[1]የመጀመርያ፡ ታሪክ፡ የሀበሻ፡ ከጥንት፡ ጀምሮ፡ የጀታችን¹፡ መቃብር፡ ጎልጎታ፡ በሮምና፡ በሀበሻ፡ እጅ፡ ነበረ። የሀበሻ፡ ንጉሥ፡ ቢጠፋ፡ ግን፡ አርመን፡ ፈረንጅ፡ ሮም፡ ፫ቱ፡ የ[2]ሀበሻን፡ ዕፃ፡ ፪ት፡ እጁን፡ ወሰዱት። በ፩ዱ፡ እጅ፡ የሀበሻ፡ መነኮሻት²፡ ብዙ፡ ዘመን፡ ኖሩ፡ ኋላ፡ ግን፡ ሞት፡ ቢፈጃቸው፡ ግብፅ፡ ገንዘብ፡ አደረገው፡ ገዳሙን፡ ትቶ፡ ከሀበሾች፡ ገዳ[3]ም፡ ገባ፡ የልጆቸ፡ ገንዘብ፡ ነው፡ ለኔ፡ ይገባኛል፡ ብሎ፡ ፹፩መጻሕፍት፡ ነበሩ፡ በእሳት፡ አቃጸላቸው³። በመጻሕፍቱ፡ የባሕር፡ ደብዳቤ፡ ነበረበት፡ ያነን፡ ለማጥፋት። ንዋየ፡ ቅድ[4]ሳቱን፡ ያዘ፡ የጎልጎታ፡ ፃሕል፡ ጽዋ፡ ዓውድ፡ እርፈ፡ መስቀል፡ አጎበር። የቀራንዮ፡ ፃህል፡ ጽዋ፡ ዓውድ፡ ዕርፈ፡ መስቀል፡ አጎበር። የመስቀሉ፡ ፃህል፡ ጽዋ፡ ዓውድ፡ ዕርፈ፡ መስ[5]ቀል፡ አጎበር፡ ፲፪ት፡ ብር፡ ጽና፡ የሶስቱ፡ መቅደስ፡ ፃህሉ፡ ጽዋው፡ የወርቅ፡ ነው። ሶስት፡ ዘውድ፡ ፬ት፡ አክሊል፡ ፫ት፡ የቁም፡ መስቀል፡ ፮ት፡ የጅ፡ መስቀል፡ ፫ት፡ ዝቅ፡ ያለ፡ የቁም፡ [6] መስቀል፡ ፬ት፡ የወርቅ፡ ወንጌል፡ ግብረ፡ ሕማማት፡ ሃይማኖት፡ አበው⁴፡ የዓመት፡ ስክሳር⁵፡ የዜማ፡ መጻሕፍት፡ በምልዑ⁶፡ ነበረ። ግንዘት {ም፡ ነበረ፡} ኋላ፡ ግን፡ ዓብርሃም፡ ጁሐሪ፡ ከመስቀሉ፡ [7] በላይ፡ ፯ት፡ ፰ት፡ ቤት፡ አንስቶ፡ ከዚህ፡ ወዲህ፡ የናት⁷፡ ገዳም፡ ነው፡ ብሎ፡ ቆርጦ፡ ሰጣቸው፡ ፪ቤተ፡ ክርስቲያን፡ ከአብርሃም፡ ገዳም፡ በታች፡ የጎልጎታ፡ መውጫ፡ ደጀ፡ ሰላም፡ ነበረ፡ ይ[8]ህም፡ የኔነው፡ አለ። መነኮሳቱንም፡ ሞት፡ ፈጃቸው። ዛሬ፡ ግን፡ የኔ፡ ርስት፡ ነው፡ እንጅ፡ የአበሻ⁸፡ ምን፡ ርስት፡ አለው፡ አለ። ተጠማኝ፡ ቢነግሥ፡ ባለርስት፡ ይሆናል፡ እንዲሉ። ስሙንም፡ [9] ለውጦ፡ ዴር፡ ግብፅ፡ ብሎ፡ ጻፈ። ዴር፡ ሥልጣን፡

[1]The first history¹ of the Ethiopians.² Starting from ancient times, the tomb of our Lord, Golgotha,³ was in the hands of Rome⁴ and the Ethiopians. But when the Ethiopian king disappeared, the Armenians, the Faranj⁵ [and] Rome, the three, [2] took two portions of the Ethiopian share. Ethiopian monks lived in the one [remaining] portion for a long time. But later when death finished them off, the Egyptians⁶ took possession of it. They left their [own] monastery and [3] entered the Ethiopian monastery. They said, “It is the property of our children. It should belong to us” [and] they burnt 81 books which were there. In the books there were archival records. [They burnt the books] to destroy them. They took [4] sacred vessels: a paten, a chalice, a large paten, a spoon [and] an asterisk⁷ of [the sanctuary of] Golgotha; a paten, a chalice, a large paten, a spoon [and] an asterisk of the [sanctuary of] Calvary; a paten, a chalice, a large paten, [5] a spoon [and] an asterisk of the [sanctuary of the] Cross, [and] twelve silver censers; the patens and the chalices of the three sanctuaries were golden; three crowns, four diadems, three [6] processional crosses, six hand crosses, three short processional crosses, four Golden Gospels,⁸ [the book for] the rite of the Holy Week, [the book entitled] Faith of the Fathers, the Synaxarion for the entire year [and] books with church music, all were there. There was also the [book of] the Funeral Ritual. But later Abraham Juhari [7] cut off [from the monastery] seven or eight houses [located] above the [sanctuary of the] Cross,⁹ [and] saying “From here on is your monastery”, he gave them [the rest]. There were two chapels¹⁰ under the Abraham monastery, [on the way from Dayr al-Sultan to] the dajja salām,¹¹ [meaning] the entrance¹² of the Golgotha. “This [8] is also mine,” he said. Death finished off the [Ethiopian] monks. “Now then [this] is my property, what is the Ethiopians’ property?” he said. As [the proverb] says, “If the shareholder rules, he becomes the owner of the property”. They [the Egyptians] changed the name [of the monastery] [9] and called it “monastery of

የሚባለውን። ሰው፡ ግን፡ አልተቀበለውም። ሮምም፡ ጽሕፈህ¹፡ የሰቀል{ህ}፡ አለቦታህ፡ አያገባህም፡ አውርድ፡ አለው፡ ግብፅም፡ አውረደ²፡ [10] ቦታው፡ ባይሆን። ከሞት፡ የተረፉትን፡ መነኮሳት፡ ወግዱ፡ አላቸው፡ ውጡ፡ ብሎ፡ የደከመ፡ ሰው፡ ባይ፡ ታገለው፡ ታገለው፡ እንዲሉ። ባበሾችም፡ ንጉሥ፡ ቢጠፋ፡ ነው፡ እንጅ። [11] ሮም፡ አርመን፡ ፈረንጅ፡ ያለደረጉትን³፡ ነገር፡ ተጽሕፈ፡ አመ፡ ፳ሁ፡ ለጥቅምት፡ በ፲ወ፰፻፹ወ፫፡ ዓመተ፡ ምሕረት፡ በዘመነ፡ ሉቃስ። ወጽሕፈቱሰ፡ በኢየሩሳሌም፡ ቅድስት። ለዓለመ፡ ዓለም፡ አሜን።

[12]{ሁለትያ፡ ታሪክ} ይህች፡ ወረቀት፡ ተገለበጠች፡ ከታሪክ፡ ቀዳማውያን፡ ለኢትዮጵያውያን⁴፡ እለ፡ ሀለው፡ በኢየሩሳሌም። ኢትዮጵያውያን፡ ተቀምጠውበት፡ የነበረ፡ የቦታቸው፡ ታሪክ፡ ተጽፎ፡ [13] ነበረ፡ በመኃልይ፡ ዘሰሎሞን። ተጽፎበት፡ የነበረ፡ ይህን፡ ሥራ። እናወራላች፡ ኋለን⁵፡ ብዙ፡ ቦታ፡ እንደ፡ ነበራችው። እንዲህ፡ እንደ፡ ባሕርያቸው፡ ተሰውረው፡ ተቀምጠው፡ ነበረ፡ [14] እኔ፡ አውቃለሁ፡ ቦታቸው፡ ሁሉ፡ ሄደ፡ አንድ፡ ብቻ፡ ደር፡ ሥልጣን፡ እንደቀረ። የነበሩትን፡ መነኮሳት፡ ቊጥር፡ ፷፰፡ ያህሉ፡ ነበሩ፡ በደር፡ ሥልጣን፡ እንመሰክራለን፡ እኛ። ይህ፡ ቦ[15]ታ፡ የነርሱ፡ እንደሆነ፡ በውነት፡ የፈረማኑና፡ የኵሻኑ። ያገኙት፡ ከገሌ፡ ታሪክ፡ ለገሌ፡ ለክቡራን፡ ሹማምት፡ ከ፲፪ዓመት፡ እስከ፡ ፲፬፡ ዓመት፡ ድረስ፡ ኢትዮጵያውያን፡ በኢየሩሳሌም፡ በነበ[16]ሩ፡ ጊዜ። በበጥ፡ ቍስል፡ ታመው፡ አለቁ፡ መጻሕፍታቸው፡ የምስክሩ፡ ወረቀት፡ ዋጋው፡ የከበረ፡ ለነርሱ፡ የሆነ፡ ዕቃ፡ ሁሉ፡ በእሳት፡ ተቃጠለ፡ በደዌ፡ ተመካኝቶ። በአብራሂም፡ ባሻ፡ ተእዛዝ፡ [17] ከዋሸኙ፡ ሁሉ፡ ተጠብቆ፡ የነበረው፡ ስለ፡ ምድራቸው፡ ስለ፡ ቦተቻው⁶፡ ስለ፡ ገዳማቸው፡ በዚህ፡ ክፉ፡ ጊዜ፡ እኔ፡ በራሴ፡ አየሁ። መጽሐፍ፡ ፳፭፡ ዓመት፡ በፊት፡ የተ[18]ደረገ፡ ባድነት⁷፡ ከከዋሸኑ፡ ወረቀት፡ ጋራ፡ ከመጻፉም፡ ተቀምጦ፡ የነበረ፡ ያለ፡ ሥርዓት፡ ያለ፡ መበርበር፡ ያለ፡ መፈለግ፡ ኢየሩሳሌም፡ ይህ፡ ጥያቄ፡ ወይ፡ በውል፡ ይቆማል። ወይም፡ አይ[19]ቆምም። እኔስ፡ አስባለሁ፡ ይህ፡ ጥያቄ፡ ያጠፋውን፡ ወይም፡ የጠፋበትን፡ ምክንያት፡ ማወቅ፡ ያለ፡ ሥርዓት፡ ያላገባብ፡ በዓለ፡ መድኃኒት፡ ሐችም⁸፡ በመጥላት፡ በሕማም፡ [20] ማለቀቸው⁹፡ ነው። የኋለኞች፡ ኢትዮጵያውያን፡ በቊስል፡ ያለቁት፡ ሺከ፰፻፴፰፡ በምዕራብ፡ ቍጥር። በኢትዮጵያ፡ ቍጥር፡ ሽከ፰፻፴፡ የግብፅ፡

Egypt”, and wrote it [on a sign], whereas it was called Dayr al-Sultan. But no one accepted it. Rome¹ said [to the Egyptians], “You are not allowed to hang the sign in a place that does not belong to you”. And so the Egyptians took [it] down [10] because it was not their place. [But] they said to the monks who had escaped death “Go away!” They said “Go out!” As [the proverb] says, “When I see a weak man, I want to fight with him”.² It [happened] because the king of the Ethiopians disappeared. [11] Rome, the Armenians [and] the Faranj did not do this thing.³ [This] was written down on 20th T’eqemt 1883 year of mercy in the era of [Saint] Luke.⁴ And the writing [took place] in the Holy Jerusalem. For ever and ever, Amen.

