Relations between Ethiopia and South Arabia

Annales d'Ethiopie

Relations between Ethiopia and South Arabia: problems of architecture Jean-François Breton

Citer ce document / Cite this document : Breton Jean-François. Relations between Ethiopia and South Arabia: problems of architecture. In: Annales d'Ethiopie. Volume 26, année 2011. pp. 53-77; http://www.persee.fr/doc/ethio_0066-2127_2011_num_26_1_1431 Document généré le 25/01/2017

Résumé Les relations entre l'Éthiopie et l’Arabie du Sud : questions d’architecture Vers le milieu du premier millénaire avant notre ère, mais probablement dès le VIIIe siècle, d’étroits contacts se sont développés entre l’Éthiopie et l’Arabie du Sud. Des vestiges d’importance majeure, dont l’architecture et les techniques de construction semblent originaire d’Arabie du Sud ont été fouillés, parmi eux mentionnons : Hawelti-Melazo à Yeha (les deux édifices) et Matarâ (les niveaux les plus anciens). Le temple principal de Yeha peut être comparé avec au moins deux bâtiments d’Arabie du Sud : le temple de Nakrah intra-muros à Barâqish et le temple (?) n° 1, à Ma’în. A la période Axoumite, à partir du IIIe siècle de notre ère, en dépit d’un état de conservation assez médiocre des vestiges, l’image d’ensemble de l’architecture civile et religieuse commence à se préciser. Les bâtiments axoumites ressemblent à ceux de l’Arabie du Sud (principalement Shabwa et Tamna’) avec leur plateforme de pierre surélevée supportant des étages faits d’une ossature de bois.

Abstract Around mid-first millennium BC, probably by the 8th century BC, apparently quite close contacts were maintained between Ethiopia and South Arabia. Remains of major importance, with an unmistakeable South Arabian appearance in many details, have been excavated. Among the sites are Hawelti-Melazo (near Aksum), Yeha (the two main buildings) and Matarâ (the early levels). The main temple of Yeha could be compared at least with two buildings in South Arabia, Barâqish intra-muros temple of Nakrah, and Ma’în intra-muros temple (?) n° 1. Later, despite the generally poor state of conservation of the buildings, a reasonably comprehensive picture has emerged from Aksumite architecture. From the third century AD, Aksumite buildings are similar to the South Arabia ones (mainly in Shabwa and Tamna’) with their high rise stone platforms supporting storeys built with a wooden framework.

Relations between Ethiopia and South Arabia: problems of architecture

Jean-François Breton∗

The earlier periods (8th-7th century BC) Around mid-first millennium BC, a date cautiously suggested, but possibly rather too late in view of recent archaeological discoveries in Yemen, which may be pushed back to the 8th BC, apparently quite close contacts were maintained between Ethiopia and South Arabia. Remains of major importance, with an unmistakeable South Arabian appearance in many details, have been excavated. Among the sites are Hawelti-Melazo (near Axum), Yeha (the temple and other buildings) and Matarâ (the early levels). Inscriptions testify that Sabaeans, mainly from Mâ’rib, settled in Northern Ethiopia around (or during) the reign of the Sabaean mukarrib, Karib’il Watar son of Dhamar’alî in the mid-7th cent. BC. They may have been military men, trading colonists, stone cutters and architects. Inscriptions found at some of these sites, Axum, Yeha and Hawelti-Melazo, include the names of persons bearing the traditional South Arabian title of mukarrib, apparently indicating a ruler with something of a “priest-status”, not otherwise known in Ethiopia (Fig. 1). It appears that these South Arabian immigrants were in numerous but there is no sure indication that they were politically dominant. A major entity was founded on the Tigray plateau, from Axum/Yeha to Tekondo, which was called Da’mat (or Di’amat) as appears in the name of “mukarrib of Da’mat and Saba’”. The rulers, mukarribs, by including the name of Saba’ in their titles, appear to have claimed control over the Sabaeans residents in their country. The inscriptions of mukarribs of Da’mat and Saba’ are known from Addi Galamo, Enda Cherqos and Melazo. The Sabaeans in Tigray appear, from the use of some place-names like Mâ’rib in their inscriptions, to have kept close contacts with their homeland and indeed the purpose of their presence may have been to maintain links across the Red Sea to the profit of South Arabia’s trading network. It may have worked also for the benefit of the indigenous Ethiopian rulers who employed the titles mukarrib and ∗

UMR 7041, Maison René Ginouvès, Nanterre.

Annales d’Éthiopie, 2011, 26, 53-77

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Jean-François Breton mlkn at first. The archaic texts were written in two languages, pure Sabaean and in another language that had certain aspects found in later ge’ez. A number of tribes and families are mentioned; among them some are described as masons or stonecutters. They left inscriptions, altars and temples: some are purely “sabaean” and some influenced by the Ethiopian traditions. In the present stage of our knowledge, it is unclear how much the material (pottery) has been influenced by South Arabia and how much local traditions have remained. But it is obvious that some buildings were “Sabaean”.

Fig. 1 – Map of South Arabia

Two of them are the temples of Yeha, situated in Tigray, 30 km north-east from Axum, probably built around 700 BC. The archaeological site contains two nearby temples, the main one named MTRYn is dedicated to Almaqah (LMQH) (Robin & de Maigret, 1998), and a southern one, Grat Be’al Guebri (Anfray, 1997). The Almaqah temple, 18,60 m by 15 m, is preserved up to 13 m high. It stands on a stone basement of an irregular height because of the unevenness of the rock of the hill (Fig. 2). The temple comprises a large rectangular hall (the cella) with a lower part at the entry and an elevated part at its eastern end (in front of the chapel). The hypostyle hall is divided into five naves by four lines of three pillars each, the central nave being broader than the others. The pillars, 0,73 m by 0,65 m in section, originally 6,30 m high, rested on powerful monolith bases. The carefully paved hall (B1a and B1b), is surrounded on all its sides with a bench that is 0,45 m high.

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Relations between Ethiopia and South Arabia: problems of architecture East of the hall, a double stair gave access to a chapel (B2a), framed of two walls (M6 and M7) now demolished. Two side staircases, coupled these two walls, gave access to the first floor of the temple. Against the east wall the oratory (B2b) was isolated by a device (or a barrier) and enclosed by two walls (M8 and M9).

