The first archaeological excavations in Tigray, northern Ethiopia, since 1974 were conducted in 1993 at the site of Ona Enda Aboi Zewgé near Aksum. A large stela field associated with artificial stone platforms and human burials was investigated. Preliminary results indicate that this Aksumite cemetery dates from the 1st century B.C. to the 4th century A.C. Evidence of Late Pre-Aksumite occupation was discovered beneath one of the stone platforms. In 1994 an isolated monolith was investigated at Ona Enda Aboi Zewgé. The 1995 excavations continued at Ona Enda Aboi Zewgé, and test excavations were conducted in the settlement associated with this cemetery, Ona Nagast. A large rock-cut tomb was discovered at Ona Enda Aboi Zewgé with evidence of imported materials from the Mediterranean and Nile Valley. Ona Nagast may provide the earliest evidence of wheat, barley, and teff cultivation in Tigray Province. One radiocarbon date from Ona Nagast suggests that the origins of Aksum may go back at least to the 4th century B.C.