[12]{The second history} This letter was copied from a history of the previous Ethiopians who were in Jerusalem.⁵ The history of the place where the Ethiopians were living [in Jerusalem] was written [13] in the Songs of Solomon.⁶ We will tell you the history which was written about it, that they [the Ethiopians] had many places. Just like their character they remained hidden.⁷ [14] I know⁸ that all their places were lost [and] that only one, Dayr al-Sultan, remained. We testify that the number of monks that were in Dayr al-Sultan equalled 68. [15] This is truly their place, by firmans⁹ and documents that we found in anyone’s story to any honoured official.¹⁰ 12 to 14 years [ago], when the Ethiopians were in Jerusalem, [16] they suffered from abscesses¹¹ and perished. Their books, certificates, all things that were precious for them were burnt on the pretext of the disease, on the orders of Ibrahim Pasha.¹² [17] In those bad times, all documents preserved [by the Ethiopians] about their land, about their places, about their monasteries, [were burnt]. I myself saw the books stored together with the documents 25 years ago.¹³ [18] What was together with the books [burnt in] Jerusalem without rule, without research, without investigation? This question will be answered or it will continue to be raised.¹⁴ [19] As for me, I think, the question [is] to know who destroyed [the library] or what the reason [was] for destroying it [in such an] improper [way], out of order. Because [the Ethiopian monks] hated doctors, they perished by disease [20]. The last Ethiopians died of wounds [in] 1838 in the Western calendar, [in] 1830 in the Ethiopian calendar. The

ኤጲስ፡ ቆጶስ፡ ባስልዩስ፡ መክፈ[21]ቸውን¹፡ ወሰደባቸው፡ ከኢትዮጵያውያን። የኢትዮጵያውያን፡ ገዳም፡ ቤተ፡ ክርስቲያናቸው፡ የነርሱ፡ የነበረውን። ይህ፡ {የ}አርመን፡ አለመጠ{ን}ቀቅ፡ ነው፡ ገዳሙን፡ በው[22]ነት፡ ሰዎቹን፡ በሥርዓት፡ አልጠበቀም፡ የአርመን፡ በትረክ፡ በወኪልነቱ፡ በውነት፡ አልሄደም፡ አልፈረደም፡ ቦታውን፡ ለመክፈል፡ ቤተ፡ ክርስቲያናቸውንም፡ ለ{ማ}ስጠት²፡ ከዚህ፡ በኋላ፡ ኢትዮ[23]ጵያውያን፡ መጡ፡ ከሀገራቸው፡ ከዚህ፡ ያሉት፡ ቢያልቁ፡ ሌሎች፡ እየተተኩ፡ አያቋርጡም፡ ነበር፡ ሺከ፰፻፵፱፡ በምዕራብ፡ ቍጥር። በኢትዮጵያ፡ ሺከ፰፻፵፩፡ ዓመተ፡ ምሕረት። ከዚያ፡ ጊ[24]ዜ፡ አንስቶ፡ እስከ፡ ዛሬ፡ ለመምጣት፡ አላቋረጡም፡ ይመጣሉ፡ የሚመጡትንም፡ ግብፅ፡ አርመን፡ እንደ፡ ባርያ፡ እንደ፡ እንስሳ፡ አዋርደው፡ ይገዟቸዋል፡ ከገዛ፡ ቤተ፡ ክርስቲያናቸው፡ እንደ፡ ል[25]ባቸው፡ አይወጡም፡ አ{ይ}ገቡም። አርመን፡ በፈቀደ፡ ጊዜ፡ ይከፍትላቸዋል፡ ባልፈቀደ፡ ጊዜ፡ ይከለክላቸዋል። እንደ፡ ወደደ፡ ያደርጋቸዋል፡ በኃይል። እነርሱ፡ ከፍተው፡ እንዳይወጡ፡ እንዳ[26]ይገቡ፡ አቅም፡ አጡና፡ በ{ን}ዲህ፡ ያል³፡ መከራ፡ ከግብር፡ በታች፡ ይኖራሉ። በገዛ፡ ቦታቸው፡ በቤተ፡ ክርስቲያናቸውም፡ ለ{መ}ግባትና፡ ለማለፍ፡ {ይከለክላቸዋል} በዚያው፡ ሰው፡ የሞተ፡ እንደሆነ፡ ብቻ፡ እሬሳውን፡ [27] በዚያ፡ ለማለፍ፡ ይከፍትላቸዋል፡ እንጅ። በተረፈ፡ ተዘግቶ፡ ይኖራል፡ መክፈቻውንም፡ ጊዜ፡ ደዌ፡ በገባባቸው፡ ወራት፡ ወሰደባቸው። ከገዳማቸውም፡ ካሉበት፡ ሀበ[28]ሾች፡ ማታ፡ ይዘጋቸዋል፡ ጧት፡ ይከፍታቸዋል፡ እንደ፡ ወደደ። እንዲህ፡ ሁኖ፡ በመከራ፡ መኖራቸው። ደዌ፡ ይጸናባቸውና፡ ያልቃሉ፡ ጥቂት፡ ሕዝብ፡ ያሉት፡ ከዚያ፡ ቦታ፡ አእምሮ፡ በማጣት፡ በበሽታ፡ ያ[29]ልቃሉ፡ ሐኪም፡ አያውቁም፡ አይጠይቁም። እኔ፡ አስባለሁ፡ ከ፪፡ ዓመት፡ በኋላ፡ ደብዳቤ፡ በደረሰልኝ፡ ጊዜ፡ ከመስፍን፡ ኢትዮጵያ፡ እራስ፡ አሊ፡ ከደጃች፡ ውቤ፡ ከብዙ፡ ኤጲስ፡ ቆጶሳት፡ ሲለምኑ፡ ገዳሙን፡ ይ[30]ወስዱ፡ ዘንድ፡ ዘዋሮችም፡ የሚመጡት። የሚኖሩትም፡ ከዚህ፡ ይሆኑ፡ ዘንድ፡ ከት{እ}ዛዜ፡ በታች፡ ከረዳትነቴ፡ ተጠግተው፡ በዚህ፡ ፍቅር፡ አንድነት፡ ቢገጥመነ፡ ለኔ፡ ፈቃድ፡ አለኝ። ገዳማቸውን፡ አስመልሽ⁴፡ [31] ለመስጠት፡ ከልቤ፡ ያለውን፡ ሁሉ፡ ላደርግላቸው፡ ለነርሱ፡ የሚጠቅም፡ ፩ዱ፡ ሳይቀር፡ እንደ፡ መልካም፡ ያህል፡ ወዳጅ፡ ለጽኑ፡ ፍቅረኛው፡ የሚያደርገውን። መልካም፡ ዳኛ፡ ለ{ሕ}ዝቡ፡ በቅን፡ እንዲፈርድ። እኔም፡ [32] እንዲህ፡ አደርግላችሁ፡ ነበር። ነገር፡ ግን፡ ያለፈቃድ፡ ምንም፡ ላደርግ፡ አልቺልም። ፈቃድ፡ አልመጣልኝምና፡ ፈቃድ፡ ቢመጣ፡ ብየ፡ ነው፡ እንጅ፡ ከእንግሊዝ፡ ንግሥት፡

Egyptian bishop Basiliyus¹ [21] took from the Ethiopians their key, the Ethiopian monastery [and] the chapel that belonged to them. This [happened] because of the carelessness of the Armenians. They did not truly protect the monastery [22] [and] did not appropriately protect the people. The Armenian Patriarch did not truly act as a representative.² He did not arbitrate the issue of how to share the place, nor the return [to the Ethiopians] of the chapel. After that [23] the Ethiopians came from their country, in 1849 year of mercy in the Western calendar,³ in 1841 year of mercy in the Ethiopian [calendar]. When those who were here perished, others did not stop replacing them. From that time [24] until today they have not stopped arriving; they are coming. And those who come, the Egyptians [and] the Armenians humiliate and treat them as slaves, as animals. They can neither go out freely [25] from their own chapel nor enter [it]. The Armenians open it for them when they [the Armenians] want to [and] they prohibit them when they do not want. [The Armenians] treat them as they wish, violently. [The Ethiopians] have lost the capacity to open [the monastery] in order to go out and to [26] enter, and so they live in this kind of anguish in servitude. They [the Armenians/Egyptians⁴] forbid them to enter and to pass through their own chapel.⁵ Only if someone has died they open for them so that the corpse [27] can pass through it. But [apart from that] it [the chapel] is kept closed. [The Armenians/Egyptians] took away the key in the months when the disease struck them [the Ethiopians]. They shut in [28] the Ethiopians who are in their monastery in the evening and let them out in the morning, as they wish. In this way, living in misery they [the Ethiopians] are plagued by diseases and perish. The few people that are there are dying because of losing their mind [and] because of illness. [29] They do not know doctors, they do not ask [for them]. Me, I think, two years after that, a letter reached me from the Ethiopian lords, from rās Ali,⁶ from dajjāch Wubē⁷ [and] from many ecclesiastics, in which they begged [me] to take [30] [responsibility for] the monastery, the pilgrims who are coming and those who live here, [so that they will] be under my authority [and] have my assistance. If we are bound by this kind of love, I have a wish: to make give their monastery back [31]; to do everything from my heart that is useful for them, without exception, like a good lover does for his steady beloved [and] like a good judge who fairly judges his people. Me, [32] I would act for you like this. However, I cannot do anything without permission. For permission has not come to me; but I thought, if only permission would come from the

ዳግመኛ፡ ይህ፡ ውል፡ በራስ፡ አ[33]ሊና፡ በደጃች፡ ውቤ፡ ይሆነ¹። ባንድነት፡ ነበሩና፡ ተዋደው፡ ተስማ{ም}ተው፡ ከጳጳስና፡ ከመሳ{ፍ}ንቱ፡ ጋር፡ ይሰበሰቡ፡ ዘንድ፡ ከቤተ፡ መንግሥት።

