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Former Archbishop of Canterbury calls for return to Ethiopia of sacred religious tablet

22 September 2023

Creative Commons

An Ethiopian Priest carrying a Tabot

An Ethiopian Priest carrying a Tabot

A FORMER Archbishop of Canterbury, Lord Carey, has renewed his call for the repatriation from Westminster Abbey of a religious tablet sacred to the Ethiopian Orthodox Church (News, 7 September 2007).

His appeal comes as a similar tablet, known as a tabot, was due to be handed back in a ceremony in London yesterday. Lord Carey has repeatedly called on the Abbey — and the British Museum, which holds 11 other tabots — to return them.

The artefacts — small representations of the tablet of stone on which God is said to have inscribed the Ten Commandments — were looted in 1868 when British forces seized the Abyssinian fortress of Magdala. They are considered too sacred to be seen by lay people, and can be handled and viewed only by Ethiopian Orthodox priests. The Abbey example is not on public view.

“I am very keen to see the tabots back in their own land and churches,” Lord Carey said. “I asked a question about this in the House of Lords some months ago, which stirred a lively debate. My hope is that the British Museum and Westminster Abbey will eventually return the tabots they have. What is the point of holding on to sacred items that are locked away in vaults and never seen? The moral thing is to return them to their rightful owners.”

Lord Carey is seeking a meeting with the Dean of Westminster, the Very Revd Dr David Hoyle, to discuss a solution.

The tabot due for return yesterday, at the Athenaeum Club in London, was bought online for a few hundred pounds from a seller who did not realise its potential value.

Also being repatriated is a lock of hair from the Ethiopian Prince Alemayehu, who was brought to Britain and became part of Queen Victoria’s household. He died from pleurisy, aged 18, in 1879, and is buried in St George’s Chapel, Windsor.

Tahir Shah, the founder of the Scheherazade Foundation, which campaigned for repatriation and is facilitating the handover, told The Daily Telegraph: “It is impossible to overstate what these objects mean in Ethiopia. This is a huge moment for Ethiopia. The last time a tabot was returned, a public holiday was declared.

“Returning the lock of Prince Alemayehu’s hair is all about respect, respect to a proud people. The imperial line may no longer be in power, but it is widely revered.” Requests for his repatriation have been refused by Buckingham Palace on the grounds that exhuming his remains would disturb other burial sites.

Mr Shah believes that the artefact’s voluntary return will increase pressure for the repatriation of the other tabots. “They could potentially realise an astonishing level of diplomatic and cultural good will by returning these altar tablets without delay.”

A Westminster Abbey spokeswoman said that the Abbey was “very aware of the importance and significance of the Ethiopian tabot which we have in our care. It is kept in a very sacred place within the church, properly covered and hidden from view. We have no current plans to change these arrangements.”

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