ANGOLELA – Sahle Silassies’s armory house which is over 180 years old cave is in danger of being torn down and in desperate need of repair, said Culture and Tourism Office of Bassona Woreda (CTOBW).
Tourism Destination Development Expert for CTOBW Bizuayehu Seid told The Ethiopian Herald that: “The cave that had served as Sahle Slassies’s armory house and it also had six sections on the left and the right, but they are nowhere visible on the line. In addition, the upper part of the tunnel is still breaking down.”
He, therefore, said it must be repaired immediately before it is fully destroyed and difficult to repair. As to him, a fence has been built in a bid to protect the cave temporarily by the donations of Ethiopian Authority for Research and Conservation of Cultural Heritages (EARCCH) and the local community.
The experts recalled that the city of the area was the second town of Showa and was the residence of the emperor’s family and soldiers. He stated that it is a place of great historical, natural and religious attractions in the area. “This is the place where Emperor Menelik and Fit Awurari Gebeyehu were born. It is the site of a shrub/Shola tree that is over 180 years old has been planted in the year of King Sahle Silassie and he also grew up here drinking Teji and milk.”
There is also a Korch tree that imports from Egypt by Emperor Menelik and it helps to prevent lightning protection, moreover, Fit Awurari Gebeyehu’s skeleton is found there, he said. For his part, Tourism Expert at Bassona Woreda, Anteneh Dessalegn said the cave various activities have been undertaking to repair the cave in collaboration with the Federal Heritage Preservation Authority and the Amhara State Heritage Preservation Office,
So far 400,000 Birr has been allocated to repair the cave. A sample was taken to study how to fix the cave through the federal government. But, the money has not been made available yet. There are parts hidden below and there are plans to get them into metal enclosures, he noted. The cave is half-circular, with a height of 12.5 meters high, five feet six inches wide, and 12 meters high and it was built in Greece, 1805-1840E.C.
The Ethiopian Herald, March 10/2020
BY ESSEYE MENGISTE