ከጥንት፡ ከመጻፍ፡ የተገኘ፡ የዴር፡ ሥልጣ[34]ን፡ ታሪክ፡ ብንያሚን፡ ዮንድስ፡ ይላል፡ በጻፈው፡ ታሪክ። ደግሞም፡ በኵሻን፡ የተገለ{በ}ጠው፡ ከሮም፡ ኢየሩሳሌም፡ በሽሕ፡ ፫፻፶፭፡ ዓመተ፡ ክርስቶስ፡ ቍጥር። ግብፆች፡ ትእዛዝ፡ መጣላቸው፡ ተሀበሾች፡ [35] ጋራ፡ በኢየሩሳሌም፡ ሥራ፡ እንዲአደርጉ፡ አንድነት፡ እንዲጸልዩ፡ በእሌኒ፡ ቤተ፡ ክርስቲያን፡ መስቀሉ፡ ተወጣበት፡ በጎልጎታ፡ መካከል፡ ይኽ፡ በምስሩ፡ ሥ[ል]ጣን፡ ትእዛዝ። በሊህ፡ መካከል፡ የማይ[36]ሆን፡ ነገር፡ ሆነ፡ ሀበሾች፡ የግብፅን፡ ቋንቋ፡ አይሰሙም፡ ነበርና፡ የጌታችንን፡ ልብሱን፡ የተካፈሉበትን፡ ከጎልጎታ፡ ባጠገብ፡ ሰጣቸው፡ ለሀበሾች፡ የምሥሩ፡ ሥልጣን፡ ከእሌኒ፡ ቤተ፡ ክርስቲያ[37]ን፡ ግን፡ አሶጣቸው²።

አስተዛይር፡ ያርመን፡ ጳጳስ፡ የኢየሩሳሌም[ን]፡ ታሪክ፡ በሁለት፡ ክፍል፡ ጻፈው፡ በአርመን፡ ቋንቋ፡ ፪ተኛ፡ በአረቢ፡ ቋንቋ፡ ይላል፡ የስጥቡን፡ ንጉሥ፡ ደብዳቤ፡ ሰደደ፡ ኢይሩ[38]ሳሌም፡ ላለው፡ ቃዲ፡ ከሽህ፡ ከ፭፡ ዓመት፡ በስላም፡ ቊጥር፡ ከክርስቲያን፡ ቊጥር፡ ሽሕ፡ ፮፻፯፡ ቊጥር። እንዲአውቅ፡ የሀበሾችንን፡ ገዳማቸውን፡ ሁሉ፡ በኢየሩሳሌም። የሚገዙትን፡ የሚገባቸውን፡ ቃዲ[39]ውም፡ እንዲህ፡ መለሰ፡ ማር፡ አብርሃም፡ የሚባል፡ ደግሞ፡ መድኃኔ፡ ዓለም፡ ማርያም፡ ግብፃዊት፡ የምትባል፡ ማር፡ ተክለ፡ ሃይማኖት፡ የሚባል፡ ቤተ፡ ክርስቲያን፡ ደግሞ፡ አንድ፡ ገዳም፡ በከተማው፡ መካከ[40]ል፡ ማር፡ ሚካኤል፡ ይህ፡ ሁሉ፡ ሀበሾችን፡ የሚአገባቸው {ነው}፡ ብሎ፡ ጻፈ።

English queen. Secondly, this agreement was concluded by rās Ali [33] and by dajjāch Wubē. They united together and, loving each other, they agreed to hold an assembly with the bishop and the princes in the palace [of the Ethiopian government].

A history of Dayr al-Sultan found in an ancient book.¹ [34] Benjamin Ioannidès,² in the history which he wrote, says [what follows]. Also, [this history] was copied in the documents [produced] by Rome³ [in] Jerusalem. In 1355 year of Christ an order came to the Egyptians to work together with the Ethiopians [35] in Jerusalem [and] to pray together in the Chapel of [Saint] Helena where the Cross appeared in the centre of Golgotha.⁴ This [happened] on order of the sultan of Egypt. [But] something happened between [the Ethiopians and the Egyptians] [36] that should not have happened. As the Ethiopians did not understand the language of the Egyptians, the sultan of Egypt gave to the Ethiopians [a place] near the Golgotha where our Lord’s clothes were divided.⁵ But he removed them from [37] the Chapel of [Saint] Helena.

Astvatzatour,⁶ the Armenian metropolitan wrote the history of Jerusalem in two parts—[the first] in the Armenian language [and] the second in the Arabic language—[and he] says: “The king of Istanbul sent a letter to the qadi⁷ [38] of Jerusalem in 1005 according to the Islamic calendar, in 1607 according to the Christian calendar,⁸ to know all the monasteries of the Ethiopians in Jerusalem which they administer and which they are entitled to. [39] The qadi answered thus: [the monastery] called Mar Abraham, also Holy Saviour [chapel], [the chapel] which is called Mary the Egyptian, the chapel which is called Mar Takla Haymānot, also one monastery in the middle of the town [40] [called] Mar Michael. This is all that relates to the Ethiopians”, he⁹ wrote.

ታሪኩን፡ ኢጣልያ፡ የጻፈው፡ በ፳መጅ፡ በሽሕ፡ ፰፻፹፫፡ ዓመት፡ በፈረንጆች፡ ቊጥር፡ ሽሕ፡ ከ፪፻፸፱፡ ዓመት፡ {በ፬ ሰዓት} ከቀትር፡ በኋላ፡ ክ[41]ርስቶስ፡ መስቀሉን፡ ተሸክሞ፡ በመጣበት፡ መንገድ፡ ወደጌቴሴማኑ፡ ፊት፡ ነፋስ፡ ለመመታት፡ ሲወጣ፡ ወታደሮች፡ ወደ፡ ሀበሾች፡ ገዳም፡ ሲሮጡ፡ ከመንግሥት፡ ታዝዘው፡ አገኛቸው፡ ከመ[42]ንገድ። ዳግመኛም፡ የባሻው፡ ጸሐፌ፡ ትእዛዝ፡ አሪፍ፡ የሚባል፡ ሹም፡ ሳለ፡ የግብፅ፡ ጳጳስ፡ ነበረ፡ ባስልዮስ፡ ከአርመን፡ ገዳም፡ ፪ት፡ መነኮሳት፡ ደግሞ፡ አይነተኛ፡ የወታደር፡ አለቃ፡ [43] አሊ፡ አጋ፡ ጁዝዳር፡ መጥቶ¹፡ ከሀበሾች፡ ገዳም፡ ሀበሾችም፡ ከእሌኒ፡ ቤተ፡ ክርስቲያን፡ በላይ፡ ከጉባው፡ ባጠገብ፡ ከብላጡ፡ ተቀምጠው፡ ነበረ፡ የበሻው፡ ጸሐፌ፡ ትእዛዙ፡ አሪፍ፡ ጠራቸው፡ መ[44]ምህራችሁ፡ ወዴት፡ ነው፡ ብሎ፡ ቢጠይቃቸው፡ ከዚህ፡ የለም፡ አናውቅም፡ አሉ፡ ደግሞ፡ ፪ተኛ፡ ጠየቃቸው፡ አናቅም፡ አሉ፡ መክፈቻውን፡ አምጡ፡ አላቸው፡ ሁሉንም፡ መለሱ፡ የቤተ፡ ክርስቲያን፡ መ[45]ክፈቻ፡ አናውቅም፡ አሉ፡ ኋላ፡ አሪፍ፡ አፈንዲ፡ ደግሞ። ወይ፡ መክፈቻ፡ አምጡ፡ በመልካም፡ ቃል፡ አለዚያ፡ እሰብረዋለሁ፡ አለ፡ አናመጣም፡ አሉ፡ ኋላ፡ በግድ፡ ሰበረው። የቤተ፡ ክርስቲያኑን፡ ሳንቃ፡ ሰ[46]ብረው፡ ሌላ፡ መክፈቻ፡ አበጅተው፡ ለግብፅ፡ ጳጳስ፡ ሰጡት፡ መክፈቻውን። ከተቀበለ፡ በኋላ፡ የግብፅ፡ ገዳም፡ ተባለ። ነገር፡ ግን፡ ይህ፡ ቦታ፡ የሀበሻ፡ ገዳም፡ እንደሆነ፡ ከጥንት፡ ጀምሮ፡ እናውቃለን፡ {እንኳን፡ ሰው፡ ቤተ፡ ክርስቲያኑ፡ ይመሰክራል፡ ዘለዓለም፡ የሀበሻ፡ እንደሆነች፡ እናውቃለን} ሲከፍ[47]ቱ፡ ሲዘጉ፡ ለእንግዳው፡ ሁሉ፡ ለፈረ{ን}ጅ፡ ሁሉ፡ እናውቃለን፡ ይላል፡ እልንበሳ፡ ጉይዳ።

አፄ፡ ቴዎድሮስ፡ ሳይ፡ ነግሡ፡ የነበሩ፡ ከኢየሩሳሌም፡ ዴር፡ ሥልጣን፡ ከሀበሻ፡ ገዳም፡ ፴፬ት፡ ዘመን፡ የኖሩ። [48] ፶፰ት፡ መነኮሳት፡ ነበሩ፡ ልብሳቸውም፡ አጽፍ፡ ነበረ፡ ከዚህም፡ ወዲህ፡ በዚያምጊዜ፡ አብርሃም፡ ጁሐሪ፡ የሚባል፡ የግ{ብ}ፅ፡ ሰው። ፰ባርያ፡ ይዞ፡ ኢየሩሳሌም፡ መጣ። ኢየሩሳሌም፡ ገብቶ፡ ቤት፡ ክራይ፡ አ[49]ጣ፡ ቢፈልግ። ከሀበሾች፡ ገዳም፡ መጥቶ፡ መ{ነ}ኮሳቱን፡ ቤት፡ እባካችሁ፡ የሃይማኖት፡ ወንድማችሁ፡ ነኝ፡ አላቸው። እነሱም፡ የሃይማኖት፡ ወንድማችን፡

An Italian wrote this story on 20 May¹ in the year 1883 according to the calendar of the Faranj, in the year 1279 [after Hegira].² {At 4 o’clock} in the afternoon, on the way on which [41] Christ carried the cross,³ in the direction of Gethsemane,⁴ when he [the Italian] went out to get some fresh air, on the way he encountered some soldiers running to the monastery of the Ethiopians on the orders of the [local] authorities [42]. Furthermore, the pasha’s secretary, an official called ʿArif, assisted by the Egyptian metropolitan Basiliyus, by two monks from the Armenian monastery and by the main military commander [43] Ali Agā Juzdār, came to the Ethiopian monastery. The Ethiopians were sitting above the Chapel of [Saint] Helena, on the raised place, on the covering of the roof.⁵ ʿArif, pasha’s secretary, called to them, [44] “Where is your superior?” [The Ethiopians] answered, “He is not here, we don’t know”. Again, he asked them for the second time [and] they said, “We don’t know”. He said to them, “Bring the key!” All answered, “We don’t know [anything about] the key [45] of the chapel”. So then ʿArif Effendi⁶ said, “Either you will bring the key willingly or I will break it [the door] down”. “We will not bring [it]”, [the Ethiopians] said. Then, [ʿArif] broke it [the door] down by force. He broke [46] the door of the chapel, made another key and gave it to the Egyptian bishop. After he received it, [the monastery] was called the Egyptian monastery. But we know that from ancient times this place was an Ethiopian monastery. {Not only the people, but [also] the church [itself] bears witness. We know that [it] is Ethiopian forever.} Elenbasā Guydā⁷ says, “We know that [the Ethiopians] open [47] and close [the doors of the monastery] for all visitors, for all Faranj.”

