Tembien is a place from which honey and butter are easily fetched, not in trickles but in abundance. It is also the birthplace of great war-winning heroes like Emperor Yohannes IV and Ras Allula Abba Nega. Many remember it for its unique and fascinating dance, 'Awris', but very few realize it is also the site of about twenty rock-hewn churches.

Tembien pervades a craggy land that guards about 20 rock-hewn churches. It is accessible on the Mekelle-Aksum road via the Abbi- Addi and Adwa towns.

The town of Abbi-Addi is situated in the depression and partially enclosed by a chain of mountains 90km from Mekelle.

The high plateau where the town of Hagereselam is perched runs northward and gradually narrows itself to a sheer sided cliff that, embraces Abbi-Addi in the west and Ammanuel Mai-Baha rock -hewn church and Worsege village in the east. Worsege is another war ground where the Ethiopians gained a momentous victory over the Italian Fascist force. The village and its cemetery are also worth visiting.

Northwest of Abbi-Addi, sits Mountain Debre Assa and the site of Abba Yohanni and the Gebriel Wukien rock-churches.

Abba Yohanni

The monastery of Abba Yohanni is situated 7.5 kms along the track that branches off 9 kms north of Abbi-Addi on the Abbi- Addi-Adwa road and leads to the small town of Menji. On the way, one can enjoy the view of Mount Debre Assa, a site of many medieval rock-hewn churches including Abba Yohanni and Gabriel Wukien.

The church is visible from quite a distance because of its white washed facade. At the base of the cliff are a number of old trees adding grace to the naked, approximately 300m-high cliff face. The church can only be approached from the west, leaving the monastic dwellings to the left. After an easy ascent of the rock hill one will encounter a rock slide. However, it is easily passable, thanks to the cement work finished in 1973. A dark and steep tunnel-like passage leads to the interior of the church.

The three-aisled and four-bayed church is 13.5m deep and about 12m wide. ''Here, the exceptional feature is that the four bays are completely different in width while the domes surmounting them are of widely different diameters and heights,'' reports David Buxton.

The ceiling of the second bay is 7m high while the domes of the fourth bay are close to 9m. They are ''as high as any rock-hewn interior,'' remarks Buxton. Its' seven freestanding and seven non-freestanding columns are tastefully carved and cruciform in design. A series of crosses are carved on the domes and there are finely hewn arches ''with rudimentary'' capitals. A masonry wall, a recent addition, blocks free passages from one end of the third bay to the other. A few very recent paintings in the masonry depict the twelve Apostles.

Abba Yohanni has an interesting history. It existed for nearly 500 years, before many Ethiopians and all the outside world new of its existence. Not until the year 1928, did Dr. Enzo Parona, reveal this church's location. The church is named, Abba Yohanni, after the founding monk, and is most famous throughout central Tigrai. This remarkable church has served the religious people of the region and in return, has deservedly won fame and respect as a true place of worship. This can truly be witnessed on its annual festival, which takes place on the 5th day of Hidar (14th of November in most years).

Gebriel Wukien

The church of St. Gebriel Wukien is located 16 kms northwest of the town of Abbi-Addi. It is just to the west of the newly constructed Abbi-Addi-Adwa road. The church is surrounded by an array of old trees. It is accessible by vehicle up to the base of the mountain and then followed by a 10-minute walk. The glamorous mountains of Workamba (literally Mountain of gold), Gheralta, and Adwa make the site an ideal place for scenery and rock-hewing.

There is a graveyard and hanging stone bells on the northern side of the churchyard. In front of the rock-hewn church, there is a structure, which probably dates from the time of the Italian occupation or later.

The hewn ambulatory has two freestanding pillars, 2.2m in height. The corridor measures 15m east and west and 15.5m, north and south.

The east and south wooden doors lead into the sanctuary. They are about 1.8m tall and 80 cm across. On the top of the eastern wall, there are three-square windows that provide light.

