Ethiopian quest to re-create ancient manuscripts | Arts and Culture

Armed with a bamboo ink pen and a steady hand, Ethiopian Orthodox priest Zelalem Mola carefully copied text in the ancient Ge’ez language from a religious book onto a goatskin parchment.

This painstaking task is preserving an ancient tradition, all the while bringing him closer to God, the 42-year-old said.

At the Hamere Berhan Institute in Addis Ababa, priests and lay worshippers work by hand to replicate sometimes centuries-old religious manuscripts and sacred artwork.

The parchments, pens and inks are all prepared at the institute, which lies in the Piasa district in the historic…