Travel to Israel

In Search of King Solomon's Mines

Format: Paperback
Author: Tahir Shah
ReleaseDate: 22 September, 2004
Publisher: Arcade Publishing
Rating:

"The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeing new landscapes, but in having new eyes."
He speculates that the mysterious Ophir the Bible describes as the location of the mines may likely be found "just a short boat trip down the Red Sea" in Ethiopa, a land with extraordinary reserves of gold and ostensibly the home of the Queen of Sheba. After coaxing a shopkeeper in Jerusalem's Old City to part with his "not for sale" heirloom treasure map for a whopping six hundred shekels, Afghan author Tahir Shah sets off on an adventure to find the legendary gold mines of King Solomon. Known as Makeda in Ethiopian texts, the Queen of Sheba, according to Ethiopian legend, purportedly bore a son, Menelik, by King Solomon through whom the imperial family of Ethiopia descends.

Tahir journeys Ethiopia first to Addis Ababa, south to Kebra Mengist and Bedakaysa, east to Harar and Dire Dawa, north to Lalibela, the Danakil Desert, and Debra Damo, then west to Tallul Wallel. Along the way, the reader comes to know a little about the land and the people of Ethiopia. Where even a haircut or a bus ride or encounters with guide-dogs for the blind are laden with danger, Tahir insists "the thrill lies in surviving".

Somehow the discordance between Shah's engaging brusque humorous style and the stories that reveal to the reader the bleak reality of existence for many Ethiopians works, as he makes the reader want to laugh, sigh, and cry all at once. I highly recommend this colorful travelogue/adventure story/geography-culture-history book as it is an exciting, entertaining, and educational read.

beauty in poorness
Luego, muestra la pobreza enorme de una zona mayoritaria del territorio etýope, la riqueza situacional de pequeýos sectores asociados a la minerýa del oro y el efecto negativo de la riqueza o la promesa de riqueza repentina sobre la fidelidad a las tradiciones y religiones. La býsqueda del oro de Salomýn acarrea la cuasi prueba de que, efectivamente, mucho del oro de la antiguedad egipcia y hebrea provino de la antigua Abisinia, lo mismo que la reina de Saba. . . . Es un libro que acarrea tristeza con su lectura y donde Tahir Shah, porfýa con su gigantesca capacidad para exponerse a dificultades y, en este caso, de hacerlas subrir a su ayudante. Un descarnado vistazo de esa desconocida y prejuiciada Africa.

A delightfully entertaining trip to Ethiopia
The owner of the shop informs the author that the map depicts King Solomon's mines in Africa, the mines from which gold was extracted to build his famed temple. In a shop close to the Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem the author spots a map. The fact that the map was not genuine (Shah finds an identical copy in the same shop soon after) does not deter Shah from embarking on his journey. Like many other travelogues by Shah, it is the experience but not just the goal that counts.

This is not to say that the author wanders about aimlessly. Quite to the contrary, he even risks his life for his quest, for e. g. in crossing deserts in northern Ethiopia with the infamous (for killing) Danakil tribe. As a review on the back cover of the paperback edition puts it: ". . . Shah wins you over with the mad purity of his quest. " I can't agree more.

Apart from the very beginning, the book situates itself in Ethiopia. From the country's epicenter and capital Addis Ababa some of the major sites the author visits: are Kebra Mengist to the south, Harar to the east, Lalibela (where the churches carved from crevices -- like Petra of Jordan -- are located), Debra Damo (the monastery located on top of a mountain top plateau) and Mekele to the north, and Tullu Wallel to the west.

The rich historical and anecdotal background Shah provides together with his wonderful sense of humor make for a powerful concoction. A group of eccentric characters make appearances, Shah reveals his reverence for Victorian era adventurers, and at times ponders over why his job is so much difficult compared to others'. There was hardly a dull moment during my read.

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