 |
 |
 |
 |
Timket, or the Feast of the Epiphany, is celebrated in the January. The
3-day event commemorates the baptism of Christ and is one of the most
colorful Ethiopian festivals.
The night before the Timket, priests take the Tabot (which symbolises
the Ark of the Covenant, containing the Ten Commandments) from each
church to a tent at a consecrated pool or stream. There is frenetic
activity, including the ringing of bells, blowing of trumpets and the
burning of incense. In Addis Ababa, tents are pitched at Jan Meda, to
the northeast of the city centre. At 02h00, mass is celebrated, attended
by crowds of people carrying lighted oil lamps. At dawn, the priest uses
a ceremonial cross to extinguish a candle burning on a pole in a nearby
river. Inevitably, some of the congregation leap into the river. The
Tabots are then taken back to the churches in procession, accompanied by
horsemen, while the festivities continue.