Fig. 2 – Plan of Almaqah temple in Yeha with structures numbers (Robin, 1998)

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Jean-François Breton The temple comprised a ground floor, 6,30 m high, as high as the wall built with two horizontal lines of stretchers (and headers) by course and 1,20 m thick. The first floor, 5,70 m high, corresponds to the highest part of the wall built with one stretcher by course and 1 m thick only. On the recess resulting from the lesser thickness of the walls the beams of the first floor were embedded in mortises laid out per pairs. These bearing elements were made out of wood, just like probably the pillars of the hypostyle hall (no fragment of stone pillar was discovered, unless hey were completely destroyed or reused). On the west, an impressive podium stands in front of the temple: 10,40 m (north to south) by 5,10 m (east to west) and more than 3 m high (A). On this podium, six limestone monoliths were regularly laid in rows, their western end showing rectangular mortises intended to receive six stone pillars, 9,20 m high each (0,90 m by 0,75 m in section) (Pa-Pf), constituting a monumental entrance lobby. The entry of the temple, 3,80 m wide, is delimited by the two walls M4 and M5, whose ends have a 0,55 m broad and a 5-7 cm deep recess on all their height. Series of mortises in vertical lines shows that panels (of wood or of stone) reduced the passage from 3,80 m wide to 1,40 m only; it is possible that these panels were removable.

From South Arabia to Yeha The main temple of Yeha could be compared with two buildings in South Arabia, Barâqish intra-muros temple of Nakrah, and Ma’în intra-muros temple (?) n° 1. Alessandro de Maigret emphasizes the similarities between the Almaqah temple in Yeha and the Nakrah temple in Barâqish (Fig. 3). The two temples have a monumental entrance lobby without a staircase, consisting of horizontal and parallel monoliths supporting high rectangular pillars. The inside is divided in a lower hypostyle hall with four rows of three pillars each, and a higher chapel (or chapels) at the end. The walls of both temples have two stretchers lines with headers (fr. mur composé horizontalement de deux rangées de pierre de taille alternant carreaux et boutisses)1, built in ashlar masonry. Although different in size (15 m by 18,60 m in Yeha, and 9,15 m by 7,05 m with Ma’în), in height (preserved on 13 m in Yeha, and 3,70 m in Ma’în), and in entrance system (porch of entry with a portico in Yeha, and a side gate preceded by a long corridor in Ma’în), these two buildings offer some common points: their hypostyle hall and their masonry (Fig. 4). The hypostyle hall of Ma’în temple has two lines of three pillars each, ca 0,40m in section, every 1,50m. These series of pillars support stone architraves in Ma’în, most of them still in situ (in Yeha they were in wood or in stone). The types of walls offer the most significant resemblances. The walls are built in uniformly coursed ashlar masonry, with two stretcher lines every course (fr. appareil rectangulaire isodome à double rangée de carreaux), which gives an average thickness of 1,20m in Yeha and of 0,90m-0,98m in Ma’în. The angles of Yeha temple consist of 1

Vocabulary in English and translation in French come from R. Ginouvès & R. Martin, 1985.

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Relations between Ethiopia and South Arabia: problems of architecture three alternated bonded quoinings made of two false headers (fr. imbrication de deux séries de boutisses alternées pour renforcer les angles). Similarities in the angles are striking in Ma’în temple and in Barâqish Nakrah temple, as they both consist of false headers. This is a typical Minean architecture detail which is to be found in the Jawf but not in Mâ’rib (Bessac, 1998a). The courses are similar in height (0,26m/0,27m in Yeha and 0,22cm/0,23m in Ma’în) consisting of stretchers, ca 1m long average (with a 3m long maximum in Yeha and a 1,60m long maximum in Ma’în). All these blocks are carefully dressed with fitted joints (fr. joints ajustés), without mortar, probably resulting from the hypothetical use of templates. The stretchers have drafted margins all around, each margin being 4,5cm/5cm large in Ma’în, and 3cm large in Yeha. Drafted margins all around are also used for the decoration of Ma’în pillars.

Fig. 3 – Plan of Nakrah temple in Barâqish (Robin, 1998)

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Jean-François Breton

Fig. 4 - Plan of intra-muros temple in Ma’în (Breton, 1998c)

Nevertheless comparisons between two monuments of close dates allow precise conclusions and emphasize the arrival in Tigray of very skilful masons from South Arabia.

The Grat-Be’al-Guebri /Yeha The building seems to be an important (but of unknown dimensions) temple whose stone basement is preserved on ca. 5 m high (Anfray, 1997). On the southern side, a large staircase leads up to the level of a massive platform. The monumental entrance lobby consists of a front line of six horizontal bases, ca. 2,10-2,30 m long by ca 1,20 m-1,30 m wide, supporting rectangular pillars (ca. 0,80 m-0,95 m in section), and a rear line, on the north, with only two preserved bases. These two bases, distant of 1,18 m, seem to mark the entry of the building. Due to the bad preservation of the remains, restitutions of the entrance lobby are hypothetical, but one can however affirm that this entrance system belongs to South Arabian temples, such as Nakrah temple in Barâqish, as extra-muros temple in Ma’în, and TT1 temple in Tamna’ (Fig. 5). In Tamna’ TT1 the platform reaches 7,75 m (north to south) by 3,35 m (east to west) and 0,95 m high (above the courtyard) (Fig. 5). It comprises eight monolithic bases, aligned according to the entrance axis, at different lengths, 0,20 m to 0,48 m away from each other, all of them showing a rectangular hollow (or mortice) at their western end, and most of them another hollow at their opposite end. It is suggested that the front pillars were originally connected with the rear pillars by stone joists

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Relations between Ethiopia and South Arabia: problems of architecture (fr.: poutre de pierre), either horizontally or obliquely (Breton-Darles-Robin-Swauger, 1997). In Nakrah (Barâqish), the platform is reached by a north-west landing (0,60 m lower) with three side steps. In some temples of Hadhramawt, the propylon consists in blocks with regular cavities to support the stone pillars.

Fig. 5 – Propylon of Tamna’, building TT1 (Breton-Darles-Robin-Swauger, 1997)

Behind the entrance, the massive basement ca. 5 m high is composed of a grid of stone walls determining rubble-filled compartments. Many cellular platforms built to support the superstructures, were carefully excavated by Francis Anfray, some down to 3,40 m. The walls of these compartments show rough rubbles, earth clay mortar and many pieces of wood. In Grat Be’al Gebri/Yeha, excavations highlighted the use of beams calcined in the walls, charcoals and burned earth, as early as the 7th century BC. Wooden posts appear in the north of the portico T4 and in the western wall, inserted in the wall 20 cm deep. In portico T4 the beams exceptionally entered the walls as reinforcement or as framing. During the pre-aksumite period, wood was certainly used in the framing of the openings and for the posts supporting the ceiling (beams and boards) but did not constitute the framework of the walls such as it appears in Grat Be’al Gebri (Anfray, 1997: 20). There, the beams are in great number: posts, long-beams and crosspieces; their heads appear under the wooden joists. This assembly is used not only for the cohesion of the masonry but constitutes a real framework. The comparison with the use of wooden framework in South Arabia does not leave any doubt about technical interactions.