Before King Tewodros came to power [in Ethiopia], 34 years [earlier], there were 58 monks who lived in Jerusalem, in Dayr al-Sultan, the Ethiopian monastery.⁸ [48] Their clothes were ats’ef.⁹ After that, at that time an Egyptian called Abraham Juhari came to Jerusalem bringing eight slaves. He entered Jerusalem and however much he looked he could not find a house to rent. [49] He came to the monastery of the Ethiopians and he said to the monks, “[Give me] a house, I beg you. I am your brother in faith”. [The Ethiopian monks] said, “He is our brother

ነው፡ ብለው፡ ቤት፡ ሰጡት፡ ተገባ፡ በኋላ። ባሮቹ፡ ይደ{በድ}ቧቸው፡ ጀመሩ፡ ሲጣ[50]ሉ፡ ጊዜ፡ ኑ፡ በሉ፡ ብሎ፡ አስፈራቸው¹፡ አስወጥቶ። ዳግመኛ፡ ዴር፡ ይስሐቅ፡ መጣ፡ ፈረንጅ፡ ነው፡ ሀበሾችን፡ ከገዳማቸው፡ መጥቶ፡ ቤት፡ አከራዩኝ፡ አላቸው፡ መነኮሳቱን፡ አብርሃም፡ ጀሃሪ፡ ይህን፡ ሰምቶ፡ {እኔ}፡ አከራይሃለሁ፡ [51] ብሎ፡ እኩሉን፡ ቤት፡ በ፶ወርቅ፡ አከራየው፡ ፫ት፡ ዓመት፡ ተቀመጠ፡ [ከ]፫ት፡ ዓመት፡ በኋላ፡ ክራዩን፡ ስጠኝ፡ ቢለው፡ አብርሃም፡ ጁሐሪ። ዳር፡ ይሳቅቢን²፡ አንተስ፡ የሰውን፡ ቤት፡ አይደለም፡ ቀምተህ፡ ተቀምጠህ፡ ያለ፡ ብሎ፡ [52] ክራዩን፡ ከለከለው፡ ቤቱን፡ እጅ፡ አደ[ረ]ገው። ሀበሾችም፡ መነኮሳቱ[ም]፡ ከሠራያ፡ ከዳኛ፡ ሄደው፡ ቢጮሁ፡ የሚሰማቸው፡ አጡ፡ እንዲህ፡ እያለቀሱ፡ በቦታቸው፡ ነገር፡ እረሀብና፡ በሺታ፡ ፈጃቸው። ከቀደመው፡ [53] ነገር፡ እንመለስ፡ አብርሃም፡ ጁሃሪ፡ ቤቱን፡ እጅ፡ ካደረገ፡ በኋላ፡ ኑ፡ የሞኞች፡ ቦታ፡ አለላችሁ፡ ብሎ፡ ወደምስር፡ ላከ። አቡነ፡ ጊርጊስ፡ የሚባል፡ ቄስ፡ ከነምሽቱ፡ መጣ። ዴር፡ ሥልጣን፡ ገብቶ፡ ተቀ[54]መጠ። ከቦታቸ{ው}ም፡ ቆርጦ፡ ለመስኮብ፡ ሸጠ፡ በ፯፻ወርቅ። ይኸውም፡ ቦታውን፡ የሸጠው፡ አቡነ፡ ጌርጊስ። ተሎ³፡ ሞተ፡ ምሽምቱ⁴፡ አለች። ከአቡነ፡ ጊርጊስ፡ ቀጥሎ፡ አቡነ፡ ባስልዮስ፡ መጣ። እርሱ፡ ደ[55]ሞ፡ ከገዳማቸው፡ ጨርሶ፡ አሶጣቸው⁵፡ መነኮሳቱን፡ ሁሉ፡ ጉልበት፡ አጥተው፡ ባይሆንላቸው፡ እያለቀሱ፡ መነኮሳቱ፡ ሁሉ፡ ወጡ፡ ለዳኛም፡ ቢጮሁ፡ የማይሰማቸው፡ ሆነ። የዚያን፡ ጊዜም፡ የነበሩ፡ [56] መነኮሳት። የራስ፡ በረኩ፡ እናት፡ ወይዜሮ፡ ሂሩት፡ እናቴ፡ ወለተ፡ አማኑኤል ፡ እናቴ፡ ወለተ፡ ተክለ፡ ሃይማኖት። ዳሞቴ፡ ወለተ፡ ማርያም፡ ደብተራ፡ ፍሬ፡ ከነምሽቱ፡ ሃማሴኔ፡ ወልደ፡ ማርያም፡ ከ[57]ነምሹቱ⁶፡ አያ፡ ኪዳኑ፡ ከነምሽታቸው። አፄ፡ ቴውድሮስ፡ ወይዜሮ፡ ሣህሊቱን፡ እናቴ፡ ናት፡ ብለው። አቡነ፡ ሰላማም፡ ልጀ፡ ናት፡ ብለው፡ ዴር፡ ሥልጣን፡ ከቦታዋ፡ ከሀበሻ፡ ገዳም፡ ትቀመጥ፡ ብለው፡ ሰደዷቸው፡ መጡ፡ ከማህ{በ}ሩ [58] ቤት፡ ገብተው፡ ተቀመጡ፡ ይኸውም፡ የማኅበር፡ ቤት፡ የተባለው፡ ጥንት፡ በእቴጌ፡ ምንትዋብ፡ ጊዜ፡ ነው።

in faith” and [they] gave him a house. After he entered [the monastery], his slaves started to beat [the Ethiopians]. [50] While they were fighting, he said [to the Ethiopians], “Come here”, [then] he intimidated them [and] made them leave. Then, Dēr Yeshaq came. He was a Faranj. He came to the monastery and said to the Ethiopian monks, “Rent me a house”. Abraham Juhari heard this [and] said, “{Me} I will rent [it] to you” [51] and rented him half of the house for 50 [coins of] gold. [Dēr Yeshaq] stayed [there] for 3 years. After 3 years, when Abraham Juhari said to Dēr Yeshaq¹ “Give me the rent”, [Dēr Yeshaq] said, “Didn’t you take over someone’s house and settle there?” [52] He refused him the rent, and took over the house. The Ethiopians and the monks went to the Saray,² to the judge. When they complained, there was no one to listen to them. Weeping like this because of this occupancy problem,³ hunger and disease [finally] finished them off. Let us go back [53] to the earlier point. After Abraham Juhari took over the house, he sent [a message] to Egypt, “Come, you will find [here] a place where there are foolish people.” A priest called abuna⁴ Girgis came together with his wife. He entered Dayr al-Sultan and [54] stayed [there]. He cut out [a part] from the place [of Ethiopians] and sold [it] to the Russians for 700 [coins of] gold. It [was] abuna Girgis who sold this place. He soon died. His wife is [still] there. After abuna Girgis came abuna Basiliyus. He, in turn, [55] expelled completely all the [Ethiopian] monks from their monastery. All the monks lost strength and because they were unsuccessful they departed weeping. Although they complained to the judge, he did not listen to them. [These are] monks [and nuns] who were there at that time [56]: the mother of rās Baraku, wayzaro⁵ Hirut; Sister Walatta Amānuʾēl; Sister Walatta Takla Haymānot; [Sister] Walatta Māryām from Dāmot;⁶ dabtarā⁷ Frē with his wife; Walda Māryām from Hamāsēn⁸ [57] with his wife; ayā⁹ Kidānu with his wife. King Tewodros said, “wayzaro Sāhlitu is my mother”. Also abuna Salāmā¹⁰ said, “She is [my] child”. They said, “Let her stay [in] Dayr al-Sultan, in her place, in the Ethiopian monastery” and they sent her [there and] she came. She entered the house of [58] the community and stayed. It was called the house of the community long ago, in the time of Queen Mentewwāb.¹¹

መድኃኔ፡ ዓለም፡ ታቦት፡ ነበረ{በ}ት፡ ከጎልጎታ፡ ከቀራንዮ፡ አንድነት፡ ለጥቆ፡ ነው። ይነ¹ [59] ይህ፡ ሁሉ፡ ግፍ፡ መደረጉ፡ ከእቴጌ፡ ምንትዋብ፡ ወዲህ፡ የሀበሻ፡ ነገሥታቱ፡ መሳፍንቱ፡ የኢየሩሳሌም፡ ን፡ ቦታነት፡ አልፈለጉትም፡ ነበረና፡ ልብስና፡ ቀለብ፡ በማጣት፡ የሀበሻ፡ መነኮሳቱ፡ ሁሉ፡ [60] በረሀብ፡ በበሽታ፡ በብርድ፡ አለቁ። ገዳማቸውም፡ እሮም፡ አርመን፡ የወሰዱት። የቀረው፡ ግን፡ እ{የ}ፈረሰ፡ ተቀምጦ፡ ነበር። ወይዜሮ፡ ሣህሊቱም፡ በአጼ፡ ቴዎድሮስና፡ በአቡነ፡ ሰላማ፡ ዘመን፡ በ[61]መጡ፡ ጊዜ። ከዚኸው፡ መድኃኔ፡ ዓለም፡ ታቦት፡ ከነበረ{በ}ት፡ ከብዙ፡ መነኮሳት፡ ጋራ፡ እንደ፡ ነበሩት፡ የታወቀ፡ ነው፡ ይህ፡ ሁሉ፡ ምንም፡ ምስክር፡ አያስፈልግ፡ በሮፓ²፡ ያሉ፡ ሁሉ፡ ያውቃሉ። የዴር፡ ሥል[62]ጣንስ፡ ገዳምነት፡ የሀበሾች፡

እንደሆነ፡ የታወቀ፡ የተገለጠ፡ ነውና። በግብፅ፡ እንኳን፡ ያለው፡ የኢትዮጵያ፡ ገዳም፡ ከነጉልቱ፡ እጅግ፡ ብዙ፡ ነው፡ በደብረ፡ ቊስቋም፡ ያለው፡ መሬት። ቡግ፡ ፶፭[63]ት፡ ምድር፡ አለ። በሉጥ፡ ፶፭ት፡ {ምድር} አለ። በምንሺየ፡ ፵ምድር፡{አለ}። በምን፡ ፈሊጥ፡ ፳ምድር፡ አለ። በሰንቡ፡ ፵ምድር፡ {አለ}። ከገዳሙ፡ ደጅ፡ ፩ድ፡ ምድር፡ አለ። ፪ቱ፡ እጅ፡ የግብጾች፡ ነው። ፩ዱ፡ እጅ፡ የኢትዮጵ[64]ያ፡ ነው፡ ደብዳቤው፡ ንዋየ፡ ቅድሳቱ፡ በግዑ፡ ላሙ፡ ግመሉ፡ አህያው፡ ይኽ፡ ሁሉ፡ የሀበሻ፡ ነው። ፬ት፡ መንበር፡ በጠፍር፡ የተሳበ፡ የሀበሻ፡ መንበር፡ የታወቀ፡ ነው፡ ወፍጮው፡ ሊጥ፡ የሚታሺ[65]በት፡ ገበታ፡ ይህ፡ ሁሉ፡ ቤት፡ የመለሰውን፡ ማጀት፡ የጐረሰውን፡ እንዲሉ፡ ሁሉንም፡ ወርሰውናል። ደብዳቤውም፡ በግብፅ፡ እጅ፡ ነው፡ ያለ፡ ታቦቱም፡ ጴጥሮስ፡ ወጳውሎስ፡ ነው፡ የጥንቱ፡ የሀበሻ፡ ታቦ[66] ት። መነኮሳቱንም፡ በሽታ፡ ቢፈጃቸው፡ ሁሉን፡ ወርሰው፡ ቀሩ፡ ገዳሙም፡ ከጠፋ፡ ፶ዓመት፡ ነው፡ ሊቀ፡ ጳጳሱም፡ አቡነ፡ ዮሐንስ፡ ነው፡ ፻፳፫ኛው፡ ነው፡ ቊጥሩ፡ በሀበሻም፡ አቡነ፡ ሰላማ፡ ፴፭ዓመ[67]ት፡ ከዚያ፡ በፊት፡ ፲፭ዓመት፡ ገዳሙ፡ ከጠፋ፡ ፶ዓመት፡ ያልነው፡ ይህ፡ ነው።

The altar¹ of the Holy Saviour [Chapel] was beside [the chapels of] Golgotha [and] Calvary. [59] For all this violence done from [the time of] Queen Mentewwāb up to now was because the kings and princes of the Ethiopians did not want any place in Jerusalem.² And due to the lack of clothes and food, all the Ethiopian monks [60] died of hunger, disease and cold. Rome and the Armenians took their [the Ethiopians’] monastery. But the rest [of their possessions] remained there falling into ruin. When wayzaro Sāhlitu came at the time of King Tewodros and abuna Salāmā,³ [61] it is well-known that she was there together with many monks [at the place] where the altar of the Holy Saviour was. All this does not need any testimony. Everybody in Europe knows [about it]. For it is known and clear that [62] Dayr al-Sultan belongs to the Ethiopians.

