Give me back the blood of my son

Lalibela incorporates twelve structures bound for love which, along with an organization of connecting halls and chambers, are totally cut or "slashed" out of living stone. The practice of slashing holy places out of rock, currently verified in the past periods, is here taken to an unheard of level. The places of worship, a few of which are detached, like Bete Gyorgis (Church of St. George, picture at top of page), have more intricate and obvious façades. They incorporate compositional components roused by structures from the Aksumite Period. Moreover, some, like Bete Maryam, highlight lovely inward enrichments (above), which are additionally cut out of the stone, as well as wall works of art. The insides of the holy places mix Aksumite components with later components of Copto-Arabic inference. In Bete Maryam, for instance, the compositional components —, for example, the slashed capitals and window outlines — impersonate Aksumite models (see underneath), while the artistic creations can measure up to those in the middle age Monastery of St. Antony at the Red Sea.