High pillars (or stelae) in stone They are characteristic of the early architecture in the Ethiopian highlands. In the archaic city of Kaskase, remains of five pillars are scattered on both sides of the river (Krencker, 1913: 143-144). The longest pillar, 9,35 m long (1,27 m by 0,96 m

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Jean-François Breton in section), has fallen down without however breaking. Very close is another one, broken in three parts (8 m long), with an unpublished inscription on its upper face. Another stela, ca. 6,60 m long, lies farther in four pieces. In the northern part of the site, a broken pillar (4,50 m high and 0,82 m by 0,77 m in section) shows a two lines inscription with the name of King Wa’ran Haywät (Wenig, 2006: 329-342). In later periods, one finds also similar high stone stelae. South of Kaskase, one stela has been recently discovered in Kohaito, 2,35 m long. In Matarâ, a 5,68 m high stela stands up, restored by the National Museum. It is 0,93 m wide on its base, and 0,62 m on its top and is decorated with a moon and a crescent. A four lines inscription records the erection of the stela by “Agaz in the memory of his father” (Wenig, 2006: 321-328). High pillars in stone are not specific to the highlands of Ethiopia. South Arabia also shows a very particular taste for the erection of such monoliths. Let us evoke the stone pillars of the monumental entrance lobbies of the temples of Bar’ân in Mâ’rib, of Nakrah in Barâqish, of Tamna’ TT1 and of many sanctuaries in Hadhramawt. One also knows isolated stelae, the so-called “Market Obelisk” in Tamna’ erected by King Shahr Hilâl in the 4th century BC, and the stele decorated with a moon and crescent near Mâ’rib.

Construction and planning of aksumite buildings High stepped platforms In most of the cities of South Arabia, buildings consist of a high stone platform, either rectangular or square. These podiums are composed of a grid of stone walls determining rubble-filled compartments, so as to create an elevated platform. The internal frame consists in two long main walls, generally parallel to the length of the building, and orthogonal walls divide the basement into compartments (fr caissons). These compartments then leveled are covered with a clay or stone pavement forming the floor of rooms. A number of platforms of this type have been excavated in South Arabia. In Shabwa, building n°52 has been excavated to its deepest levels (Breton, 1998b: 2738). Its high basement consists in a 1 m thick stone wall, built in regular ashlar masonry, with one horizontal row of long stretchers. In its angles, double headers form regular bonded quoinings (fr. chaîne d’angle en harpe) and the walls show vertical series of headers disposed at regular intervals every 2,30 m-2,96 m (Fig. 6). This platform includes a geometric pattern of partition walls consisting, at its upper level, in 34 compartments, set in regular rows, except in the north-west angle where a compartment is missing (between 216 and 232), and in the south angle where there is a single compartment (225). All these compartments are similar in dimension (1,30 m-1,60 m), with side walls built with small blocks, of which one worked side is bound with pink mortar. They have been filled with earth, sand and contained few bones and ceramics. In the upper levels, this filling was covered with one or two layers of mud bricks, then with a thick mortar level.

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Fig. 6 – Plan of building n°52 in Shabwa (Breton, 1998)

The stone basements all around the Ramlat as-Sab’atayn desert and on Yemeni highlands are built with similar cellular platforms. But their geomorphologic contexts are quite different. As Shabwa buildings lie in a salty area, sponge-like when damped by rains (even few), Tamna’ buildings lie on a firm silt ground base, and houses built on rocks use the same building technique. In conclusion it may be stated that the stone basements were considered by ancient masons as strong enough to support heavy loads. Although the basement is a mixed combination of stone walls, compartments and filling, they were considered as platforms, ensuring an equal distribution of force and subsidence. These high platforms were approached by a lateral staircase, generally “L” shaped. In Shabwa building n°52 the staircase is a 10,60 m long construction, 1,90 m large at its base and 2,45 m large at its upper level. It consists in three partition walls perpendicular to the north-west wall of the platform, with four compartments filled with mud bricks and earth. As this staircase is relatively light, walls are not deeply founded. Such “L” shaped structures are common in Shabwa (buildings n°44, 53, 55, 72, 73…), in Hajar al-Dhaybiyya (Wâdî Dura’) (Breton et al., 1998), and in Tamna’ (houses B/A, B/B, B/C, B/H) and most of them are lateral staircases leading to the ground floor of houses. In Ethiopia, most of the buildings, as far as recorded, consist of a similar platform whatever the substance of the soil: rock, silt, earth, or sand. It seems to be a building technique imported from South Arabia as no previous buildings display similar platforms. Podiums are between ca. 3 m and 5 m high. As some of the inner compartments have been excavated down to their foundations, the height of the platform is ca. 2,25 m (in Ouchatei Golo), 2,70 m (in Matarâ: central building, room H), 3 m (in Matarâ: central building, room C), and 3,40 m (in Adulis, “Ara del Sole”

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Jean-François Breton according to Paribeni). A 5 m height is reached only in Dongur. Generally one staircase provides a monumental access to the ground floor but two or four symmetrical staircases have been constructed in Matarâ. The compartments have rather large dimensions in general (3 m by 3 m in Grat Be’al Gebri/Yeha, and 4 m/4,20 m by 4 m/4,20 m in Matarâ, buildings B and C). In the Dongur villa, compartments are 5 m by 2,90 m (compartment n°59), and 5,30 m by 3,80 m (n°53), and 5,70 m side (n°33). In large compartments, stone piles are erected to support the floors. There is one in Matarâ (building C, and Dongur compartment n° 59); two in Matarâ (building B, and in Dongur compartment n°49); and four in the large compartments in Dongur (compartment n°33, 35 and 53). Matarâ central building B comprises one pillar in room j, and two pillars in compartment b, e, f and h (Anfray, 1967: pl. XV). They all supported beams and posts of the first floor. Some compartments comprise straight staircases, or turning at right angles, reinforced in an angle by one of these stone piles (Matarâ, central building, room C).

