The wealth of africa: using these resources

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The wealth of Africa

The kingdom of Aksum

Teachers’ notes

Supported by

The CarAf Centre

www.britishmuseum.org

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 The wealth of Africa  

The kingdom of Aksum

THE WEALTH OF AFRICA: USING THESE RESOURCES

This educational resource consists of 16 sets of resources on African civilisations, countries  

and themes. 

Each set of resources includes:

•  Teachers’ notes

•  Students’ worksheets

•  A presentation

Download the resources free at www.britishmuseum.org/schools

Teachers’ notes

These are intended to provide background material for teachers, but can also be referred  

to by students who want more contextual information.

Students’ worksheets

These are stand-alone worksheets which can be downloaded as classroom resources or 

viewed on the interactive whiteboard. They are self-contained, with tasks and questions and 

a limited number of sources in which the language has been slightly amended to make them 

more accessible to the likely reading ages of the students. They are also designed to be used 

independently of the teacher, e.g. for homework.

If teachers do not wish to spend more than one or two lessons on Aksum, then the sheets will 

prove ideal for small project work, with groups of students taking one sheet, finding interesting 

and relevant information, and reporting back to the rest of the class. A specimen lesson plan 

along these lines is given on the next page.

Presentation

This provides a simpler and more visual introduction to the civilisation. It contains some of the 

images and sources found in the other sections, and can be shown on the whiteboard or used  

at home to give an overview of the main topics covered.

Your feedback

Please help the British Museum improve its educational resources for schools and teachers  

by giving your feedback. The first 250 teachers or tutors to complete the online survey before 

12.00 on 1 September 2011 will receive a printed set of illustrations of African civilisations  

by artist Tayo Fatunla. Visit www.surveymonkey.com/s/wealthofafrica to complete the survey 

and for terms and conditions.

Front cover image: Gold coin showing Ezana and wheat. Aksum, Ethiopia, about AD 340-400

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 The wealth of Africa  

The kingdom of Aksum

LESSON SCHEME: AKSUM IN AN HOUR

Aim

To decide how advanced the Aksumite civilisation was.

Starter: Impressions of the Kingdom of Aksum

Scroll quickly through the images in the presentation, and get feedback from students on their 

first impressions, especially on how advanced they consider the civilisation to have been.  

(10 minutes)

Research

Divide the class into groups with one group per resource sheet. Each group has to look at the 

question at the top of the sheet, and decide on the answer by studying the sources. The group 

should note 5–10 relevant facts that it can feed back to the rest of the class as evidence of its 

answer. (20 minutes)

Feedback

Each group feeds back its findings, opinion and evidence to the rest of the class, who could take 

notes. (15 minutes)

Discussion

The central question of ‘advanced’ can be debated, i.e. which aspects reveal Aksum to have been  

a developed civilisation etc. (15 minutes)

Homework

e.g. The ambassador for the kingdom of Aksum defends his country – pick and explain five 

details that show how advanced Aksum was at this time, or look at the presentation site, if not 

already done in class, or do further research into one of the topics to find more information.

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AKSUM c. AD 100–700: TEACHERS’ NOTES

Introduction

Aksum was the name of a city and a kingdom which is essentially modern-day northern Ethiopia 

(Tigray province) and Eritrea. Research shows that Aksum was a major naval and trading power 

from the 1st to the 7th centuries AD. As a civilisation it had a profound impact upon the people  

of Egypt, southern Arabia, Europe and Asia, all of whom were visitors to its shores, and in some 

cases were residents. The peak of Aksum’s power came with the invasions into South Arabia in 

the 3rd, 4th and 6th centuries, and the invasion of Meroe around AD 320, which caused the final 

decline of the Kushite kingdom.

Despite its power and reputation – it was described by a Persian writer as one of the four greatest 

powers in the world at the time – very little is known about it. Aksum had written scripts, but no 

histories or descriptions have been found to make this African civilisation come alive.

Why study Aksum?

Aksum provides a counterpoint to the Greek and Roman worlds, and is an interesting 

example of a sub-Saharan civilisation flourishing towards the end of the period of the great 

Mediterranean empires. It provides a link between the trading systems of the Mediterranean 

and the Asiatic world, and shows the extent of international commerce at that time.

It holds the fascination of being a ‘lost’ civilisation, yet one that was African, Christian, with its 

own script and coinage, and with an international reputation. It was arguably as advanced as 

the Western European societies of the time. It provides a different impression of Ethiopia from 

the modern media representations.

For schools following Key Stage 3 History in the English National Curriculum, this section could 

be a case study to show what Africa was like long before the Europeans arrived.

