Editing Axum (section)

===17th century===
In 1604/05 the city was visited by the Jesuit Fernao Guerreiro, he reported that the church had a nave, two aisles, and a thatched roof. It is possible that some elements of the internal architecture from the former church endured, including the outer walls, within which the smaller new church was situated. In 1608, during the coronation of [[Susenyos I]] in Aksum, Mass was conducted at this location. However in 1611, Aksum was sacked by Oromo, who set fire to the church. [[Pedro Páez]] who visited Aksum in around 1620 saw only about 150-200 mud houses, and Manoel Barradas wrote that Aksum was no more than a small village.<ref name="ReferenceA"/>

In 1655, [[Fasilides]] had the church restored. Its dedication was celebrated by his daughter, Princess Yodit, who gave "an incalculable quantity of money", so that the church became "marvellous and magnificent". In 1678, rebels under Ras 'Faris, governor of Salawa, burned Aksum, but the church survived to serve at the coronation of [[Iyasu I]] in 1693.<ref name="ReferenceA"/><ref>{{Cite book|last=Pankhurst |first=Richard |year=1982 |title=History Of Ethiopian Towns |page=75 |isbn=9783515032049 }}</ref>