Masonry According to Daniel Krencker (1913: 99), different types of masonry occur in the stepped podium or platform in Aksum: 1. Rubble (or rough rubble masonry), with small blocks or slabs of schist (Aksum, Toconda), 2. Coarse polygonal masonry with regular lines of basalt slabs (‘Enda Mika’el in Debaroa), 3. Reinforcements of the angles of the podium with ashlar masonry large blocks (Kohaito), 4. Course rubbled masonry; three courses for each recess (Aksum), two courses (Kohaito), one course topped by slabs for each recess (Kohaito), one single course (ashlar masonry of Yeha), 5. Ashlar masonry (or squared-stone) angles reinforcing rubble masonry laid in high courses and separated by lines of schist slabs, 6. Ashlar masonry angles of high courses and rear squared stones of smaller height. Dressed masonry (fr. parement dressé) is used sparingly in the remaining buildings though, of course, much larger pieces were employed for the stelae. Doorways, corner reinforcements, stairways, pillars and door-jambs are examples of such dressed masonry. Roof and floor blocks use bronze or iron cramps to hold the stones together, as found in Nefas Mawcha, the Tomb of false door, and Ta’akhâ Maryâm. Further examples of dressed masonry are stelae base plates, thrones, capitals and plinths. In South Arabia, an important part of the masonry was ashlar masonry built with finely dressed blocks. It should be considered that all the buildings in the Jawf valley use “massive heavy masonry” (fr. grand appareil) and “ashlar masonry” (fr. appareil rectangulaire). In general, the courses range from 26 cm to 53 cm in height. It seems that the firm oolithic quality of limestone allow higher courses

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Relations between Ethiopia and South Arabia: problems of architecture possibilities than the hard quality limestone. The cold limestone, especially used in Kamna, gives a varying height of courses between 26 cm and 41 cm. The varieties of limestone, changing from one quarry to another, provide varying dimensions in each city. In addition, the assumption of specific quarries belonging to each city has to be confirmed (Bessac, 1998a, 1998b).

The floors and superstructures: wood and stone pillars Wood appears to have been employed in buildings before the aksumite period. At Hawelti, dated by de Contenson between the 3rd century BC and the 1st AD, came house models with representations of wooden beams as roof supports. The pottery models show essentially a certainhouse type in Tigray. One is round with a rectangular door opening. One is rectangular with a rectangular doorway, two windows and a wooden roof: it could probably have used a wooden framework infilled with latch and mud plaster. In Aksumite times, wood was used in substantial structures. Square-sectioned horizontal beams were inserted in slots, with crosspieces of round beams whose ends projected to form the characteristic “monkey-heads”. Recent archaeological discoveries in South Arabia provide example of wooden architecture. Wooden framework in South Arabia The wealthy houses of Ancient Arabia, from Najrân to Zufâr, were all built the same way: a massive stone basement was supporting a wooden frame (fr. ossature de bois) filled with mud-bricks or earth. What is impressive is not the quantity of wood inside the walls but the framework system (Fig. 7). On the top of the upper course basement, crosspieces (fr. traverse) are laid at regulars intervals (ca. 0,30 m/0,40 m), as “headers”, their length is equal to the thickness of the wall (ca. 0,60 m). Two ground plates (fr. sablière basse) are fixed, on each side of the timber frame, and later a second set of crosspieces are laid upon them. Each upper cross piece ends with four mortises, two at each end, to set vertical posts (fr. poteau), generally 1,20 m/1,50 m high. These posts are then connected, with similar mortises with crosspieces, supporting another wall plate (or head plates, fr. sablière haute). An upper row of crosspieces is supporting the upper posts. This framework made with crosspieces/ ground plates, plate / crosspieces, crosspieces/wall plates, is doubled, in order to have a ca. 3 m high ground floor and then repeated again to build a second or third floor. The interior of the framework is later filled with rubble, earth, and mud bricks and the exterior is mud plastered but posts are to be seen. The Shabwa royal palace provided a number of details, due to the existence of a complete framework in situ, well preserved in building B (on its northern side), and hundred of beams coming from building A. The framework consists in crosspieces, long beams, and posts. They are assembled in such a way to make regular timber framings, all over the building, firmly assembled by mortises and tenons. This heavy (vertical) stacking system of

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Jean-François Breton wood has no diagonal braces and no counter braces (fr. décharge et Croix de SaintAndré). Horizontal beams such as long beams are 0,25 m by 0,25 m/0,30 m, by 0,30 m by sections and posts are 0,35 m by 0,20 m by section. Crosspieces were laid at a distance of 0,30 m/0,40 m, each one supporting ground plates.

Fig. 7 – Reconstruction of a building in Shabwa (Darles, 1992)

Assemblage techniques are well known: 1. long beams were assembled by halving or lap-joints (in situ in building B), 2. horizontal pieces were assembled by rectangular mortises and tenons, 3. crosspieces had two trapezoidal mortises at each end so that posts had trapezoidal tenons. From outside, the Royal place of Shabwa displayed most of its framework: posts were to be seen just like openings. As in wealthy houses of each South Arabian city, stone inset slabs were covering the mud-plastered intervals between the woods. All these slabs were decorated with rectangular panels with drafted margins and fine pointed dressed centres (fr. ciselure périmétrale encadrant un parement piqueté). This slab system was used in all buildings, from archaic ones (like Bâ-Qutfa temple: ca. 5th centurty BC) (Breton, 1980) to later ones (Hajar ibn Humayd: ca. 3rd century AD) but no parallels are to be found in Ethiopia.

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Relations between Ethiopia and South Arabia: problems of architecture The construction of Shabwa palace’s main porch (Fig. 8) Shabwa’ Palace offers a complex example of a monumental wooden porch, probably built in the middle of the 3rd century AD. When the palace was destroyed by fire in the late 4th century, the framework disappeared but the mud-bricks burnt all over, thus showing the original position of the long beams, crosspieces and posts (Darles, 2005: 152-153). Above a massive stone foundation, four main beams were forming the ground floor of the gate: the beams were 1,60 m long x 0,20 m high x 0,25 m large. On each of the sides of the door, ground plates, cross pieces, upper wall plates and posts were forming the framework of the walls. The door jambs consist in three associated posts, ca. 0,20 m away from each other, with regular setbacks (ca. 0,20 m). So, this was a three recessed horizontal and vertical door frames with the door in its depth. In the corners, projecting ends of cross beams (colloquially known as “monkey heads” in Ethiopian architecture) laid at right angles to the line of the wall were set in order to strengthen it and also, in some cases, to provide anchoring for internal structures. Although the door has vanished, three bronze locks were found, as well as fragments of a stone lintel decorated with ibexes (Ataq Museum).

