Lalibela entry at Wikipedia
World Cultural Heritage by Ann Mette Heindorff
Lalibela, a town in mountainous northern Ethiopia, is considered one of the nation's most holy cities, second only to Aksum, and an important place of Ethiopian Christianity, a pilgrimage center containing 11 medieval monolithic cave churches (including the famous Bete Giyorgis). Built in the 13th century during the reign of Saint Lalibela (of the Zagwe Dynasty), this New Jerusalem
was a response to the capture of Jerusalem by Muslims, with many of its historic buildings takings both names and layouts from its model city.