Debre Berhan Selassie

Despite the walls of Debre Berhan Selassie hosting the most vibrant ecclesiastical artwork in the nation, it's the ceiling that captures the most visitors' imagination. Think of Mona Lisa's mysterious smile and multiply it 104 times over! Yes, each of the 104 winged Ethiopian cherubs dotting the beamed ceiling seem to have slightly different, but equally quizzical expressions.

Full of all the colour, life, wit and humanity of Ethiopian art at its best, the walls provide a compendium of Ethiopian saints, martyrs and lore. The devilish Bosch-like depiction of Hell has to be our favourite. A close second is the Prophet Mohammed atop a camel being led by a devil. Although most paintings within the church are historically and happily attributed to the 17th-century artist Haile Meskel, this can't be the case because the remarkable rectangular church of today only dates back to the late 18th century. The original church was circular (its foundations are still visible) and was created in the 1690s by Iyasu I.

A large stone wall with 12 rounded towers surrounds the compound and represents the 12 apostles. The larger 13th tower (entrance gate) symbolises Christ and is shaped to resemble the Lion of Judah. If you have a keen eye, you'll be able to spot the lion's tail in the wall west of the church. Some historians hypothesise the symbolic architecture is evidence the emperor planned to bring the Ark of the Covenant here from Aksum.

Theories aside, it's clear Debre Berhan Selassie or 'Trinity at the Mount of Light' is one of Ethiopia's most remarkable churches.

Flash photography inside the church is forbidden. Priests offer tours but a small contribution for the church should be left afterwards.

The church lies around 2km northeast of the Royal Enclosure.