Tana Qirqos

Tana Qirqos is an island located near the mouth of the Gumara River in Ethiopia's Lake Tana. Only Ethiopian Church monks live on the island, which is considered holy.

The monks believe the Tana Qirqos was formerly the location of the Ark of the Covenant's resting place. According to legend, Emperor Ezana, the first Ethiopian emperor to convert to Christianity, put the Ark there, and it remained there until it was relocated to the Mary of Zion church in Axum.

According to Graham Hancock, the Ark was transported from Elephantine to the island by the Jewish garrison in the 5th century BC. However, there is no history or tradition to back up this claim, and experts believe it is baseless.

In 1933, R.E. Cheesman visited Tana Qirqos and discovered a vast strata of rock near the island's northern end that appeared "like a great wall of masonry" 400 or 500 yards long and 100 feet high. The deposit "has been identified as olivine-bearing basalt," he wrote, and "in all likelihood the island lends the lake its name."

Location: Gumara River, Lake Tana, Ethiopia