Top 10 Facts about Makeda, Queen of Sheba, Ethiopia

Nigist (Queen) Makeda of Sheba photo by G. Newnes Wikimedia 

Top 10 Facts about Makeda, Queen of Sheba, Ethiopia

Although her kingdom is described as being both to the south and to the east of Israel, scholars generally believe she ruled an area in northern Africa roughly equivalent to modern-day Ethiopia, a country which claims she is the ancestor of their long-ruling Solomonic dynasty. Tradition places Makeda, Queen of  Sheba date of birth in the latter half of the 11th century BCE and her death in approximately 955 BCE.

The Old Testament of the Bible, the Qur’an of Islam, and the Ethiopian Kebra Nagast are three of the most important ancient sources that attest to the Queen’s visit to Solomon, King of Israel and the son of the fabled Goliath-slayer David, in the 10th century BCE (Glory of the Kings). These three viewpoints on the Queen combine to paint a picture of one of the influential, comparatively uncommon female queens of antiquity.

Here are the Top 10 Facts about Makeda, Queen of Sheba, Ethiopia

1. Queen Makeda traveled to Jerusalem and has a love affair with King Solomon

A visit of the Arabian Queen of Sheba at the court of Biblical King Solomon of Jerusalem. photo by Edward Poynter Wikimedia

The Kebra Nagast claimed that Queen Makeda visited Jerusalem and fell in love with King Solomon. After giving birth to her son Menelik, Makeda departs for the land of Sheba. When Menelik becomes 22, he leaves Ethiopia where he was raised to go to Jerusalem to meet his father.

The Ark of the Covenant journeys to Ethiopia with Solomon’s son and the firstborn sons of the elders of Israel. Many Ethiopians still hold that the Ark of the Covenant is housed within the Chapel of the Tablet next to the Church of Maryam Tsion in Aksum, Ethiopia.

2. The dynasty established by Za Besi Angabo in 1370 BC included Queen Makeda as a member

Some sources claim that Queen Makeda belonged to the dynasty that Za Besi Angabo established in 1370 BC. Prince Nourad, Makeda’s brother, was supposed to be the family’s choice to rule Aksum, but his untimely death caused her to take the throne instead. She reportedly held the throne for more than 50 years in the Ethiopian monarchy.  Makeda is said to have ruled from 1013 to 982 B.C. according to the official Ethiopian monarchy chronicle from 1922, with dates based on the Ethiopian calendar. 

3. Makeda, The Queen of Sheba Ethiopia has been referenced in the Bible

Solomon and Queen of Sheba photo by unknown Author Wikimedia

The Bible’s book of Kings contains a legend about the Queen of Sheba. To test the fabled intelligence of the King with the caravan of riches, the Queen of Sheba traveled to Jerusalem.  Queen was satisfied with King Solomon’s responses to all of her inquiries, and after they exchanged gifts, she left her realm.

4.  Queen of Sheba Makeda has been considered the Mother of the Ethiopian Nations

Ethiopians view their country as God’s chosen nation and the last resting place for the Ark of the Covenant. And they believe that Sheba and her child were the means by which it arrived there, according to the reading of the Kebra Nagast. Because they sprung directly from Sheba, who is regarded as the mother of their people, the rulers of the kingdom have a divine right to rule.

5. There are statues of the Queen of Sheba in enormous Gothic cathedrals

The Queen of Sheba brought gifts to Solomon photo by Master of the legend of St. Barbara Wikimedia 

Several significant Gothic cathedrals, including Chartres, Rheims, Amiens, and Wells, contain sculptures of the Queen of Sheba. Stained glass windows and doorjamb decorations in the cathedrals of Strasbourg, Chartres, Rochester, and Canterbury from the 12th-century feature artistic interpretations.

The image of a black woman in enamel at Klosterneuburg Monastery is also a work of Romanesque art. The King’s College Chapel in Cambridge has a window with a picture of the Queen of Sheba standing before Solomon while submerged in water. 

6. The Ring of Solomon features The Queen of Sheba as a character

The Ring of Solomon, the fourth novel in Jonathan Stroud’s Bartimaeus Sequence, features The Queen of Sheba as a character. She is described as an egotistical queen who, out of fear for Solomon’s immense authority, orders the captain of her royal guard to kill him, which launches the plot of the book.

7. Queen of Sheba Makeda represented the Gentile Church

Nigist (Queen) Makeda of Sheba photo by G. Newnes Wikimedia

The Queen of Sheba and King Solomon was not widely discussed until the 12th century. Sheba’s encounter with Solomon while delivering valuable presents foreshadowed the Magi’s devotion because, in Christian imagery, Solomon stood in for Jesus and Sheba for the gentile Church. Sheba enthroned, on the other hand, symbolized the virgin’s coronation. 

8. She was born to the guy who killed the fabled serpent king Arwe

Queen of Sheba was the offspring of the guy who kills the fabled snake-king Arwe. He was said to be the ancestor of the Ethiopian dynasty that still rules the country today. The Abyssinian account is much more detailed, but it doesn’t include the Queen’s hairy legs or anything else that would cast a negative light on her. 

9. The Queen of Sheba Makeda  ruled the Ethiopian Kingdom for more than 50 years

King of Yemen, Al Hudhad bin Shurahbil, visits his cousin Balqis, who shall become the queen of Sheba. Photo by Unknown author Wikimedia

Prince Nourad, Makeda’s brother, was supposed to be the family’s choice to rule Aksum, but his untimely death caused her to take the throne instead. She reportedly held the throne for more than 50 years in the Ethiopian monarchy.  Makeda has been said to have ruled from 1013 to 982 B.C. according to the official Ethiopian monarchy chronicle from 1922, with dates based on the Ethiopian calendar. 

10. Also the story of the Queen of Sheba in the Quran has some similarities with Bible and other Jewish sources

There are some parallels between the Bible and other Jewish sources and the Quran’s account of the Queen of Sheba.  Al-Tabari, Al-Zamakhshari, and Al-Baydawi are a few Muslim commentators who add to the account. Here, they assert that the name of the Queen is Bilqs (Arabic: ), which is most likely derived from Greek:, romanized as palkis or the Hebraized pilegesh (“concubine”). The Queen of Sheba is referred to in the Quran as “a lady controlling them” (Arabic: ), but is not given a name. 

Also, Read more on the 10 Most Famous Queens in History & Top 10 Most  Beautiful Queens in History, &5 famous Irish Kings and Queens  &5 Most Famous Ethiopian people