Antika - Ethiopian Airport Art as a Construction of Tradition

In Africa, Ethiopia constitutes a specific cultural area. Over the centuries, different cultures of the Mediterranean and Red Seas basins influenced this region. One of the crucial factors which contributed to constructing Ethiopia’s culture1 as it is today, was a fact that in the 4th century Ezana, a ruler of Aksum – a cradle of Ethiopian statehood and civilisation – accepted Christianity as a state religion. This religion conditioned further development of the culture. Inhabitants of the Ethiopian highlands lived in a specific mountainous region, what contributed to isolation of their culture. However, it does not mean that Ethiopians remained cut from their neighbours and different styles of life.