Gishen Debre Kerbe

Gishen Debre Kerbe
ግሸን ደብረ ከርቤ
Mountain Amba Geshen
Gishen Debre Kerbe is located in Ethiopia
Gishen Debre Kerbe
Location within Ethiopia
Monastery information
Other names
  • Debre Kerbe
  • Debre Gishen
DenominationEthiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church
Established5th century
Dedicated toTrue Cross
Controlled churches
  • Gishen Maryam
  • Gishen Gabriel
  • Gishen Michael
  • Gishen, God the Holy Father
People
Founder(s)Kaleb
Important associated figures
Site
LocationAmbassel, South Wollo Zone, Amhara Region
CountryEthiopia
Coordinates11°31′14″N 39°21′38″E / 11.520433°N 39.360672°E / 11.520433; 39.360672
Public accessYes

Gishen Debre Kerbe (Ge'ez: ግሸን ደብረ ከርቤ), also simply known as Debre Kerbe or Debre Gishen, is an Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church monastery located in Ambassel woreda, in South Wollo Zone, Amhara Region, Ethiopia, 483 kilometers north of Addis Ababa. It was founded by Aksumite king Kaleb in the 5th century with the auspice of Nine Saints from Byzantine Empire.

According to tradition, Gishen Debre Kerbe was one of the Ethiopian Orthodox Churches to receive piece of True Cross transported through Saint Helena of Constantinople, through which Meskel festival is the basis festivity of the church. According to some manuscripts of Ethiopian Orthodox, the piece of True Cross was brought by Emperor Zara Yaqob with whom Jesus crucified to "Gishen Amba" and buried under the church of God. The church is known for receiving mass pilgrimages per year. According to the World Health Organization (WHO) in 2010, the monastery received 350,000–500,000 pilgrims and tourists per each year.