The three-aisled and four-bayed church is about 13m deep and 9m wide. It has eight huge freestanding pillars, 5m in height, with bracket capitals, at an interval of two meters. They are wonderfully hewn. Also, there are nine non-freestanding columns whose heights range from 2.5m to 3.4m. There are a number of crosses on the domes of both the sanctuary and the Holy of Holies. The panels of the Holy of Holies are decorated with patterns of half-moon arches similar to those of the Aksum stele.

The church is painstakingly hewn. It is an edifice that many admire. Ruth Plant, concludes, ''This is undoubtedly the most remarkable church that I saw in Tembien.'' Furthermore, she explains it is ''comparable'' with Mariam Wukro of Imba Seneyti and Medhane Alem Adikesho of Tsada Imba because of its ''remarkable detail'' and ''careful carving''.

Local tradition reports that the rock churches of Tembien were built during the reigns of Atse Dawit (1382-1411) and Atse Zera Yacob (1434-1468). Often, there is a wide gap between the opinions of scholars and local tradition regarding the dates of construction of the rock churches of Tigrai. However, scholars and tradition are in perfect agreement that the date of the construction of the church of Gebriel Wukien was the 15th century.

Mariam Hibiito

The church of Mariam Hibiito can be reached after a 40 minute gentle walk, east of the small village of Adiha. Adiha is only 15 kms southeast of the town of Workamba and 36 kms from Abbi-Addi. The turn off to Workamba is 18 kms north of Abbi-Addi on the Abbi-Addi-Adwa road. Any four-wheel drive vehicle can drive to the village across the sandy but green, seemingly fertile low land. The view of the escarpment, which lies to the east of the track and goes all the way to Gheralta, is stunning. If God had a blue print for mountains with the most extraordinary scenery in mind, then these mountains are the ones!

Mariam Hibiito (literally the hidden Mary) is indeed hidden in a foothill and is surrounded by old green trees. In many respects, the exterior of the church resembles Medhane Alem Adi Kesho of Tsada Imba. Similar to Medhane Alem AdiKesho, it has four freestanding exterior columns supporting the 4m high roof. The columns are built in an interval of 3m. Its roof is supported by the parent rock. The similarity of these two churches is vivid. David Buxton commented, ''In all probability Mariam Hibiito was inspired at a much later period by Medhane Alem itself or by some similar church, whether rock-hewn or built.''

There is a cloister running from the south to north end of the westward facing church. There are three doors but only the central door at the top leads to the sanctuary. There is evidence of unsuccessful efforts to construct a dome on the ceiling of the cloister.

After, the church entrance there is a pool of water. According to the priests of the church, the water remains at the same level and its therapeutic effects are beyond belief. The interior of the church is dark and wet. This church has six non-freestanding arched columns supporting the ceiling and is 13m deep and 9m wide.

According to tradition the church is believed to have been built during the reign of Atse Zera Yacob in the 15th century.

Ammannuel Mai-Baha

Situated in the mountainside of mount Zala, the rock-hewn church of Ammanuel Mai-Baha can be reached after a 16kms drive south east of the town of Workamba, alongside 45 minutes walk. It can also be reached after a 13 kms drive west of Hagere Selam following the old Mekelle-Abbi-Addi road. The church is just to the left of the path.

The front part of the structure is white washed. There is a terrace of about 3m beyond which one encounters a slide of approximately 120m.

Internally, this three-aisled and three-bayed rock-hewn church is 9m wide, 10m deep and 4.5m high. It has four massive freestanding pillars cruciform in design and six pillars in relief. A beautiful cross can also be seen on one of the domes.

The nearby village of Mai-Baha is the birthplace of Bezbiz Kassa who later became Emperor Yohannes IV, the king of kings of Ethiopia (1872-1889). The emperor is renowned for heroically defending the country from foreign invaders. It is said that he was baptized in this church.

The road that connects Abbi-Addi and Adwa towns is spectacular. After, twenty-five kilometers, the track descends steeply into a gorge.

The highway meanders to climb the precipice and finally stretches out over a wide plateau and agrarian ground. On the route to Adwa, situated in a bowl-featured height, the vicinity is changed by a block of rock-pillars. The journey amidst this unspoiled environment offers a noteworthy experience.