Skip to main content
Princeton Ethiopian, Eritrean, and Egyptian Miracles of Mary (PEMM) project

Research & Lessons

Research Post

The African Library of Stories about the Virgin Mary

October 6, 2023

by Wendy Laura Belcher, Jeremy R. Brown, Mehari Worku, Dawit Muluneh, and Evgeniia Lambrinaki

What is the Täʾammərä Maryam (Miracles of Mary) that serves as the base of the PEMM project?

Read More
Lesson Plan

Miracles of Mary Paintings about Halos

June 3, 2024

by Wendy Laura Belcher

Paintings of Mary and other saints depict them with a halo. But these haloes range in size, shape, and color over time and place and painter.

Read More
Lesson Plan

Miracles of Mary Stories about Paintings, Icons, and Other Arts

October 6, 2023

by Wendy Laura Belcher

The Ethiopian Miracles of Mary is one of the most beautifully illustrated manuscripts in the Ethiopian canon, or indeed anywhere. About 10 percent of all Marian stories are illustrated in the Ethiopian tradition.

Read More
Lesson Plan

Miracles of Mary Stories about Gender & Power

January 31, 2024

by Wendy Laura Belcher

Many miracles of Mary stories are about the issues that women face in societies where they do not hold much power. The focus is often on their role as family members (especially as mothers) but some stories feature women leaders or rebels.

Read More
Research Post

Ethiopian Orthodox Church Educational System

February 16, 2024

by Mehari Worku with Wendy Laura Belcher

The Ethiopian Orthodox Church has an ancient system of education, with many schools for learning the church's literature, practices, rhetoric, and interpretation.

Read More
Research Post

Miracles of Mary Most Common Stories

October 6, 2023

by PEMM Team

What are the most common stories in the Ethiopian Miracles of Mary manuscripts?

Read More
Research Post

Miracles of Mary Story Dating

by PEMM Staff

PEMM was launched to collect information about the dating of the Ethiopian Miracles of Mary stories. When is the earliest attestation of each tale (in which century does each first appear)?

Read More
Research Post

Miracles of Mary Story Provenance

by PEMM Staff

PEMM was launched to collect information about the provenance of the Ethiopian Miracles of Mary stories. It is often wrongly said that they were all from Europe. In fact, over 90 percent are from Africa.

Read More
Research Post

Focus on a Miracle of Mary Story: Part 2: Au sujet de l'anthropophage

January 1, 2004

by Gérard Colin

A French translation of the Cannibal of Qemer story, based on the new version in TGS, which gives the cannibal a backstory, repentance, and a name.

Read More
Research Post

The African Library of Paintings of the Virgin Mary

October 6, 2023

by Wendy Laura Belcher, Jeremy R. Brown, Mehari Worku, Dawit Muluneh, and Evgeniia Lambrinaki

What is the history of the paintings that appear with Miracles of Mary stories?

Read More
Lesson Plan

Miracles of Mary Stories about Ethiopian Kings

March 25, 2024

by Wendy Laura Belcher

Quite a few of the Marian miracle stories are about miracles that the Virgin Mary performed for the kings of Ethiopia. This alternate history gives insight into how Ethiopians conceived of particular Ethiopian kings.

Read More
Lesson Plan

Miracles of Mary Stories about Animals, Plants, and Nature

January 31, 2024

by Wendy Laura Belcher

Many stories about Mary are about animals and nature, sometimes in surprising ways. Studying these stories brings much to light about how human beings have viewed the environment over time and space.

Read More
Lesson Plan

Miracles of Mary Stories on Wealth & Privilege

January 31, 2024

by Wendy Laura Belcher

Many stories about Mary address wealth and the unfair advantages of privilege, sometimes in problematic ways, sometimes in revolutionary ways. Studying these stories brings much to light about how human beings have viewed disparity over time and space.

Read More
Research Post

Miracles of Mary Story Characters

September 1, 2023

by PEMM Staff

PEMM was launched to collect information about the characters in the Ethiopian Miracles of Mary stories. Are men or women protagonists more common? Young or old? Which character professions are most common (e.g., monks or farmers)?