Even in Egypt there are very numerous Ethiopian monasteries with their fief:⁴ The land which is at Dayr al-Muharraq;⁵ [in]⁶ Bug there are 55 [63] plots; in Lut’ there are 55 plots; in Manshiyya⁷ there are 40 plots; in Men Falit’ there are 20 plots; in Sanbu there are 40 plots. Outside the monastery there is 1 plot—2 portions belong to the Egyptians, 1 portion belongs to Ethiopia.⁸ [64] Documents, sacred vessels, sheep, cows, camels, donkeys, all this belongs to the Ethiopians; [also] four chairs which are made out of leather strips are known as Ethiopian chairs; [also] a mill [and] a large bowl for kneading dough [65], any kind of furnishing in the house, everything which is in the kitchen, all this they [the Egyptians?] inherited from us. The documents are in the hands of the Egyptians [and so is] the altar, [dedicated to Saint] Peter and [Saint] Paul, [which is] an ancient Ethiopian altar. [66] When disease finished off the [Ethiopian] monks, [the Egyptians] inherited everything and remained [there]. It is 50 years since the monastery was lost. The patriarch was abuna John the 123th.⁹ In Ethiopia it was 35 years since [the tenure of] abuna Salāmā [67] and 15 years before [today].¹⁰ Hence is the 50 years, as we said, since the monastery was lost.¹¹

ዳግመኛም፡ ከታሕታይ፡ ግብፅ፡ ያለው፡ ገዳም፡ ድምያጥ፡ ይባላል። ታቦቱም፡ ቅዱስ፡ ጊዮርጊስ፡ ነው፡ የሀበሾች፡ ጉልት፡ እንደ[68]ሆነ፡ ሁሉ፡ ያውቃዋል¹። ጥንትም፡ የሀበሻ፡ መነኮሳት፡ ወደ፡ ኢየሩሳሌም፡ ሲመጡ፡ ግብፅ፡ ከሊቀ፡ ጳጳሱ፡ በደረሱ፡ ጊዜ፡ ድምያጥ፡ ከቦታቸው፡ ሂዱ፡ እረፉ፡ እያለ፡ ይሰዳቸው፡ ነበረ። ይኸውም፡ የሚ[69]አርፉበት፡ ቤት፡ ዳግማዊ፡ ዳዊት፡ ያሰሩት፡ የሉካ[ን]ዳ፡ ቤት {ነው}። ከዚኸውም፡ አረፈው²፡ ሰንብተው፡ ወደ፡ ኢየሩሳሌም፡ ሲኸዱ፡ ስንቃቸውን፡ ሰጥተው፡ ይሰዷቸው፡ ነበር፡ ይኸውም፡ በአጼ፡ ቴዎድሮስ፡ መንግሥት፡ [70] ነው፡ ይደረግ፡ የነበረ። ከዚያ፡ ወዲህ፡ ግን፡ በዴር፡ ሥልጣን፡ ነገር፡ የተነሣ፡ አባ፡ ባስልዮስ፡ ሀበሾችን፡ አትቀበሉ፡ የሀበሻ፡ ጉልት፡ ነው፡ ብላችሁም፡ አትናገሩ፡ ብሎ፡ {ለ}አባ፡ ቄርሎስ፡ ነገረው። እርሱ[71]ም፡ ከለከላቸው፡ ከዚኽም፡ ቀድሞ፡ አቡነ፡ ጴጥሮስ፡ አቡነ፡ ሰ{ላ}ማን፡ ሹሞ፡ የሰደደው፡ ሀበሾችን፡ በሥርዓት፡ አልቀበላቸውም፡ አለ፡ መነኮሳቱም፡ ተሰብስበው፡ ሄደው፡ ለባሻ፡ ጮሁ፡ እስማኤል፡ ባ[72]ሻም፡ ሊቀ፡ ጳጳሱን፡ አስጠርቶ፡ አንተ፡ ያዝኸው፡ ሁሉ፡ ቦታ፡ የሀበሻወች³፡ እርስታቸው፡ ነው። ከዳግማዊ፡ ዳዊት፡ ጀምሮ፡ እስከኔ፡ ድረስ። አሁንም፡ ቦታቸውን፡ ሁሉ፡ ልቀቅልኝና፡ ቦታውን፡ ይዢ⁴፡ በ[73]ሥርዓት፡ እኔ፡ እቀበላቸዋለሁ፡ አለው፡ በትረኩም፡ እሺ፡ ብሎ፡ ይቀበል፡ ጀመረ፡ እስከ፡ ዛሬ፡ ደረስ⁵።

የሶርያ፡ ሊቀ፡ ጳጳስ፡ የጥንቱ፡ የጎልጎታ፡ ታሪኮን⁶ ፡ ጽፎ፡ የሰጠኝ፡ ይህ፡ ነው፡ በዘመነ፡ ሉቃስ፡ በ፲ወ[74]ወ፰፻፺ወ፭፡ ዓመተ፡ ምሕረት፡ በግንቦት፡ በ፭ቀን፡ በሀበሻ፡ በኵርጅ፡ እጅ፡ እንደ፡ ነበረ። የዚህም፡ ታሪክ፡ የተቀዳ፡ ከብንያሚን፡ ዮኒዲስ፡ መጽሐፍ፡ ነው፡ በ፮ሽህ፡ ከ፯፻፡ ከ፷፮፡ ዘመን፡ ነው፡ ይኸውም፡ እ[75]ስከ፡ ዛሬ፡ ድረስ፡ ፬፻፡ ነው፡ ሀበሾች፡ በዚህ፡ በተ{ቀ}ደሰ፡ ቦታ፡ በኢየሩሳሌም፡ ብዙ፡ ቦታ፡ ነበራቸው፡ {ይህ፡ ኵሉ፡ ስፍራ፡ የነበራቸው፡ ዛሬ፡ ፩ቦታ፡ የላቸውም፡} ይህ፡ ሁሉ፡ የሀበሾች፡ ነገሥታት፡ ቦታ፡ አለን፡ ብለው፡ ወደመንግሥት፡ ባይልኩ፡ ባይመረምሩ፡ ባይጠይቁ፡ ነው፡ [76] ኋላ፡ ሀበሾች፡ ቢጨንቃቸው፡ ወደ፡ ሮም፡ ሊጠጉ፡ ሄዱ፡ ሮምም፡ አልተቀበላቸውም። ደግሞ፡ ወደ፡ አርመን፡ ሄዱ፡ ተቀበላቸው፡ ውል፡ አርመን፡ ከሀበሾች፡ ጋራ፡ {ውል} አደረገ።

Furthermore,¹ the monastery which is located in Lower Egypt is called Damietta.² Its altar is [dedicated to] Saint George. Everyone knows that it is [68] a fief of the Ethiopians. Long ago, when Ethiopian monks were on their way to Jerusalem, when they reached the [Coptic] patriarch in Egypt, he used to send them to Damietta saying: “Go to your place [and] have a rest.” The house [69] in which [the Ethiopians] would rest, [and] which Dāwit II³ had founded, was an inn. They would stay there for a few days [and] upon departing for Jerusalem [the people there] used to give them provisions and send them on. This was done during the reign of King Tewodros. [70] But after that, because of the issue of the Dayr al-Sultan monastery, Father Basiliyus told Father Kirillus,⁴ “Don’t welcome the Ethiopians. Don’t say [that] it is an Ethiopian fief’ ”. So [Father Kirillus] [71] refused [to accommodate] them. Before that abuna Butrus,⁵ who appointed and sent [to Ethiopia] abuna Salāmā, said, “I will not welcome the Ethiopians”. The [Ethiopian] monks gathered, went to the pasha and complained to him. Ismaʿil [72] Pasha⁶ called the patriarch: “All the places that you have taken are the Ethiopians’ property, starting from [the reign of] Dāwit II up to me. Now then, leave all their places to me and I will take them over. [And] I will welcome [73] them officially,” he said. The patriarch said “I agree” and [the pasha] started welcoming [the Ethiopians], up to now.

This is the ancient history of Golgotha which the Syriac patriarch wrote and gave to me in the era of [Saint] Luke in [74] 1895 year of mercy on the 5th day of Genbot.⁷ [Golgotha] was in the hands of the Ethiopians [and] Georgians. This history was copied from a book [written] by Benjamin Ioannidès. It was in the year 6766. [75] [From then] up to now it has been 400 [years].⁸ In this holy place, in Jerusalem, the Ethiopians had numerous places. {[Of] all those places, they have not even one today}. All this is because the kings of the Ethiopians did not say, “We have a place [in Jerusalem]”⁹ and they did not send [any messages] to the authorities [of Jerusalem], they did not examine [the situation], they did not show interest [in it].¹⁰ [76] Later, because the Ethiopians were in distress they went to Rome¹¹ in order to come closer [to the Greek Orthodox authorities]. But Rome did not accept them. Then, they went to the Armenians [and] they accepted them. The Armenians made an agreement with the Ethiopians. The

ውሉም፡ እንዲህ፡ ነው፡ ከጎ[77]ልጎታ፡ ውሺጥ¹፡ ያለውን፡ ሁሉ፡ ቦታ፡ ከሀበሾች፡ ጋራ፡ አንድነት፡ ሁነው፡ ሊኖሩ፡ ነው፡ ከዚያ፡ በፊት፡ አርመኖች፡ ከጎልጎታ፡ ምንም፡ ቦታ፡ አልነበራቸውም፡ ቦታውን፡ ከያዙ፡ በኋላ፡ ቂጣውንና፡ ወጡ{ን}፡ ይሰ[78]ጣቸው²፡ ጀመረ፡ ወዲያውም፡ ጥቂት፡ ቀን፡ እንደ፡ ሰጣቸው³፡ ተጣሉ፡ ቂጣውን፡ አስቀረ፡ ቦታውን፡ እንደያዘ፡ ቀረ። ከዚህም፡ በኋላ፡ በኢየሩሳሌም፡ ብዙ፡ የተገረመ፡ ነገር፡ ሆነ፡ እንዴት፡ በጥቂት፡ ቀን፡ ምግ[79]ብ፡ ቦታቸውን፡ በሰደባቸው⁴፡ እያለ።

