Collection of Ethiopian icons

The Institute of Eastern Christian Studies obtained a large collection of Ethiopian icons after the closure of the Nijmeegs Volkenkundig Museum in 2004. The icons were originally collected in the 1960s and 1970s by A.M. Heidt. The collection contains almost five hundred colorful paintings on parchment, which depict Ethiopian religion and everyday life.

During the academic year 2019-2020, Ayla Kivits, master's student in art history, conducted research into the collection of Ethiopian icons. She wrote about the provenance of the collection, the tradition of Ethiopian folk art and two masterpieces: the icon of King David and the icon depicting the visit of the Queen of Sheba to King Solomon.

Art historian Loes van Beuningen has furthered the research in 2020. She wrote texts about the equestrian icons, which can be found in great numbers, the prayer scroll, and the icons that illustrate the important Ethiopian Christian festivals Timkat and Meskal.

You can read the articles written by Ayla and Loes on the dedicated website: https://ethiopische-iconen.net/