have been buried not long after the time of the Ethiopian eunuch who appears in Acts 8:26-40 (although he was from the Kingdom of Kush, which was later annexed by the Kingdom of Aksum [Axum]). Aksum is also associated with legends about the Ark of the Covenant (here, here, here, here, and here; additional background here and links) and has recently been connected (controversially) with the Queen of Sheba (here, here, and here; additional background here and links). A tradition associates the early Ge'ez Garima Gospels with Aksum. Also, more on Jews and Christians in late-antique Aksum here.