ሁሉተኛ⁵፡ ምዕራፍ። መርሱም፡ ሸሪፍ፡ የሚባል፡ እስላም፡ ነበረ፡ የቃዲው፡ ዘመድ፡ ነው፡ ቃዲም፡ ማለት፡ በስላሞች፡ ቤት፡ በላፍታሐ⁶፡ ነገሥት፡ ነው፡ በማኅ[80]ሙድ፡ በቃዲው፡ ጊዜ፡ ፍርድ፡ አድርጎ፡ ነበር፡ ለ[እ]ስላሞቹ፡ በቦታ፡ ነገር፡ ቦታ፡ ለባለቦታ፡ እንዲመለሰ። ሙጥራን፡ የሶርያ፡ ዮሴፍ፡ የሚባል፡ ከሀበሾች፡ ጋራ፡ ፍቅር፡ ነበረ[ው]፡ የጎልጎታን፡ በሩን፡ ለመክፈት፡ [81] ለመዝጋት፡ አ፩ሁነው፡ ደግሞም፡ ይህ፡ ሁሉ፡ ቦታቸው፡ እንደ፡ ነበረ፡ ሁሉ፡ ያውቃል፡ ደግሞም፡ የአርመን፡ ማኅበሮች፡ ቦታ፡ አልነበራቸውም። ኋላ፡ ግን፡ ብዙ፡ ገንዘብ፡ ለ[እ]ስላሞች፡ እየሰጡ፡ ቦታውን፡ [82] ሁሉ፡ የሀበሾችን፡ የኩርጆችን፡ ወስዶት⁷፡ ይህ፡ ሁሉ፡ ቦታቸው፡ መሄዱ፡ ነገሥታቱ፡ ቦታ፡ አለን፡ ብለው፡ ባይፈልጉት፡ ባይመረም{ሩ}ት፡ ነው።

፫ኛ፡ ምዕራፍ። ታሪኩ፡ የ፬፻ዘ[83]መን፡ ነው፡ የጥንት፡ ታሪክ፡ በጎልጎታ፡ የሚውጣው⁸ ፡የብርሃኑ፡ ነገር፡ መጀመሪያ፡ ብርሃን፡ የሚያወጣ፡ ከጎልጎታ፡ ውሺጥ⁹፡ ከሁሉ፡ ሕዝብ፡ በፊት፡ ራይስ፡ የሀበሸ፡ ነው። ፪ትኛ፡ የሮም፡ [84] በትረክ፡ ነው፡ የሚገባ። ፫ኛ፡ የአርመን፡ ራይስ፡ ነው፡ የሚገባ። ፬ትኛ፡ የኩርጅ፡ ራይስ፡ ነው፡ የሚገባ። ፭ኛ፡ የሾርያ፡ ራይስ፡ ነው፡ የሚገባ። ፮ኛ፡ የግብፅ፡ እራይስ፡ ነው፡ የሚገባ። የዚህ፡ ሁሉ፡ [85] ጊዜው፡ ተለወጠ፡ የፊተኛው፡ {ወ} ደኋላ፡ የኋለኛው፡ ወደፊት፡ ሆነ።

፬ኛ፡ ምዕራፍ፡ በመጅለስ፡ ሸሪፍ፡ ቃዲነት፡ በኢየሩሳሌም፡ በተቀደሰ፡ ቦታ፡ የነበረው፡ ቃዲ፡ መሐመድ፡ የ[እ]ስላሞች፡ ባለ፡ ፍትሐ፡ ነገ[86]ሥት፡ የስላሞች፡ ሃይማኖት፡ አስተማሪ፡ በቤተ፡ መንግሥት፡ የሠርያ¹⁰፡ አይነተኛ፡ የክርስቲያኖችን፡ ሃይማኖት፡ ይመረምር፡ ነበረ፡ መጻፍ፡ አገኘ፡ ይህ፡ ታሪክ፡ ያለበት፡ ነበረው። ኩሐኑን፡ [87] የቄስ፡ ልጅ፡ ነው፡ ኋላ፡ ግን፡ በኢየሩሳሌም፡

agreement went like this: [77] [the Armenians] will live together with the Ethiopians in all places which are inside Golgotha.¹ Before that, the Armenians did not have any place at Golgotha. After they took the places, they [the Armenians] started to give them [the Ethiopians] some bread and stew. [78] At once, after a few days of giving them [food], they began to argue with each other. They [the Armenians] stopped giving bread but the places remained occupied [by them]. After that, it became something very surprising [in] Jerusalem. [People] were saying: “How come [the Armenians] took the places [of the Ethiopians] [79] [in exchange] for several days of food?”

Chapter Two.² There was a Muslim called Marsum Sharif. He was a relative of the qadi. In the Muslim community qadi means a person versed in The Law of the Kings.³ In the time of Mahmud,⁴ [80] the qadi dispensed justice for the Muslims [stating that, in case of a dispute] over a place, [the place] would be returned to the owner. The metropolitan bishop of Syria called Yosēf was a friend of the Ethiopians. He used to open and [81] close the door of Golgotha in agreement [with the Ethiopians]. Furthermore, he also knew that all this was their [the Ethiopians’] place, and also [that] the Armenian communities did not have a place. But later [the Armenians] gave much money to the Muslims [and] they took [82] all the places of the Ethiopians and the Georgians. All these places were lost because the kings [of Ethiopia] did not want [them and] did not search for them, saying “We have a place”.

Chapter Three. The history spans 400 [83] years. The fire which appears at Golgotha⁵ [is] an ancient story. It is the Ethiopian superior [who] first [receives] the fire which appears inside Golgotha, before all [other] people; the second to enter [Golgotha] is the patriarch [84] of Rome; the third to enter is the Armenian superior; the fourth to enter is the Georgian superior; the fifth to enter is the Syriac superior; the sixth to enter is the Egyptian superior. All this [85] has changed over time. The first has become the last {and} the last has become the first.

Chapter Four. Qadi Muhammad who was in the noble council of justice⁶ in Jerusalem in the holy place, [and who was] a teacher of Muslim religion, versed in the Law of the Kings of the Muslims, [86] [and] the Sharia main [expert] in the governmental palace, studied the religion of the Christians. He found a book which contains this story. Kuhanun [87] was the child of a priest. He was appointed metropolitan bishop of the Syriac community in a monastery in Jerusalem. And

ባለው፡ ገዳም፡ ለሶርያ፡ ማኅበር፡ ጳጳስ፡ ተሾመ፡ ጳጳሱም፡ እንዲህ፡ ተናገረ፡ በጎልጎታ፡ ውስጥ፡ በስተምዕራብ፡ ያለ፡ ይህ፡ የሶርያ፡ ነበረ፡ {የላይኛው} የደርቡ፡ {ቤት፡ የሶርያ፡ ነበረ፡ የደብሩ፡} መውጫ፡ የን[88]ጨቱ፡ መሰላል፡ ችንካሩ፡ መሠረቱ፡ {ሁሉ፡} ያለበት፡ የሶርያ፡ ነበረ። ደግሞም፡ ተቤተ፡ መንግሥት፡ ቦታ፡ የሚሰልል፡ ሹም፡ {መጣ፡} ማሕሙድ፡ አፈንዲ፡ የፍርድ፡ በኢየሩሳሌም፡ ቅድስት፡ መጥቶ፡ አየ፡ ሰለ[89]ለ። ይህ፡ በስተምዕራብ፡ ያለ፡ የንጨቱ፡ መሰላል፡ ምስማሩም፡ ሁሉም፡ እንደ፡ ጥንቱ፡ እንዲቀመጥ፡ ለሶርያ፡ ብሎ፡ ተናገረ። በደቡብ፡ ያለው፡ ደርብ፡ የግ[ብ]ፅ፡ ነው፡ በስተምዕራብ፡ ያለው፡ ደርብ፡ የሀበሾች፡ ነው፡ [90] ዳግመኛም፡ በምሥራቅ፡ አንቲካ፡ ቤተ፡ ክር[ስቲ]ያን፡ አላቸው፡ የሀበሾች፡ ይህ፡ ሁሉ፡ የጠፋ፡ ፫፻፡ ዘመን፡ ነው። ከጥንት፡ መጽሐፍ፡ የተገኜ፡ ተቃዲው፡ ነው፡ የጎልጎታ{ን}፡ ነገር፡ የሚ{ና}ገር፡ ለሰርያና¹፡ ለሀበሻ፡ [91] ሕዝብ፡ ሁሉ፡ ቦታቸው፡ እንደ፡ ነበረ። እናውቃለን፡ እርስታቸው፡ ነው። ደግሞም፡ ጎልጎታ፡ የሀበሻ፡ ወቅፍ፡ ነው።

ጌታችን፡ ኢየሱስ፡ ክርስቶስ፡ ሳይወለድ፡ ነበረ፡ ሄሮድስ፡ በርሱ፡ መንግሥት። ጌታ፡ ተ[92]ወለደ። ከርሱ፡ በኋላ፡ ቄ{ሳ}ር፡ በሮም፡ ነገሠ፡ ጲላጦስን፡ ሹሞ፡ ኢየሩሳሌምን፡ ሊገዛ፡ ሰደደው፡ በዚያን፡ ጊዜ፡ በጲላጦስ፡ ፈቃድ፡ ጌታችንን፡ አይሁድ፡ ሰቀሉት፡ ጌታ፡ ከተወለደ፡ ጀምሮ፡ እስኪሰቀል፡ ፴፫ [93] ዘመን፡ ሆነው። ጌታ፡ ከተሰቀለ፡ በኋላ፡ በ፵ዘመን፡ ጥጦስ፡ እስፋስያኖስ፡ አይሁድን፡ አጠፋቸው። ከዚህ፡ በኋላ፡ ፫፻፳፭፡ ዘመን፡ ከሆነ። ቈስጠንጢኖስ፡ ነገሠ፡ ከዚያ፡ ወዲያ፡ እናቱን፡ ሰዶ፡ ኢየሩሳሌ[94]ምን፡ በ፭፡ ዓመት፡ ሰራች። እርስዋ፡ ግን፡ ምዕራቡን፡ ለሮም፡ ምሥራቁን፡ ለሀበሻ፡ ሰጠች፡ ጊታ፡ ከተወለደ፡ ጀምሮ፡ ፮፻፴፮፡ ዘመን፡ ሲሆን፡ ዑመር፡ {ክታብ} መጥቶ፡ ደብረ፡ ዘይት፡ ተቀምጦ፡ ሳለ፡ ለሀበሻ፡ የጥን[95]ት፡ ቦታቸው፡ ነው፡ ብሎ፡ መቃራት፡ ሰሊብን፡ ሰጠ። የሮም፡ በትረክም፡ ሳፍሮንዮስ፡ የሚባል፡ ሂዶ፡ ተገናኘው። ክርስቲያን፡ በክርስትናቸው፡ በየቦታቸው፡ እንዳይታወኩ፡ እንድ{ታ}ጸናል[ን]፡ ካህና[96]ት፡ መነኮሳት፡ መነኮሳይያት፡ በየርስታቸው፡ እንዲቆሙ፡ ያንዱን፡ አንዱ፡ እንዳ{ይ}ወስድ፡ እንድታጸናልን፡ ብሎ፡ ነገረው። ዑመር፡ ክታብም፡ ለሳፍሮንዮስ፡ ያልኸውን፡ ሁሉ፡ እሽ፡ አለው።

