Semon from Hagara Maryam

Semon von Hāgara Maryām was an Ethiopian prince ( Ras ) and church builder under Emperor Lebna Dengel (1508-1540).

Sem'on (after the prophet Simeon ) was a son of Nagada Iyyasus, ruler ('āqāba s'āt) of Dabra Hāyq Estifanos, and brother of Śarza Yosef, king of Walaqā. He built several churches, notably Hāgara Maryām, an elaborate and richly equipped St. Mary's Church in Amharaland.

As a writer, he left behind a homily against Judas and the Jews to be read in the cartages , the story of the building of Hāgara Maryām called Maṣḥāfa Mezgānā as well as related reports on Marian miracles, including the recovery of stolen valuable foundations of Sem'on, namely a four-part picture panel ( painted by a European) and a richly illuminated psalter . Inserted into the Maṣḥāfa Mezgānā is the liturgical order of Hāgara Maryām for Sem‛on's name day, the most celebrated feast of the Presentation of the Lord , to which Dabtaras from imperial churches were specially invited.

literature

• Getatchew Haile: The Works of Ras Səm'on of Hagärä Maryam . In: Journal of Ethiopian Studies 38 (2005) 5-95.