THE BURIAL OF HAILE SELASSIE
2010-03-15The twenty-one photographs in this exhibition document a remarkable event in recent Ethiopian history, one that provoked fresh debate about both Haile Selassie and Ethiopia’s troubled political history. The photographs shown here explore the tensions between royal, state and religious hierarchies surrounding the ceremony, as well as more personal expressions of loyalty by some of the participants.
Haile Selassie was crowned Emperor of Abyssinia in 1930, but shortly afterwards fled into exile when Mussolini invaded the country in 1935. Despite his appeal to the League of Nations for intervention, the European powers wished to avoid conflict with Italy. Haile Selassie returned triumphantly in 1941 after a military campaign ousted the Italian forces, and the country was renamed Ethiopia.
Exhibition runs through to November 21st, 2010
Pitt Rivers Museum
South Parks Road
Oxford
OX1 3PP
