The Queen of Sheba with King Solomon and Tribute Bearers

The Italian colonial conquest of Ethiopia (1936–41) elicited a heightened demand from tourists and expatriates for Ethiopian paintings, resulting in the establishment of collaborative workshops with artists producing paintings in an assembly-line mode. The legend of the Queen of Sheba is one of the most popular themes in paintings by these workshops. According to Ethiopian written and oral histories, the Queen of Sheba became pregnant after visiting King Solomon and gave birth to a son, Menelik I, who became king of Ethiopia. During the reign of Emperor Menelik II (1889–1913), a rise in the number of foreign visitors and national modernization processes led to an emerging art market for Ethiopian artists that extended beyond the church. Ethiopian paintings were part of ceremonial gift exchanges and sold to tourists.