5551 x 3607 px | 47 x 30,5 cm | 18,5 x 12 inches | 300dpi
Date de la prise de vue:
2006
Lieu:
Addis Abeba, Ethiopia
Informations supplémentaires:
Meskel Square (often transliterated as Meskal or Mesqel) is the main square in Addis Abeba, the capital city of Ethiopia. It is often a site for public gathering or for demonstrations and festivals, notably, the Meskel Festival from which it takes its name. The Meskel Festival has been celebrated for over 1, 600 years. The word "Meskel" means "cross" and the festival commemorates the moment when the true cross, upon which Christ was crucified, was revealed to Empress Helena of Constantinople, mother of Constantine the Great. The festival is also seen as a moment to welcome in the spring season in September, after the main rainy season, by displaying the distinctive yellow Meskel daisies which flower at that time of the year. Thousands gather at the Square annually on 17 Meskerem in the Ethiopian calendar (September 27 in the Gregorian calendar), with celebrations in Addis Abeba beginning in the early afternoon when a procession bearing flaming torches approaches Meskel Square from various directions. A burning pyramid (demera) is located in the center and is circled by priests in brightly colored cloaks, students, brass bands, and the army carrying around giant crosses and torches. They set the pyramid alight with their torches, and the burning pyramid is kept ablaze until dawn until the celebrations through the night have ended.
