Bar Kribus

Ruhr-Universität Bochum, CERES - Center for Religious Studies, Post-Doc

The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Archaeology/Ancient Near East, Graduate Student

Ruhr University, Bochum, Center for Religious Studies, Researcher

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Bar Kribus is an archaeologist specializing in Late Antique and medieval Ethiopian archaeology and the history and material culture of the Betä Ǝsraʾel (Ethiopian Jews). He was an area manager at the Naples University l'Orientale excavations in Seglamen, Ethiopia, directed by Prof. Rodolfo Fattovich (2010-2013), and served as the ceramics specialist for the Hebrew University excavations in Tiberias, directed by Dr. Katia Cytryn-Silverman (2011-2016) and for the German Protestant Institute of Archaeology excavations in Jerusalem, directed by Prof. Dieter Vieweger (2014). His MA thesis, under the guidance of Prof. Joseph Patrich and Prof. Steven Kaplan, deals with the impact of pre-Christian cult and culture on Christianity in the Kingdom of Aksum (Late Antique Ethiopia). His PhD dissertation, also under the guidance of Prof. Steven Kaplan and Prof. Joseph Patrich, deals with the monastic movement of the Betä Ǝsraʾel, with an emphasis on Betä Ǝsraʾel monastic material culture, dwelling places and practices. A central component of this research is an archaeological survey of Betä Ǝsraʾel monastic sites in Ethiopia. He was awarded a PhD in Archaeology by the Hebrew University of Jerusalem in 2020.
From 2015, Bar was an associate of the ERC Project “Jews and Christians in the East: Strategies of Interaction between the Mediterranean and the Indian Ocean” (JewsEast), and from 2018, a full member of the project. He currently holds a postdoctoral fellowship of the Minerva Stiftung, at the Center for Religious Studies of the Ruhr University, Bochum (2020-2022). His current research deals with Betä Ǝsraʾel political autonomy in the Səmen Mountains of northern Ethiopia and its wars with the Christian Solomonic kingdom (15th-17th century), with a focus on the material culture and geographical aspects of these wars.

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Africa, North: Medieval Ethiopia

Elsevier eBooks, 2023

St. Yared in the Sǝmen Mountains of northern Ethiopia: The Ethiopian Orthodox and Betä Ǝsraʾel (Ethiopian Jewish) religious sites

Afriques, Nov 8, 2022

The Betä Ǝsraʾel and Ethiopian Orthodox Christians did not commonly recognize the same post-bibli... more The Betä Ǝsraʾel and Ethiopian Orthodox Christians did not commonly recognize the same post-biblical individuals as holy men. One striking exception is Yared, perhaps the most renowned local saint of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church, traditionally the composer of numerous elements of its liturgical music and hymns. The Betä Ǝsraʾel identify Yared as a member of their community, and holy sites of both groups, dedicated to him, existed in the Sǝmen Mountains of northern Ethiopia, in significant proximity to each other. These mountains are a unique test-case for interreligious interaction involving the Betä Ǝsraʾel, since rather than being a minority group under Christian rule, the Betä Ǝsraʾel of the Sǝmen were, from the 15th to the 17th century, politically autonomous and at times engaged in military conflict with the Christian Solomonic state. Yared is also recognized as a holy man by members of a third religious group residing in northern Ethiopia—the Kǝmant. This article will examine the layout and characteristics of the sites dedicated to him in the Sǝmen Mountains, as well as the nature of the religious activities conducted in them, and examine their roles in the sacred geography of the region.

Jewish–Christian Interaction in Ethiopia as Reflected in Sacred Geography: Expressing Affinity with Jerusalem and the Holy Land and Comemorating the Betä Ǝsraʾel–Solomonic Wars

Affinity with the Holy Land, and especially with Jerusalem, is a common theme in the sacred geogr... more Affinity with the Holy Land, and especially with Jerusalem, is a common theme in the sacred geography of Abrahamic religions, expressed in prayer houses and holy sites. This theme was especially prominent in Solomonic Ethiopia, both among Ethiopian Orthodox Christians and among the Betä Ǝsraʾel (Ethiopian Jews). This article will examine expressions of affinity with Jerusalem and the Holy Land in Betä Ǝsraʾel holy sites and religious architecture, and shed light on the interreligious discourse related to such expressions, as well as other forms of interreligious discourse expressed by these two communities in sacred geography. This will demonstrate that in Solomonic Ethiopia, affinity with the Holy Land was a core element in expressing an Israelite identity. Both the Betä Ǝsraʾel and the Ethiopian Orthodox Christians saw themselves as the biological and spiritual heirs of the biblical Israelites, and this concept played a key role in shaping their sacred geography to allude to biblical sites and events. This will also demonstrate that, building upon a vocabulary with common features, the sacred geography and religious architecture of each community was a means to express its unique identity. As such, it provides insight regarding differences in religious concepts.

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