Fig. 8 – Reconstruction of the entrance porch of the royal palace in Shabwa (Darles, 2009)

North of this door there was a wooden porch whose detailing remains unclear. If the porch was set back from the north façade of the palace, 8 posts only were enough to support the (northern) wall, 4 were isolated and 4 were close to the side walls. In this case, the hypostyle porch was at the end of the set back (Darles, 2005: 165, fig. 8-9) On the contrary, if the porch was in the continuation of the (northern) façade, the porch would consist in a supplementary row of 8 pillars, 4 of which would be set in the angles of the walls, and 4 of which would be set in a double

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Jean-François Breton row. In this case, the porch would have had 8 posts, set at a regular intervals (Darles, 2005: 167-168, fig. 11-12). Anyway the superstructures in Aksum present some important differences with South Arabian ones. In the aksumite buildings beams and posts appear in variable number in the walls, on the contrary in the South Arabian construction, wooden frameworks support the walls. It was for a long time obvious that the door frames, the doors, the windows and any openings made of wood, could present similarities between Tigray and Yemen. But recently, archaeological researches in Hadhramawt show that the intensive use of wood is common to all the civil and religious buildings. In these two regions, similar models were implemented: the architectural representations of the motifs called “recessed panels” testify in stone the diffusion of earlier wooden models. Tigray had the advantage over South Arabia to have sufficiently saved its forests to use door frames of wood during the medieval and modern periods.

Pillars and columns over platforms The grid of the platforms is intended to support vertical elements in stone or in wood. The intersections of the walls constitute the ideal place for the construction of these elements. The piles of masonry inside the compartments are only secondary places for building either floors or thin partition walls. Most of the aksumite villae in the cities of Adulis, Kohaito, Tokonda display rows of stone pillars erected on stone basements. In Kohaito buildings “Ruine” 8 and “Ruine” 5 the central part consists in a four pillared room and in “Ruine” 6 and 1, two lines of six pillars each divide the building in three naves (Krencker, 1913: 154-162). In Tokonda (“Ruine A”) two lines of five pillars each divide the building in three naves, the central being wider. One can raise the question of the distribution of the pillars in the aksumite kingdom. Kohaito, Tokonda and Adulis comprise the greatest number of stone pillars set up in 2 or 4 rows, which do not appear in the buildings in Aksum. There, forests were largely sufficient to build in wood (pillars, wooden frames, architraves and ceilings).

Types of buildings: houses and villae Rectangular buildings with returning and projecting portions of walls define the aksumite architecture. Angles are reinforced by projecting walls, probably used as stair-wells. Matarâ, better known than any another aksumite city, comprises several types of houses (types 1 and 2) and Aksum type 3 “palaces”. 1. Ordinary houses. They comprise two or three rooms without any particular installation. Walls ca. 0,70 m-0,80 m thick are built in rubble masonry. Remainders of hearths, terra cotta furnaces and wares abandoned on the spot made it possible to locate places of living.

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Relations between Ethiopia and South Arabia: problems of architecture 2. Intermediate type of dwelling: villae (ex. Dongur). It presents, a simpler form, the characters of the main building of the villa. Square plan, stepped podium, projecting and returning portions of walls. This dwelling often consists in 7 or 9 rooms, and the piles of masonry in the compartments attest that some of these residences could have had an upper floor. 3. “Palaces” consist in a central high-rise building surrounded by a series of courtyards, all around are massive walls incorporating rooms. Type 1: Houses. Matarâ city provides a fair number of small villae, with their high stone basements still visible, generally 10 m by 10 m. Many south Arabian cities display also similar stone basements similar in size, with a lateral stone staircase leading to the ground floor. Type 2: The Dongur villa (Fig. 9)

Fig. 9 – Plan of Dongur (drawing by Francis Anfray)

In Dongur, the building of which remains only the podium offers a typical example of the traditional building technique (Anfray, 1972). The surface occupies 3000 m square. It forms an irregular quadrilateral of 57 m by 56,50 m. Forty rooms, ordered in two asymmetrical housing units, are grouped around a central building 18 m

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Jean-François Breton square. This central pavilion (there remains only the platform and approximately 1 m of the upper walls) included 7 rooms at the ground floor. A monumental staircase of 7 steps gave access to it, in the east. Two other double flight staircases are laid on the other sides. The central stepped podium, ca. 1,80 m high, is built in coursed rubbled masonry bonded with mortar. A course of large squared blocks runs all around its top. In the angles quoinings of dressed blocks reinforce the structure. The recesses give the podium a very characteristic trapezoidal aspect. Evidence for one upper storey is clearly supplied by stairs and stair wells. Courts separated the main building from the secondary dwellings, all around. Type 3: Palaces and castles Most of our knowledge of these buildings comes from Aksum itself: Tâ’akhâ Mâryâm, ‘Enda Sem’ôn and ‘Enda Mikâ’el, partly excavated at the beginning of the 20th century by a German mission (Littman & Krencker, 1913: 107-117) were named “palaces” because of their large dimensions. These examples will be shortly described first, followed by a comparative observation from South Arabian “palaces”.

Planning The plan of ‘Enda Mikâ’el, revised by Buxton & Matthews (1971-1972), shows that it could be divided into two sets of rooms with their own staircase. The presence of two symmetrical entries suggests that there was such a division. Each suite would have comprised, on the ground floor, a high divided hall, a smaller hall and a corner room (besides the stairway). The ground floor with its rougher architecture, small windows and lack of privacy was used by guards or servants and the larger halls by the king (?). Tâ’akhâ Maryam comprised a building complex extending over an area some 120 m by 80 m. In the centre stood a square building with a tower-like projection at each corner. Its angles were made of massive, finely dressed masonry (granite blocks). The reconstruction published by Daniel Krencker, however probably exaggerates the height of the buildings. It was approached by grand monumental stairs on the north and south sides. Around this central building, 24 m square, extended a series of courtyards, some with porticoes of stone columns standing on elaborate stepped bases. The whole complex was surrounded by massive walls incorporating towers and series of rooms. It had two principal entrances, each approached by a broad staircase of finely dressed stone slabs. The plan of Shabwa royal palace is different. It consists in a central high-rise building (A) (22,30 m by 19,80 m) and one courtyard surrounded with a “U” shaped building (B) (32,50 m by 38,50 m). One entered the ground floor of building A by a single entry opening on a long corridor, leading to the stairway (Fig. 10). Building B is made up of two floors opening on a 2,70 m wide portico.

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Fig. 10 – Plan of the Shabwa palace (drawing by Christian Darles)

In all the buildings, the private quarters of the households would be situated on the upper floors. In Shabwa (palace building A) and in Aksum, upper rooms would be devoted to dining and to the reception (?) of guests. In Shabwa building A, ground floor rooms could have been devoted to the households, and the kitchens could have been inside (as in traditional Yemeni houses), but no indication is provided about any separation of the floors by gender. In the architecture of South Arabia and Ethiopia, the possession of a large house reflects the social status of the owner and the prestige of the family. The

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Jean-François Breton central pavilion or tower house may be the expression of the special position of the rulers translated into architectural terms.