[this] metropolitan bishop said like this, “Inside Golgotha, [the part] which is to the west belonged to Syria. {The upper floor of the building belonged to Syria}. The entrance¹ {of the basilica}, the wooden ladder, [88] its foot and the whole ground where [the entrance] was, belonged to Syria.” Besides, one official {came} from the governmental palace, spying on the place. Mahmud Effendi, an [official] of justice in the Holy Jerusalem, came, looked [and] [89] spied. He said, “Whatever is to the west, the wooden ladder and the foot, let everything continue to belong to Syria as [it was] long ago. The upper floor to the South belongs to Egypt. The upper floor to the west belongs to the Ethiopians. [90] Additionally, in the eastern antikā² [the Ethiopians] have a chapel”. All this [that used to belong to] the Ethiopians was lost 300 years ago. [All this] was found in the ancient book of the qadi which talks about the issue of Golgotha.³ [91] We know that it was the place of all people of Syria and of Ethiopia. It is their property. Also, Golgotha is Ethiopian waqf.⁴

Before our Lord Jesus Christ was born there was Herod.⁵ The Lord was born during his reign. [92] After him caesar⁶ reigned in Rome. He appointed Pilate and sent him to rule Jerusalem. At that time, the Jews crucified our Lord with the permission of Pilate. From [the time when] the Lord was born until he was crucified, 33 [93] years passed. 40 years after the Lord was crucified Titus Vespasian⁷ massacred the Jews. After that, in the year 325, Constantine became emperor.⁸ Next, he sent his mother⁹ and she rebuilt Jerusalem [94] in five years. She gave the west [of the Golgotha church] to Rome and the east to Ethiopia. In the year 636, after the birth of our Lord, ʿUmar {ibn al-Khattab}¹⁰ came; and when he was staying on the Mount of Olives he said, [95] “This is an ancient place of the Ethiopians” and he gave [them] the place of the Cross.¹¹ The patriarch of Rome, called Sophronius,¹² went [there] and met him [ʿUmar]. He told him, “Assure us that the Christians will not be disturbed because of their Christianity in their respective places, that priests, [96] monks and nuns will stay in their respective properties, that one will not take [the property] of another. Assure us”. To everything that Sophronios said, ʿUmar ibn al-Khattab answered, “I agree”. He wrote

ፈ{ረ}ማን¹፡ ጽ[97]ፎ፡ ሰጠው፡ ስለ፡ አብያተ፡ ክርስቲያናት፡ ብሎ። ኵርጅ፡ አበሻ፡ ፈረንጅ፡ አርመን፡ ሶርያ፡ ለሊህ፡ ሁሉ፡ የሮም፡ በትረክ፡ ታላቃቸው፡ ነው። ቤተ፡ ክርስቲያን፡ ግን፡ ያንጊዜ፡ ሁሉ፡ አንድነት፡ ነበረ፡ አ[98]አልተለየም። በትረኩ፡ ግን፡ የነገሥታት፡ ወገን፡ ነውና፡ መሐመድ፡ በጁ፡ አትሞ፡ አከበረው። በፍልስጥኤም፡ የነበሩ፡ ክርስቲያን፡ ሁሉ፡ እስከ፡ ከሊፋ²፡ ድረስ፡ አብድል፡ ማልክ፡ ፯፻፲፰፡ ዘመን፡ ደስታ፡ [99] ነበረ፡ ከዚህ፡ በኋላ፡ አባሳየ፡ መንሱር፡ መጣ፡ እስከ፡ ፱፻ዘመን፡ ለክርስቲያን፡ እጅግ፡ ሁከት፡ ሆነ። ከጽሎ³፡ አሮን፡ ራሺድ፡ መጣ፡ እስላም፡ እጅግ፡ ይወዳል፡ አጥብቆ። ለክርስቲያንም፡ ደኅና፡ ሆነ፡ ሁሉ፡ ወደ[100]ደው፡ ሰላም፡ ሆነ። ከዚህ፡ በኋላ፡ ፱፻፺፯፡ ዘመን፡ {ከ}ሆነ፡ ሀካም፡ የሚባል፡ መጣ፡ ለክርስቲያን፡ እጅግ፡ ሁከት፡ ሆነ፡ ፩ድ፡ ዘመን፡ የእግዚአብሔርን፡ ስም፡ የሚያነሳ፡ የክርስቲያን፡ ዘርእ፡ ጠፋ፡ ጎልጎታንም፡ [101] አቃጠለው፡ በወርቅ፡ በብር፡ ተ{ሰ}ርቶ፡ ነበርና፡ በእግዚአብሔር፡ ኃይል፡ ሳይቃጠል፡ ቀረ። ክፋቱ፡ በነገሥታቱ፡ ሁሉ፡ ተሰማ፡ ነገሥታቱ፡ ቢነሱበት፡ ያጠፋውን፡ ሁሉ፡ ያቀና፡ ጀመረ። ሞተ፡ ሳል፡ ብላክ፡ የሚ[102]ባል፡ የልጁ፡ ልጅ፡ ፈጸመው። ከዚህ፡ በኋላ፡ ፲፩፻፡ ዘመን፡ ሲሆን፡ ፈረ{ን}ጅ፡ መጣ፡ ፹፰፡ ዘመን፡ ገዛ፡ ይህ፡ ሁሉ፡ ሲሆን፡ አበሻ፡ እጅ፡ አለቀቀም። ሽሕ፡ ከ፹፯፡ ዘመን፡ ሲሆን፡ ሰላ{ህ}ዲን፡ የሚባል፡ መጥቶ፡ መቃ[103]ራት፡ ሰሊብን፡ የጥንት፡ ቦታቸው፡ ነው፡ ብሎ፡ ለሀበሾች፡ ሰጠ። የጥንት፡ ቦታቸው፡ መሆኑን፡ የሀበሾች፡ {የ}⁴ ሰላህዲን፡ ጽፎ፡ የሰጠ፡ ሳፍሮንዮስ፡ የሚባል፡ የሮም፡ በትረክ፡ ነው። ጦር፡ አደረገ፡ ከፈረንጅ፡ ጋራ፡ እማ[104]የማይሆ{ን}ለት፡ ቢሆን፡ ፈረ{ን}ጅ፡ ወደያፋ፡ ለቆ፡ ሄደ፡ የፈረንጅን፡ ክፋት፡ አይቶ፡ ጎልጎታን፡ አንዱን፡ ደጅ፡ ትቶ፡ ደጁን፡ መስኮቱን፡ ሁሉ፡ ዘጋው። {ይ}ህን፡ ካደረገ፡ በኋላ፡ ሙላውን⁵፡ ሊአፈርሰው፡ ወደደ፡ የበት[105]ረኩንም፡ ቤት፡ መጮህያ፡ አደረገው። በትረኩም፡ ለሰላህ፡ ዲን፡ ጎልጎታን፡ አታጥፋ፡ ብሎ፡ ቢለምነው፡ እ[ም]ቢ፡ አለ። ይስሐቅ፡ አንጊሊዋስ፡ የሚሉት፡ ንጉሥ፡ እስጥቡል፡ ነበረና። በትረኩ፡ እንዲህ፡ ሆነ፡ ብሎ፡ ወረ[106]ቀት፡ ሰደደ፡ ይስሐቅ፡ አንጊሌዋስ፡ ለሰላህዲን፡ ብዙ፡ ወርቅ፡ ገጸ፡ በረከት፡ ሰደደለት፡ እጅግ፡ ደስ፡ አለው፡ ደስ፡ ካለው፡ ዘንድ። ለሮም፡ እንደጥንትሕ፡ ብሎ፡ ጎልጎታን፡ ሰጠው፡

an edict [97] concerning the Christian settlements and gave it to him. For all of them: the Georgians, the Ethiopians, the Faranj, the Armenians [and] the Syrians, the patriarch of Rome¹ was the superior. At that time the whole Church was unified. [98] It was not divided. The patriarch belonged to the monarchy and Muhammad recognized him² and gave him respect. [For] all of the Christians who were in Palestine until Caliph ʿAbd al-Malik, the year 718,³ there [99] was joy. After that the Abbasid al-Mansur⁴ came. Until the year 900⁵ there was great violence against the Christians. Next, Harun al-Rashid⁶ came. He loved Islam immensely. He was also good to the Christians. Everyone [100] loved him. Peace prevailed. After that, in the year 997 [a caliph] called al-Hakim⁷ came. There was great violence against the Christians. [In] one year, the Christian race which was calling on the name of God vanished. [Al-Hakim] set [101] Golgotha on fire. [But] because it was made of gold and silver, [and] by the power of God, [Golgotha] did not burn. His wickedness was recognized⁸ by all kings. When the kings arose against him, he began to restore everything that he had destroyed. When he died, his grandson called Sāl Belāk⁹ [102] completed it. After that, in the year 1100, the Faranj came.¹⁰ They ruled for 88 years. While all this was happening, the Ethiopians did not release their hold. In the year 1087,¹¹ [a ruler] called Salah al-Din¹² came and saying, “The place [103] of the Cross¹³ is their ancient place”, he gave it to the Ethiopians. It was the patriarch of Rome called Sophronius who [originally] wrote and [indirectly] let Salah al-Din know that it was an ancient place of the Ethiopians.¹⁴ [Salah al-Din] made war against the Faranj. [104] When it was unsuccessful for them, the Faranj surrendered and went to Jaffa. When he [Salah al-Din] saw the wickedness of the Faranj he left one entrance of Golgotha [open and] closed off all the [other] entrances and windows. After he did that, he wanted to destroy the entire [church]. He made the house of the patriarch [105] into a mosque.¹⁵ Although the patriarch begged Salah al-Din not to destroy Golgotha, [Salah al-Din] refused. There was a king in Istanbul [called] Isaak Angelos¹⁶ and so the patriarch sent [him] a letter saying what had happened [106]. Isaak Angelos sent to Salah al-Din much gold [and] gifts. He [Salah al-Din] was very pleased and in his delight he gave Golgotha