Location

The kingdom of Aksum straddled two vastly different climatic and topographical regions. Its 

main port on the Red Sea, Adulis, was in an area of blisteringly high temperatures, little rainfall, 

and sparse, scrubby vegetation. Yet it was one of the few natural harbours along the coast, and 

strategically placed at the mouth of the Red Sea, a short distance from the Arabian peninsula. 

Just 60km inland the country rises to a 2,000-metre high plateau with plentiful rainfall – at the 

time of Aksum’s power, due to chance, there were two rainy seasons instead of the usual one 

– resulting in rich soils, forests and agreeable temperatures. It was the skill of the Aksumites in 

making the most of these two parts of their kingdom, and joining them together into a single 

economic unit, which was the main cause of their success and power.

Natural resources

Despite its recent tragic reputation, parts of Ethiopia are rich in natural resources, and Aksum was 

well placed to exploit them. Timber was needed to make charcoal for the production of iron tools 

and weapons, and this was abundant. Cereal crops grew easily in the well-watered, fertile soil – 

the growing season could be as long as nine months, and two crops a year could be grown on the 

terraces cut into the hillsides. There was good pasture for cattle. The population was therefore well 

fed. While one of the greatest worries of the rulers of Rome was how to feed their population, the 

kings of Aksum had no such problem. And if the rains failed, they had a secret weapon – teff.

Teff is a grain that grows nowhere else except Ethiopia. Not only is it a crop that is far more 

nutritious than other cereals, it needs very little water. 

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History

Not much is known of the history of Aksum, other than what can be gleaned from the 

inscriptions left by various kings on their achievements. Ezana, c. 321–360, is probably the 

best known of the rulers, or at least the best at publicising himself, and he is credited with the 

introduction of Christianity, as well as waging campaigns to secure tribute and expand territory. 

It is known from inscriptions that at the time he came to the throne, Aksum ruled over much  

of modern Ethiopia, as well as the kingdom of Meroe to the north and most of South Arabia.

One of the first actions of Ezana was to seize back control over the Beja, one of the most 

powerful desert tribes which had proved a thorn in the flesh to Aksum and Meroe. He sent  

his brothers, who succeeded in their mission, and this resulted in the forced deportation of six 

tribes of Beja, from kings down to children, firstly to show submission to Ezana personally, and 

then to be resettled far away. Although little is known about the military set-up, it is clear that 

it was the strength of its army that made Aksum respected and powerful.

Social life

Aksum was a hierarchical society with a king at the top, then nobles, and the general population 

below. This can be discerned by the buildings that have been found, and the wealth of the goods 

found in them. Although Aksum had writing, very little has been found out about society from 

inscriptions. It can be assumed that priests were important, and probably traders, too, because  

of the money they would have made. Most of the poor were probably craftsmen or farmers.

In some descriptions, the ruler is described as ‘King of Kings’ which might suggest that there 

were other, junior kings in outlying parts of the empire which the Aksumites gradually took over.

There is evidence of at least 10–12 small towns in the kingdom, which suggests it was an urban 

society, but for descriptions of these there is only archaeological evidence. Little or nothing is 

known about such things as the role of women and family life.

The capital

Stuart Munro-Hay, an archaeologist who worked extensively at the site, described Aksum  

as covering about 75 hectares, with a population of around 20,000. There seems to have been 

a ceremonial approach from the east, lined with granite victory-thrones and statues of bronze 

and precious metals dedicated to the gods, leading to the religious centre with the royal 

cemetery lying to the north and east. The focus for this region seems to have been the temple/

cathedral area, with another row of thrones. The main residential suburb with its huge palaces 

was situated to the west, and the whole was flanked with lesser cemeteries and more humble 

residential suburbs. It is probable that there was at least one open square, a marketplace 

perhaps, somewhere in the town centre.

Religion

Aksum was a meeting point of religions, including Christianity, Judaism and, later, Islam. Before 

the arrival of Christianity, little is known about religion, apart from what can be guessed from 

the stelae or obelisks that can still be seen in the capital, and what might be temple complexes 

in the main towns.

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Stelae

The stelae, which are tall, flat-sided spires, some decorated as if to represent the storeys of a 

building, and often with a false door at the bottom, are commonplace in Aksum. They often cover 

tombs, but seem to have been made as much for prestige as for religious belief, since they vary 

in size, getting bigger with time. The most fascinating is the largest – 33 metres in height and 

weighing 700 tonnes – carved from a single block of stone which makes it one of the largest 

monolithic structures of the ancient world. It had to be brought from a quarry 4km away – no-one 

knows how, but elephants may have helped – and was gradually raised on a ramp so that it could 

stand upright in a pit. Engineers have calculated that the pit would have been too shallow to have 

held it, and it must have toppled and crashed to the ground the moment it became upright. It lies 

there still, as it did on the day it fell hundreds of years ago, a lasting monument to human folly.