Read More
Research Post

Miracles of Mary Story Themes

by PEMM Staff

PEMM was launched to collect information about the themes of the Ethiopian Miracles of Mary stories.

Read More
Research Post

Miracles of Mary Story Recensions

by PEMM Staff

PEMM was launched to collect information about the recensions of the Ethiopian Miracles of Mary stories. How did individual Ethiopian Marian miracle stories change over time and region? Did they get longer or shorter?

Read More
Research Post

Focus on a Miracle of Mary Story: Part 1: The Cannibal of Qemer

January 1, 2020

by Wendy Laura Belcher

Perhaps the most famous Miracle of Mary story in Ethiopia is the story of the Cannibal of Qemer, a man who eats seventy-eight people, including his own wife and children. The story is analyzed and translated here.

Read More
Research Post

Focus on a Miracle of Mary Story: Part 3: “El Caníbal de Qəmər” de la Täˀammərä Maryam (Los Milagros de Santa María)

February 6, 2021

by Carlina Green

Carlina Green became fascinated with the story of the Cannibal of Qemər from the Täˀammərä Maryam. She wanted to share the story with a friend in Mexico and so decided to translate it using the English translation Wendy Laura Belcher and Michael Kleiner had made accessible on their website. She kindly provided the translation to PEMM to make the story accessible to other Spanish-speakers.

Read More
Research Post

Understanding Miracles of Mary Paintings

October 6, 2023

by Wendy Laura Belcher, Jeremy R. Brown, Mehari Worku, Dawit Muluneh, and Evgeniia Lambrinaki

How should you read a Miracles of Mary painting?

Read More
Lesson Plan

Miracles of Mary Stories about Disability & Healing

January 30, 2024

by Wendy Laura Belcher

Many stories about Mary address disability and healing, sometimes in problematic ways, sometimes in revolutionary ways. Studying these stories brings much to light about how human beings have viewed disability over time and space.

Read More
Lesson Plan

Miracles of Mary Stories about Marriage

April 11, 2024

by Wendy Laura Belcher

Some Marian miracle stories are about marriage. Some long to get married, some long to say single. Many of the stories are about those are wicked to their spouses.

Read More
Lesson Plan

Miracles of Mary Stories and Humor

January 31, 2024

by Wendy Laura Belcher

Some Miracle of Mary stories are intentionally funny, as is typical of any folklore tradition.

Read More
Research Post

Miracles of Mary Number of Stories in Manuscripts

October 6, 2023

by PEMM Team

How many stories do Miracles of Mary manuscripts have?

Read More
Research Post

Miracles of Mary Story Origins

by PEMM Staff

PEMM was launched to collect information about the origin of the Ethiopian Miracles of Mary stories.

Read More
Research Post

Miracles of Mary Story Order of Stories in Manuscripts

October 6, 2023

by PEMM Staff

PEMM was launched to collect information about the order in which Ethiopian Miracles of Mary stories appear in manuscripts. Is the order of Miracles of Mary stories within manuscripts random?

Read More
Research Post

Focus on a Miracle of Mary Story: The Pregnant Abbess

April 11, 2024

by Wendy Laura Belcher

The Pregnant Abbess may be the most famous European Marian miracle story every written.

Read More
Research Post

Other Research Websites about the Miracles of Mary

June 3, 2024

by Wendy Laura Belcher

Several other websites have information about the African Miracles of Mary stories, manuscripts, and paintings.

Read More
pricenton ethiopian eritrean & egyptian miracles of marry project

The Princeton Ethiopian, Eritrean, and Egyptian Miracles of Mary (PEMM) project is a comprehensive resource for the 1,000+ miracle stories written about and the 2,500+ images painted of the Virgin Mary in these African countries, and preserved in Geʿez between 1300 and the present.

Princeton Department of Comparative Literature 133 East Pyne, Princeton, NJ 08540

Princeton Department of African American Studies Morrison Hall, Princeton, NJ 08540

pemm@princeton.edu

© 2024 The Trustees of Princeton University