Reconstruction There is a good reason to believe that many buildings in Aksum were constructed in a technique depicted in relief on the great stelae. Daniel Krencker emphasizes that the northernmost stela represents a narrowed-down version, reduced in scale, of a real built-up façade. He applied his theory to ‘Enda Mikâ’el palace, as some other architects applied the same theory to the Shabwa royal palace in Yemen. How many floors had the houses in Shabwa and how many floors had Shabwa and TT1 Tamna’ “palaces”? Two upper floors could be the existing rule. In ‘Enda Mikâ’el palace, Daniel Krencker found that the thick-walled square in each corner of the platform were foundation of stairways, thus deducing that the building had at least one upper storey. In Tamna’, capital of Qataban, Tamna’ TT1 building had four similar corners with possibly stairways in each of them (or at least two in the eastern side). The presence of an upper floor could be one of the evidences that it is a house or a palace. According to the height of the basement, one can estimate that the original height of TT1 was impressive (Breton et alii, 1997). The houses of the “Market place” in Tamna’ recently excavated by the Italian Archaeological Mission had probably two upper floors. The roofs of all these houses were flat. As the occupants of all these palaces used these roof-terraces, we may assume that they were bound with parapets, pierced at their base by drainage with projecting gargoyles. Some zoomorphic stone water-spouts were found in Aksum, and gutters with a bull’s head spout were found in Shabwa. The top of the corner-towers would probably be a slightly sloping flat roof (Shabwa’s palace). In ‘Enda Mikâ’el, the purely decorative use of the archdesign on the parapet seems more convincing than Krencker’s crenellations (Buxton-Matthews, 1971). One original building, the “Nefas Mawcha” in Aksum (Krencker, 1913: 94-96 and MunroHay, 1989: 116-120). The building (ca. 23 m by 16 m) consists of a central chamber (14,5 m by 4,7 m), flanked by four parallel corridors, two on each side, all built of granite blocks (Fig. 11). These corridors formed ambulatories which completely surrounded the central chamber. The inner corridor was roofed with transversely positionned blocks, bound by metal cramps, and both edges trimmed to form a shelf. The support slabs measured more than 3 m in length, 0,50 m in thickness, all of them extended more than 1 m under the giant roof slab. These slabs were counterbalanced, at their outer ends, by a second row of slabs which rested on them; the second row ca. 2,4 m long, roofed the outer ambulatory. On top of these shelves, the transverse roofing blocks of the outer ambulatory were placed, the outside wall being accordingly higher in proportion to the thickness of the roof blocks of the inner corridor. On the inside shelves of the

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Relations between Ethiopia and South Arabia: problems of architecture roofing blocks of the inner corridor, rests the huge monolith (6,4 m by 17,3 m and up to 1,2 m thick weighing about 360 tonnes). To summarize, there is a central place (a so-called “funerary chamber”) surrounded by a first row of pillars on each side, a first ambulatory, a second row of pillars, a second ambulatory and a thick outer wall. Each line of pillars supports architraves on which rest transverse roofing fixed blocks with bronze clamps. These transverse blocks show mortises to receive the upper blocks.

Fig. 11 – Nefas Mawcha, Aksum: sketch plan showing position of stone roofing (Munro-Hay, 1989)

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Jean-François Breton This system of roofing with large blocks and bounding them with metal cramps was also used in the extra-muros temple of ‘Athtar in as-Sawdâ’ (South Arabia) (Fig. 12, Breton, 1992). Two lines of nine rectangular pillars, distant of 1,40 m each, border the central open court of the sanctuary. These pillars were surmounted by architraves of which some were still in place or hardly moved. Each architrave rested at its ends on the half-width of each pillar. On their upper side, vertical metal cramps were used to fix long transverse stone slabs. The stone slabs were ca. 3,50 m long (but exceptionally 4,23 m: slab n° 68). One end of each slab rests on the external wall of the temple. The other end had originally extended from 0,46 m above the central court, but above pillars 6 and 14, the slabs extended from 0,72 m to 0,84 m (1 m in Nefas Mawcha). Each of these slabs had a central part undressed and two long side mortises. Obviously, these side mortises were intended to receive upper slabs ensuring the total cover of the porticoes. The cover of the two porticoes was thus completely ensured by these broad slabs, as in Nefas Mawcha. There is for sure a long gap between as-Sawdâ’ (8th century BC) and Nefas Mawcha (ca. 3rd century AD?) although there is no precise dating evidence for the late structure. But beyond the chronological problems, it is interesting to emphasize the similarities of the building techniques in the two buildings.

Fig. 12 – As- Sawdâ’ reconstruction of the temple (Breton, 1992 drawing by Gérard Robine)

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Relations between Ethiopia and South Arabia: problems of architecture The growth of Aksum During the 3rd century, the domination of Rome decreases in the East and particularly in the Red Sea. This is the time when Sassanides develop their influence in the Arabian Peninsula. The Roman Empire is shaken and all the dwellers (or at least a majority of them) along the Red Sea and undoubtedly along the Nile valley emerge as new identities and as increasing assertions of their ethnic or national entities. At the end of the 3rd century AD, Sassanian sources classify Aksum as one of the four main empires with Rome, Persia and Silis (China or a central Asia kingdom). The 4th century texts (Epiphania of Constantia) mention the Homerites (Himyars) on the highlands of Yemen, the Aksumites, the Adulitans (from Adulis), the Taiani, (located on the African coast between Berenike and Adulis) and the Diueni (on Suqutra Island). Even in Nubia, Meroe extends its domination on territories formerly controlled by Rome Palmyrenians knew from a long time the routes to South Arabia and India. They were present in 215-217, in Shabwa, for the crowning of the King Iliadhdh Yalût in al-’Uqla temple, not far from the city. In ca. 258 AD, Abgar, a Palmyrenian merchant made a stopover in the Island of Suqutra belonging to Hadhramawt, and being immobilized there, remained some time in a cave. One found there short texts in South Arabian, Brahmi and Ge’ez languages as well as drawings, and mainly a wooden tablet written in Palmyrenian known as “Geest” (Robin & Gorea, 2002). This inscription testifies the mobility of the Palmyrenian merchants in the Indian Ocean but leaves unsolved the question of their ports of loading and their routes, either by the Red Sea or by the AraboPersian Gulf. In 270/271, the conquest of Egypt by Zenobia has to be partly explained by this seniority of the relations that Palmyra had in the Red Sea. On the Red Sea, the Greco-Roman trade is certainly limited by the exceptional growth of the Aksumite power. Of this growth, there is especially a literary testimony. The inscription known as “Monumentum Adulitanum”, a Greek inscription to the glory of an unknown king of Aksum, affirms that he conducted military campaigns in Arabia from Leuke Kome to the territory of Sabaeans. He submitted Arabs and Kinaidokolpites populations. The inscription, copied by Cosmas Indicopleustes, evokes his sailors and undoubtedly an immense fleet which allowed him to cross the Red Sea. Sacrificing to Zeus and Ares, he is a pagan and should be placed before the reign of Ezana (early 2nd century AD). South Arabian inscriptions mention the Habashat as soon as ca. 200 AD. The Sabaeans, initially allied with the newcomers, then allow them to settle on the coast. The Ethiopians interfere deeply in local conflicts, allying sometimes with the Sabaean, sometimes with the Himyarites. They occupy Zafâr, the Himyarite capital, Aden, and its neighbouring aread. During the first two thirds of the 3rd century, the Aksumites exert a direct political influence on a large fraction of Arabia from Najrân to Aden.