Christianity

Aksum embraced the Orthodox tradition of Christianity in the 4th century AD (c. 340–356) 

under the rule of King Ezana. The king had been converted by Frumentius, a former Syrian captive 

who was made Bishop of Aksum. On his return, Frumentius had promptly baptised King Ezana, 

who then declared Aksum a Christian state, followed by the king’s active converting of the 

Aksumites. By the 6th century, King Kaleb was recognised as a Christian by the emperor Justin I 

of Byzantium (r. AD 518–527) when he sought Kaleb’s support in avenging atrocities suffered by 

fellow Christians in South Arabia. This invasion saw the inclusion of the region into the Aksumite 

kingdom for the next seven decades.

Judaism

Although Christianity had a profound effect upon Aksum, Judaism also had a substantial impact  

on the kingdom. A group of people from the region called the Beta Israel have been described 

as ‘Black Jews’. Although their scriptures and prayers are in Ge’ez, rather than in Hebrew, they 

adhere to religious beliefs and practices set out in the Pentateuch (Torah), the religious texts  

of the Jewish religion. Although often regarded by scholars/academics as not technically 

‘Jewish’ but instead a pre-Christian, Semitic people, their religion shares a common ancestry 

with modern Judaism. Between 1985 and 1991 almost the whole Beta Israel population of 

Ethiopia was moved to Israel.

Solomon and Sheba

The Queen of Sheba and King Solomon are important figures in Ethiopian heritage. Traditional 

accounts describe their meeting when Sheba, Queen of Aksum, went to Jerusalem, and their  

son Menelik I formed the Solomonic dynasty from which the rulers of Ethiopia (up to the 1970s) 

are said to be descended. It has also been claimed that Aksum is the home of the Biblical Ark of 

the Covenant, in which lies the ‘Tablets of Law’ upon which the Ten Commandments are inscribed. 

Menelik is believed to have taken it on a visit to Jerusalem to see his father. It is supposed to 

reside still in the Church of St Mary in Aksum, though no-one is allowed to set eyes on it. Replicas 

of the Ark, called Tabots, are housed in all of Ethiopia’s churches, and are carried in procession on 

special days.

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Trade

Trade links between Aksum and South Arabia existed for some time before Aksum’s contact 

with the Romans began. Aksum benefited from being part of a maritime trading system that 

linked the Roman Empire and India. The Roman demand for goods from southern India resulted 

in large numbers of ships sailing down the Red Sea from Roman Egypt to the Arabian Sea and 

across the Indian Ocean to India. The kingdom of Aksum was ideally located to take advantage 

of this new trading situation. Adulis, the commercial centre of Aksum, was the city’s major 

trading port on the Red Sea. It was the place where goods from across the Kingdom arrived for 

export, and it was also where goods such as silks, spices, glass, brass and copper from Egypt, 

India and Arabia arrived. Among the many descriptions of Adulis is one by the famous Roman 

author Pliny, who mentions the fact that the exports also included slaves, hippopotamus hides 

and apes. Despite its excellent location on the Red Sea, Adulis was twelve days’ journey from 

Aksum, over difficult and precipitous terrain, and this must have been a drawback for trade.

Ivory

Whenever ancient authors talk about Adulis, Aksum or Ethiopia, they always give prominence 

to elephants and their ivory. Indeed, ivory may have been a factor in the decision to make 

Aksum the capital city. Such was the importance of the ivory that Aksum competed with its 

neighbours in Meroe (Kush) for ultimate control of the trade. This may have been one of the 

reasons for the later invasion around AD 320. This highly desired commodity was favoured by 

the Romans, who enjoyed luxury items, and in Egypt, Arabia, India and China.

According to the Periplus in the 1st century AD, elephants lived inland, like the rhinoceros, but 

sometimes they were hunted on the shore itself, near Adulis. In the reign of the Roman emperor 

Justinian (AD 527–565), a Greek-Byzantine ambassador called Nonnosus visited Aksum and 

saw a herd of 5,000 elephants. According to an account in the Christian Topography, written 

in the 6th century, the author Cosmas notes that there is a ‘multitude of elephants with large 

tusks; from Ethiopia these tusks are sent by boat to India, Persia, the land of Himyarites, and 

Romania’. Aksum ruled over such regions by exacting tributes and duties from the communities 

which were otherwise self-regulated. These trade duties provided kings with the revenues to 

support military campaigns and other ventures.

