"Alfred Ilg - The engineer and the king"

Alfred Ilg was born in 1854 in Frauenfeld, Switzerland and studied engineering at the federal polytechnicum in Zurich. When Menelik II, the then King of Shoa and later Emperor of Ethiopia, called upon foreign technicians and craftsmen to serve at his court, Alfred Ilg took the opportunity and left Switzerland in 1878 at the age of twenty-five. After an arduous, eight-month long journey, Alfred Ilg arrived in Ethiopia in 1879 and instead of the planned two years, he stayed for over a quarter century. Over time, Alfred Ilg was promoted to State Minister and became one of the most renowned European experts about Ethiopia of his time.

In the service of Menelik II, Alfred Ilg made important contributions to the development of the country and in particular Addis Ababa. He built Menelik’s Palace, roads, bridges and a water supply system. The railway from Addis Ababa to Djibouti was probably the most important technical achievement of Alfred Ilg although, due to financial and political challenges, it could only be finished after his death in 1917.

Alfred Ilg left a large photographic collection that is preserved by the Ethnographic Museum of the University of Zurich, Switzerland. Part of this collection, contributions from other museums as well as letters addressed to the Swiss Federal Council will be on display during the exhibition.
The exhibition curated by Hugues Fontaine is produced by the Embassy of Switzerland in Addis Ababa in cooperation with the Museum of Modern Art and the support of the Ethnographic Museum of the University of Zurich.

Opening hours: Every day except Sundays, Mondays and Holidays from 9:00 am to 5:00pm. Tel. 0111-221695. Free entrance.