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Jean-François Breton During the 6th century, South Arabia became an important issue in the competition between Byzantium and Persia. Yemen indeed represented a major economic issue because it was located on the sea routes towards India. The country, weakened and destabilized by internal political competitions, succumbed to the foreign influences. Abyssinia, a Christian kingdom from then on (ca. 333 AD) in the sphere of Byzantium, interfered quickly in Arabia by supporting the accession with the himyarite throne of a Christian king. Later, the massacre of the Christians in Najrân provides a new pretext to the Abyssinians, on the request of Emperor Justin, to invade Yemen in 525 (or 529530). Victorious, Negus Ella Asbeha established on the throne a Christian king, founded several churches, especially in Zafâr and in Najrân, and installed a clergy to convert the country to Christianity. Thereafter, Negus Abraha erected the cathedral of Sana’a. According to certain sources (al-Azraqî), he asked the Byzantine Emperor Justinian to send him marble, mosaics and craftsmen. Of the the church of Qalîs (Sana’a) built by the Negus Abraha remains nothing. The site called Ghurqat al-Qalîs in Sana’a is a shallow circular pit about 2 m deep. No reason is known to suggest this is other than genuinely the site of al-Qalîs (Fig. 13).

Fig. 13 – Sana’a: reconstruction of Abraha’ church of al-Qalîs (Robert Bertram Serjeant, 1983)

A late description has been given by al-Azraqî in Kitab Akhbar Makkah (edited 1895): it allows a hypothetical plan interpreted by Robert Bertram Serjeant as a rectangular building, ca. 58 m long, with a nave, a choir and an eastern domed chapel (?). The west-east orientation parallels the orientation of Aksumite churches in Ethiopia. Although the Saint Mary of Zion cathedral in Aksum was destroyed in the 17th century, the original platform of the great church remains (see under) and it is possible to reconstruct approximately its plan and dimension. The lengths of the bodies of the two churches (Sana’a and Aksum) were effectively the same size: ca. 58 m, except the Sana’a church had added to it, at the eastern end a further ca. 14 m of the domed chapel. The total height of the two churches was similar: ca. 15 m. The nave of the Aksum cathedral was 22,55 m wide whereas the Sana’a church is estimated to be 19 m wide. Robert Bertram Serjeant (Serjeant & Lewcock, 1983) explains the presence of a large dome chamber in Sana’a church by the

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Relations between Ethiopia and South Arabia: problems of architecture influence of the Byzantine architecture and the interest taken by the Syrian Christians. It would also explain the presence of mosaics. It seems anyway that Sana’a architecture was much closer to Byzantine than aksumite is thought to have been. “The plan of the church from al-Azraqî’s description, was of a Syrian type, in the case directly derived from the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem which had a domed octagonal chapel 16 m in diameter at the end of a five-aisled nave 26 m wide”.

Conclusion Despite the generally poor condition of the buildings, a reasonable comprehensive picture has emerged from Aksumite architecture and construction. From the 3rd century AD, Aksumite buildings seem similar to the South Arabian ones: high rise stone platforms with stories built with a wooden framework. Permanence in building techniques and in architecture is an important consideration in South Arabia as in Ethiopia to reconstruct antique buildings.

Bibliography Anfray F., 1963, La première campagne de fouille à Matarâ près de Sénafé (novembre 1959-janvier 1960), Annales d’Éthiopie, 5, 87-112. Anfray F. & Annequin G., 1965, Matarâ. Deuxième, troisième et quatrième campagnes de fouilles, Annales d’Éthiopie, 6, 49-142. Anfray F., 1967, Matarâ, Annales d’Éthiopie, 7, 33-53, pl. IX-XLII. Anfray F., 1974, Deux villes axoumites : Adoulis et Matarâ, IV Congresso Internazionale di Studi Etiopici, Academia Nazionale dei Lincei, Roma, 745-765. Anfray F., 1994, Considérations sur quelques aspects archéologiques des relations de l’Ethiopie et de l’Arabie antiques, Etiopia e oltre, Studi in onore di Lanfranco Ricci, Napoli, 17-25. Anfray F., 1997, Yeha. Les ruines de Grat Be’al Gebri. Recherches archéologiques, Rassegna di Studi Etiopici, 39, 5-23, pl. I-XXVIII. Bessac J.-C. ,1998a, Techniques de construction, de gravure et d’ornemantation en pierre, in Breton J.-F. (éd.), Fouilles de Shabwa III. Architecture et techniques de construction, Beyrouth, IFAPO (Bibliothèque archéologique et historique, 154), 173-230. Bessac J.-C., 1998b, Le travail de la pierre à Shabwa, in Breton J.-F. (éd.), Fouilles de Shabwa III. Architecture et techniques de construction, Beyrouth, IFAPO (Bibliothèque archéologique et historique, 154), 231-282. Bessac J.-C. 2009, La construction en pierre à Shabwa, in Breton J.-F. (éd.), Fouilles de Shabwa IV, Shabwa et son contexte architectural et artistique du 1er siècle av. J.-C. au IVe siècle ap. J.-C., Sanaa-Damas, CEFAS-IFPO, 33-72. Breton J.-F., 1980, Le temple de SYN-D-HLSM à Bâ-qutfah (République Démocratique Populaire du Yémen), Raydân, 2, 185-203, pl. I-IX. Breton J.-F. (éd.), 1992, Fouilles de Shabwa II, Rapports préliminaires, extrait de Syria, 68 (1991), Beyrouth, Damas, Aman, IFAPO, Paris, Geuthner.