In 1962, an archaeological dig by the Ethiopian Institute of Archaeology found an elephant’s 

tusks in the Aksumite ruins at Adulis, and in 1967 they discovered pieces of a terracotta figurine 

of an elephant in the walls of the castle at Dongour.

Decline

There is no exact date for the decline of Aksum, nor any agreement over its cause as it seems to 

have been a relatively slow process. The fact that coinage ceased to be issued about AD 630, and 

that the capital was virtually abandoned around this date, gives a clue as to the end of its period 

of power. The emergence of Arab traders in the 7th century saw competition for the major 

markets in Alexandria, Byzantium and Europe. The Persian Empire was also expanding at this 

time, and beginning to dominate the Red Sea. There is no evidence of a military defeat, but it is 

likely that the rulers of Aksum simply decided to abandon their coastal interests and concentrate 

instead on the interior.

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 The wealth of Africa  

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There are other explanations too. Like other civilisations, Aksum may have suffered from the 

very factors that made it great. The huge amount of timber needed to sustain its iron foundries 

would have led to deforestation, and the plentiful rainfall which had proved such a benefit to 

crop growing, now led to soil erosion and mudslides that threatened the capital and reduced 

the amount of fertile land.

There is also the possibility that, as with Rome, the great wealth of the ruling class, as shown  

by the size of their buildings and richness of goods, led to complacency and a weakening of 

central control.

Whatever the reasons, the Aksumite rulers moved their capital southwards, deeper into the 

more fertile interior and away from foreign influence, and, in the words of Edward Gibbon,  

‘slept near a thousand years, forgetful of the world, by whom they were forgotten.’

Today, Aksum is regarded as the holiest city in Ethiopia and is an important pilgrimage centre.  

It attracts thousands of pilgrims from within Africa and from around the world, who come to 

experience its Christian heritage.

Ethiopia, built on the foundations of Aksum, remains the only country in Africa to have 

remained independent of foreign control throughout its history, except for a short Italian 

occupation in 1936-41.

Coinage

Coins have a unique significance in the history of Aksum. They are particularly important because 

they provide evidence of Aksum and its rulers. The inscriptions on the coins highlight the fact that 

Aksumites were a literate people with knowledge of both Ethiopic and Greek languages.

It is generally thought that the first Aksumite coins were intended for international trade. These 

coins, bearing the name of King Endybis (c. AD 270/290), were mainly struck in gold and silver 

and followed the weight standard which existed in the Roman Empire.

Initially, the symbols of the crescent and disc, which were common to the religions in South Arabia 

to which Aksum adhered, were used on early Aksumite coins. However, after the conversion of King 

Ezana around AD 340–356, a powerful statement was conveyed by the king’s decision to replace 

the existing symbols with a cross which clearly denoted the importance that Christianity had in the 

kingdom. The coins also had a portrait of the ruler on the obverse and reverse of the coin along with 

teff, a local type of wheat. Inscriptions were another form of information included on the coins.

For the most part, gold coins were inscribed in Greek and often intended for exports, while 

silver and copper coins were in Ge’ez. From the 4th century AD, an increasing number of copper 

coins were issued which had evidently Christian inscriptions such as ‘Joy and Peace to the 

People’ and ‘He conquers through Christ’. With the replacement of gold coins with copper ones, 

the craftsmen of Aksum started using specialised techniques of gilding, which was unique to 

the kingdom and involved gold leaf being added to crowns and other symbols to enhance the 

appearance, and most probably the value, of coins.

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REFERENCES

Collins, R & Burns, J, 2007, A History of Sub-Saharan Africa (Cambridge University Press)

Kaplan, S, 1982, ‘Ezana’s Conversion Reconsidered’, Journal of Religion in Africa Vol. 13, 

Number 2, 101–109

Munro-Hay, S, 1991, Aksum: an African civilisation of late antiquity (Edinburgh University Press)

Munro-Hay, S, 1999, Catalogue of the Aksumite Coins in the British Museum (British Museum Press)

Phillipson, D, 1998, Ancient Ethiopia (British Museum Press)

Reader, J, 1997, Africa: a biography of the continent (Penguin)

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© The Trustees of the British Museum 08/2010

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Your feedback

Please help the British Museum improve its educational resources for schools and teachers 

by giving your feedback. The first 250 teachers or tutors to complete the online survey 

before 12.00 on 1 September 2011 will receive a printed set of illustrations of African 

civilisations by artist Tayo Fatunla. Visit www.surveymonkey.com/s/wealthofafrica  

to complete the survey and for terms and conditions.

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These resources have been produced by the British Museum in collaboration with  

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in the London Borough of Camden. For more information, visit www.thecarafcentre.org.uk