Scottish Episcopal Church Press Release 05 December 2001

Edinburgh worshippers have discovered a sacred Ethiopian artefact hidden in their church cupboard - 130 years after it was seized by British soldiers in a bloody battle.

The Rev John McLuckie found the 'Tabot' in a battered leather box while he was looking for a communion set at St John the Evangelist, Princes Street.

The canny clergyman - who has worked in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia's capital - instantly recognised the carved piece of wood, which is traditionally kept wrapped in cloths at the centre of an Ethiopian Orthodox church.

It is only ever seen by the priest and represents the Ark of the Covenant, which the Israelites used to carry the Ten Commandments as they travelled to the Promised Land. Ethiopian Christians believe they still possess the original Ark.

St John's has now decided to return the Tabot to Ethiopia, and plans to hand it over to a party of priests and embassy officials early in the new year.

The return is a major event for Ethiopians who have long campaigned for the restoration of state treasures stolen during the British battle of the mountain fortress of Magdala (or Maqdala) in 1868.

"We are hugely grateful to St John's for offering to return the Tabot to us," said Fisseha Adugna the country's Chargé d'Affaires in London. "This is a very significant act.

"Ethiopia has lost so much of its heritage and this is the first step towards having it restored."

Soldiers surrounded the fort in 1868 after Ethiopian Emperor Tewodros (or Theodore) II sparked a diplomatic storm by imprisoning a number of British citizens. The fortress fell to the attackers and the Emperor committed suicide.

An American journalist on the scene described how British troops stormed the fort, stripped the Emperor's body and loaded up 15 elephants and nearly 200 mules with plunder.

After the raid, parts of the treasure were auctioned off to senior officers to raise "prize money" for the victorious British soldiers. One officer bought the Tabot, set it on a plinth and presented it to his home church - St John. Much of the horde, which included more than 1,000 sacred manuscripts, gold crowns and processional crosses, ended up in London's British and Victoria & Albert museums.

The UK has made one half-hearted attempt to return part of the treasure over the years. King George V presented Empress Zawditu with one crown when the now-famous Ethiopian Regent Haile Selassie visited London in 1924.

This is thought to be the first attempt to return part of the plunder since then.

Historians have described the Magdala plunder as Ethiopia's Elgin Marbles. But Ethiopians see their loss as more serious than the Greeks' - because of the size of the horde and the violent way in which it was taken from the fortress.

Emperor Tewodros II has become a central figure in Ethiopian history - held up as a man who tried to unite the country and preferred death over the dishonour of surrender.