ከደንጊያ፡ ላይ፡ ሰላህዲን፡ ጻፈ[107]ለት፡ ጽፎም፡ ከመስኮት፡ አኖረለት፡ ከደንጊያው፡ ያለ፡ ነገር፡ እኔ፡ ሰላሁዲን፡ የምስር፡ የኢየሩሳሌም፡ ንጉሥ፡ አዋጅ፡ እነግራለሁ፡ መነኮሳት፡ ቀሳውስት፡ {የ}ነገሥታት፡ ወገን፡ ጎልጎታን፡ የሚስሙ፡ ኵርጅ፡ ሀበ[108]ሽ ፡ አርመን፡ ፈረንጅ፡ እነዚህ፡ ሁሉ፡ ቀረጥ፡ ሲያዙ፡ ነበረና፡ አይ{ያ}ዙ፡ አይነኩ፡ ብሎ፡ አዋጅ፡ ነገረ። ደግሞ፡ በኢየሩሳሌም፡ ላለ፡ ክርስቲያን፡ ሁሉ፡ ሮም፡ አዛዢ፡ ይሁን፡ ብርሃን፡ ያውጣ፡ በርሱ፡ እጅ፡ ብሎ፡ አዘ[109]ዘ፡ እ{ን}ግዴህ፡ እስላም፡ በክርስቲያን፡ ላይ፡ አለትእዛዜ፡ ክፉ፡ አታርጉ¹፡ ብሎ፡ አዘዘ። ካዘዘ፡ በኋላ፡ ሺሕ፡ ከ፪፻፳፱፡ ዘመን፡ ሲሆን፡ ሰሊብዩን፡ የሚባል፡ ፈረንጅ፡ መጣ፡ ኢየሩሳሌምን፡ {ገዛ}፡ የሮም፡ በትረክ፡ ሊዩን[110]ድዮስ፡ የሚባል፡ ነበረ፡ አባረው፡ ሰደዱት፡ የርሱ፡ ሕዝብ፡ ሁሉ፡ ሮም፡ የሆነ፡ ተሰደደ። ከዚህ፡ በኋላ፡ ጥቂት፡ ቀን፡ ነው፡ አልዘገ{የ}ም፡ በሺህ፡ ከ፪፻፵፬፡ ዘመን፡ ሲሆን፡ ኵርጅ፡ መጣ፡ በምስር፡ ንጉሥ፡ ትእዛዝ፡ [111] ነው፡ የመጣ። የምሥር፡ ንጉሥ፡ ስሙ፡ ሳልሕ፡ ኢዩብ፡ ይባላል፡ እነዚያው፡ ይገዛሉ። ያንጊዜ፡ ኩርጅ፡ በጎልጎታ፡ ክፉ፡ ስራ፡ እጅግ፡ ጥፋት፡ አጠፋ። ይህ፡ ካለፈ፡ በኋላ፡ በኃይል፡ ክርስቲያን፡ እንደ፡ ቀደመ[112]ው፡ ተመልሰው፡ ያዙ፡ ሮምም፡ እንደ፡ ፊተኛው፡ የጎልጎታን፡ መክፈቻ፡ ያዘ። ከዚህ፡ ወዲያ፡ ሺህ፡ ከ፫፻፺፡ ዘመን፡ ሲሆን፡ የስጥቡል፡ ንጉሥ፡ ዮሐንስ፡ ኮተኰዜኖ፡ የሚባል፡ ከምስር፡ ንጉሥ፡ ኢየ[113]ሩሳሌምን፡ ኩርጅ፡ ያጠፋትን፡ ሊሰራ፡ ፈቃድ፡ ተቀበለ፡ መስቀሉን፡ ዲር፡ ሥልጣንን፡ ለሀበሻ፡ ሰጠ። ከዚህ፡ በኋላ፡ ሀበሾች፡ ከመስቀሉ፡ ላይ፡ ትንሺ፡ ትንሺ፡ ቤት፡ ሰሩ፡ ሀበሻና፡ ግብፅ፡ ልሳንና፡ ጠባይ[114]ዕ፡ መገናኛ፡ የላቸውም። ሀበሾች፡ ከነገሥታቱ፡ የጌታንችነን²፡ ልብስ፡ ከተካፈሉበት፡ ቦታ፡ ሄደው፡ ደጅ፡ ጠኑ፡ ከዚያ፡ ግብጾች፡ ያደረጉትን፡ በጎልጎታ፡ ጐድን፡ ይቀደሱ፡³ ብለው፡ ሰጧቸው፡ ፪ዓምድ፡ አ[115]ለው፡ ተጽሕፈ፡ አመ፡ ፳፡ ለጥቅምት፡ በ፲፻ወ፰፻፹፫፡ ዓመተ፡ ምሕረት፡ በዘመነ፡ ሉቃስ።

to Rome,¹ saying “As it [was] yours before”. Salah al-Din wrote for him [a text] on a stone [107] and placed it for him by a window. The thing [written] on the stone was: “I, Salah al-Din, king of Egypt and Jerusalem, proclaim [this] edict”. As the tax was to be levied on all of them: monks, priests, the nobility, the Georgians, the Ethiopians,² [108] the Armenians, the Faranj who visit Golgotha, [Salah al-Din] proclaimed an edict saying: “Let [the tax] not be levied on them, and let them not be disturbed.” Besides, he ordered, “Let Rome be the chief of all Christians who are in Jerusalem, let the Holy Fire be lit in [Rome’s] hand”. [109] Also he ordered the Muslims, “Do not do any evil to the Christians without my command”. After he ordered [that], in the year 1229 came a Faranj called Salibyon.³ He {ruled} Jerusalem. The patriarch of Rome was called Liyondyos. [110] He [Salibyon] expelled him and banished him. All of his people who were Romans⁴ were banished. Next, after some time,⁵ in the year 1244 came the Tatars.⁶ They came on the orders of the king of Egypt. [111] The name of the king of Egypt was al-Salih Ayyub.⁷ Those were ruling.⁸ At that time, the Tatars committed a misdeed, a great violation at Golgotha. After this occurred, the Christians returned in force as before [112] and took [Golgotha]. Rome, as previously, took the key of Golgotha. After that, in the year 1390 the king of Istanbul, called John Kantakouzenos,⁹ received permission from the king of Egypt to [re]build Jerusalem [and] [113] what the Tatars had destroyed. He gave the [sanctuary of the] Cross and Dayr al-Sultan to the Ethiopians. After that, the Ethiopians built several small houses above the [sanctuary of the] Cross. The Ethiopians and the Egyptians share neither language nor character. [114] The Ethiopians went to the kings¹⁰ to the place where the clothes of our Lord were divided and appealed [to them]. After that, saying, “Let them celebrate the liturgy beside Golgotha”, they gave them two pillars,¹¹ which the Egyptian made their own.¹² [115] It was written on the 20th of t’eqemt in 1883 year of mercy, in the era of Luke.¹³

ንጉሠ፡ ነገሥት፡ ሰላህ፡ ዲን፡ ለሀበሾች፡ ሰጠ፡ በኢየሩሳሌም፡ ቅድስት፡ መስቀሉን፡ የመስቀሉን፡ ዙሪያው[116]ን፡ ታቹንም፡ መስቀሉ፡ የወጣበትን፡ ላዩንም፡ ዙርያ፡ ገባውን። በስተቀኝ፡ ያለ፡ ኸተሪክ¹፡ የተገኘ። በኢየሩሳሌም፡ የተገኜ፡ በመጽሐፉ፡ ታሪክ። በሟቹ፡ በመምህር፡ ሚካኤል፡ ጊዜ፡ በሺ[117]ህ፡ ከ፻፴፩፡ ዓመት፡ ንጉሠ፡ ነገሥት፡ ሰላህዲን፡ ሰጠ፡ ለሀበሻ፡ ጥንትም፡ ስፍራቸው፡ ነው፡ እናውቃለን። መስቀሉ፡ የወጣበት፡ ብላጡ፡ ላይኛው፡ የነሣቸው²፡ እንደሆነ፡ እናውቃለን። የገዳሙ፡ ዙሪያ፡ [118] የሐዋርያት፡ ቤተ፡ ክርስቲያን፡ የሚባለው። የጥንቱ፡ ትልቁ፡ በር፡ የሀበሻ፡ ነው፡ ደሞ፡ አንድ፡ ቤተ፡ ክርስቲያን፡ የሌጊኖስ፡ መቃብር፡ የሀበሻ፡ ነው፡ ከአብርሃም፡ ቤተ፡ ክርስቲያን፡ አጠገብ፡ አር[119]መን፡ ይዞት፡ ያለ፡ ቤተ፡ ክርስቲያን፡ የሀበሻ፡ ነው። አክሊለ፡ ሦክ፡ የደፉበት፡ ቤተ፡ ክርስቲያን፡ ንጉሠ፡ ነገሥት፡ ሰላህዲን፡ ለሀበሻ፡ ሰጠ፡ ይኸ፡ ለትው[ል]ደ፡ ትውልድ፡ እስከ፡ ዘለዓለም፡ ድረስ፡ ይሁናችሁ፡ ብሎ፡ ሰ[120]ጠ፡ ቤት፡ {እ}የሰሩ፡ እንዲቀመጡበት። ደግሞ፡ በሐዋርያት³፡ ቤተ፡ ክርስቲያን፡ በታች፡ ታላቅ፡ ቢር፡ አለ፡ ይህ፡ ፬ኛ፡ ቢር፡ ነው፡ ከ፯ቢር፡ ከጎልጎታ፡ ዙሪያ፡ ከላዩ፡ ይኽ፡ የሀበሻ፡ ቢር፡ ነው። ፬ኛው፡ ይህም፡ ታሪኩ፡ የተ[121]ገኜ⁴፡ በሺህ፡ ፻፴፰፡ ዘመን፡ በሀበሻ፡ ሺህ፡ ከ፰፻፹፺፡ ዘመን፡ ነው፡ የገዳማችን፡ ታሪክ፡ ይህ፡ ነው፡ የገ{ዳ}ማችን፡ ታሪክ፡ ይህ፡ ነው።

ይትባረክ፡ እግዚአብሔር፡ አምላከ፡ ፈቀደ፡ እግዚእ፡ ራይስ፡ ዘደር፡ [122] ሥልጣን፡ ዘአፈጸመኒ፡ በሰላም፡ ይቤ፡ አለቃ፡ ወልደ፡ መድኅን፡ አረጋዊ፡ ዘኢየሩሳሌም፡ ቅድስት።

King of Kings Salah al-Din gave to the Ethiopians in the Holy Jerusalem: the [sanctuary of the] Cross, the surrounding area of the [sanctuary of the] Cross, [116] [the sites] below where the Cross was found,¹ [the sites] above and the surroundings which are to the right.² [This] was found in the history. This was found in the history, in Jerusalem, according to the history in the book, in the time of the late abbot Mikāʾēl.³ In the year 1131 [117] King of Kings Salah al-Din gave [it] to the Ethiopians.⁴ We know that it was their place from ancient times. We know that the covering of the roof above the place where the Cross was found is theirs. [The place] around the monastery, [118] the Chapel of the Apostles [and] the old big door belong to the Ethiopians.⁵ Also, one chapel [with] the grave of Longinus belongs to the Ethiopians.⁶ The chapel which is next to the Chapel of Abraham and which was taken by the Armenians [119] belongs to the Ethiopians.⁷ King of Kings Salah al-Din gave to Ethiopia the church in which was placed the crown of thorns.⁸ He gave [it] saying, “May this belong to you for all generations forever”. [120] So that [the Ethiopians] will build a house in which they will stay. Also, below the chapel of the Apostles there is a big well.⁹ This is the fourth well, out of seven cisterns [which are] around Golgotha. This fourth [well] is an Ethiopian well. This history was found [121] in the year 1138, according to the Ethiopians in the year 1880–1890.¹⁰ This is the history of our monastery. This is the history of our monastery.

May God be blessed, the Lord of Faqada Egziʾe, superior of Dayr [122] al-Sultan,¹¹ who made me finish in peace, says alaqā Walda Madhen Aragāwi of the Holy Jerusalem.