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Jean-François Breton Breton J.-F., 1992, Le sanctuaire de ‘Athtar dhû-Risâf d’as-Sawda (République du Yémen), Comptes-Rendus des séances de l’Académie des Inscriptions et Belles-Lettres, 136 (2), 429-453. Breton J.-F. (éd.), 1998a, Fouilles de Shabwa III. Architecture et techniques de construction, Beyrouth, IFAPO (Bibliothèque archéologique et historique, 154). Breton J.-F., 1998b, Le bâtiment 52, in Breton J.-F. (éd.), Fouilles de Shabwa III. Architecture et techniques de construction, Beyrouth, IFAPO (Bibliothèque archéologique et historique, 154), 27-38. Breton J.-F., 1998c, Les temples de Ma’în et du Jawf (Yémen) : état de la question, Syria, 75, 61-80. Breton J.-F. (éd.), 2009, Fouilles de Shabwa IV. Shabwa et son contexte architectural et artistique du Ier siècle av. J.-C. au IVe siècle ap. J.-C., Sanaa-Damas, CEFAS-IFPO. Breton J.-F., Audouin R., Seigne J., 1991, Rapport préliminaire sur la fouille du “Château Royal” de Shabwa (1980-1981), Raydân, 3, 163-191. Breton J.-F. et Darles C., 1996, Les maisons-tours dans l’Antiquité, Sanaa, architecture domestique et société, CNRS, Paris, 449-457. Breton J.-F., Darles C., Robin C., et Swauger J.-L., 1997, Le grand monument de Tamna’ (Yémen) architecture et identification, Syria, 74, 33-72. Breton J.-F., Mc Mahon A., Warburton D., 1998, Two seasons at Hajar amDhaybiyya, Yemen, Arabian Archaeology and Epigraphy, 9, 90-111. Buxton D. & Matthews, 1971-1972, The reconstruction of vanished Aksumite buildings, Rassegna di Studi Etiopici, 25, 53-77. Darles C., 1992, L’architecture civile à Shabwa, in J.-F. Breton (éd.), Fouilles de Shabwa II, Syria, 68, H.S. 19, 77-110. Darles C., 2005, Hypothèses de restitution du dispositif d’entrée du palais royal de Shabwa, in Sabaean Studies: Archaeological, Epigraphical and Historical Studies in honour of Yusuf Abdallah, Alessandro de Maigret and Christian Robin on the Occasion of their 60th Birthdays, Naples-Sanaa, 151-172. Fattovich R. et al., 2000, The Aksum Archaeological Area: a preliminary assessment. Naples, Istituto Universitario Orientale. Ginouvès R., Martin R., Dictionnaire méthodique de l’architecture grecque et romaine, tome 1, Matériaux, techniques de construction, techniques et formes du décor, Ecole française d’Athènes, Ecole française de Rome, 1985. Krencker D., 1913, Ältere Denkmäler Nordabessiniens, Deutsche Aksum Expedition, II, Berlin. Krencker D., 1932, Die grossen Stelen in Aksum, Forschungen und Fortschritte, 12 (3), 29-30. Munro-Hay S., 1989, Excavations at Aksum, an account of research at the ancient Ethiopian capital directed in 1972-1974 by the late Dr. Neville Chittick, London, The British Institute in Eastern Africa (Memoirs of the British Institute in Eastern Africa, 10). Paribeni R., 1907, Richerche nel luogo dell’antica Adulis, Monumenti Antichi, 18, Roma, Reale Academia dei Lincei, 438-572. Phillipson D., 1998, Ancient Ethiopia. Aksum: its antecedents and successors, London, British Museum Press. Phillipson D., 2000, Archaeology at Aksum, Ethiopia, 1993-1997, London, Memoirs of the British Institute in Eastern Africa: n°17.

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Relations between Ethiopia and South Arabia: problems of architecture Robin C. & de Maigret A., 1998, Le grand temple de Yéha (Tigray, Ethiopie), après la première campagne de fouilles de la mission française (1998), Comptes-Rendus des séances de l’Académie des Inscriptions et Belles Lettres, 142, 738-798. Robin C. & Gorea M., 2002, Les vestiges antiques de la grotte de Hoq (Suqutra, Yémen), Comptes-Rendus des séances de l’Académie des Inscriptions et Belles Lettres, 146 (2), 409-445. Serjeant R. B. & Lewcock R., 1983, Sana’â’. An Arabian Islamic City, Londres, World of Islam festival Trust. Wenig S., 2006, In Kaiserlichem Auftrag. Die Deutsche Aksum-Expedition 1906 unter Enno Littmann, vol. 1: Die Akteure und die wissenschaftlichen Untersuchungen der DAE in Eritrea, Aichwald, Verlag Lindensoft.

Résumé/Abstract Breton J.-F., 2011, Relations between Ethiopia and South Arabia: problems of architecture, Annales d’Éthiopie, 26, 53-77. Around mid-first millennium BC, probably by the 8thcentury BC, apparently quite close contacts were maintained between Ethiopia and South Arabia. Remains of major importance, with an unmistakeable South Arabian appearance in many details, have been excavated. Among the sites are Hawelti-Melazo (near Aksum), Yeha (the two main buildings) and Matarâ (the early levels). The main temple of Yeha could be compared at least with two buildings in South Arabia, Barâqish intra-muros temple of Nakrah, and Ma’în intra-muros temple (?) n° 1. Later, despite the generally poor state of conservation of the buildings, a reasonably comprehensive picture has emerged from Aksumite architecture. From the third century AD, Aksumite buildings are similar to the South Arabia ones (mainly in Shabwa and Tamna’) with their high rise stone platforms supporting storeys built with a wooden framework. Keywords: South Arabia, Aksum, architecture, wood, houses. Les relations entre l'Éthiopie et l’Arabie du Sud : questions d’architecture – Vers le milieu du premier millénaire avant notre ère, mais probablement dès le VIIIe siècle, d’étroits contacts se sont développés entre l’Éthiopie et l’Arabie du Sud. Des vestiges d’importance majeure, dont l’architecture et les techniques de construction semblent originaire d’Arabie du Sud ont été fouillés, parmi eux mentionnons : Hawelti-Melazo à Yeha (les deux édifices) et Matarâ (les niveaux les plus anciens). Le temple principal de Yeha peut être comparé avec au moins deux bâtiments d’Arabie du Sud : le temple de Nakrah intra-muros à Barâqish et le temple (?) n°1, à Ma’în. A la période Axoumite, à partir du IIIe siècle de notre ère, en dépit d’un état de conservation assez médiocre des vestiges, l’image d’ensemble de l’architecture civile et religieuse commence à se préciser. Les bâtiments axoumites ressemblent à ceux de l’Arabie du Sud (principalement Shabwa et Tamna’) avec leur plateforme de pierre surélevée supportant des étages faits d’une ossature de bois. Keywords: Arabie du Sud, Axum, architecture, bois, maisons.

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