UNESCO World Heritage Site | |
---|---|
Official name | Saint Hilarion Monastery/Tell Umm Amer |
Location | State of Palestine |
Criteria | Cultural: (ii), (iii), (vi) |
Reference | 1749 |
Endangered | 2024 - |
Area | 1.3293 ha (3.285 acres) |
Buffer zone | 7.3226 ha (18.095 acres) |
Coordinates | 31°26′50″N34°21′59″E / 31.44722°N 34.36639°E |
Saint Hilarion Monastery, at the archaeological site of Tell Umm el-'Amr, is an ancient Christian monastery close to Deir al-Balah in the Gaza Strip, Palestine. [1]
The monastery was founded in ca. 340 by Hilarion, a native of the Gaza region and one possible father of Palestinian monasticism (see also Chariton the Confessor). Hilarion had converted to Christianity in Alexandria and then, inspired by St Anthony, become a hermit first in Egypt and then in his home region. He then founded a hermitage close to his home village of Thabatha and by the time Hilarion was sixty-three, the monastery was large and attracted many visitors. [2] Though seemingly back then located in the desert, it was in reality at the crossroads between Egypt, Palestine, Syria and Mesopotamia and is believed to be a center of missionary work in the Gaza region. [3]
The remains of Saint Hilarion Monastery span more than four centuries, from the Late Roman to the Umayyad period, and are characterized by five successive churches, bath and sanctuary complexes, geometric mosaics, and an expansive crypt. [4] As the hermitage was likely consisting of small hermits' cells according to the tradition of St. Anthony build out of mud bricks and perishable material, resulting in that their remains have not been preserved. [2] The site was abandoned after a seventh-century earthquake and rediscovered by local archaeologists in 1999. [5] The fourteenth century pilgrim Antony of Cremona mentioned in his travel report that there was a church called St. Hilarion in Tabatha, but it is uncertain whether he was referring to a building that still existed or if he was retelling information derived from an earlier source. [6] According to local tradition and observations from Western travelers in the 19th century, the prayer hall of the Monastery of Hilarion is currently occupied by the Mosque of al-Khidr. French explorer Victor Guérin noted that two marble columns in the mosque were possibly parts of the Byzantine-era monastery. [2]
In 2015, it was the only archaeological site accessible to the public in Gaza, making it an especially treasured and important cultural heritage. [3] According to the Ministry of Tourism in Gaza, the Saint Hilarion Monastery in 2016 was in dire need of preservation. [7] Current preservation efforts are plagued by war and conflict in the region, as well as a shortage of materials and equipment needed for excavation. The site was included on the 2012 World Monuments Watch and classified as "Rescue Needed" by Global Heritage Network. [8]
In December 2023, UNESCO granted the monastery "provisional enhanced protection". [9] In January 2024, Al Jazeera reported that the monastery is one of 195 cultural heritage sites that have been damaged or destroyed since Israel–Hamas war began. [10] In July 2024, the monastery was included on the List of World Heritage in Danger by UNESCO. [11] The listing was fast-tracked using emergency procedures, with UNESCO expressing "deep concern about the impact of the ongoing conflict on cultural heritage, particularly in the Gaza Strip" and stating "The organization urges all involved parties to strictly adhere to international law, emphasizing that cultural property should not be targeted or used for military purposes, as it is considered civilian infrastructure." [12]
Hilarion the Great (291–371) was an anchorite who spent most of his life in the desert according to the example of Anthony the Great (c. 251–356). While Anthony is considered to have established Christian monasticism in the Egyptian Desert, Hilarion is considered by his biographer Jerome to be the founder of Palestinian monasticism and venerated as a saint exemplifying monastic virtues by the Orthodox and the Roman Catholic Church.
Deir al-Balah or Deir al Balah is a Palestinian city in the central Gaza Strip and the administrative capital of the Deir al-Balah Governorate of the State of Palestine. It is located over 14 kilometers (8.7 mi) south of Gaza City. The city had a population of 75,132 in 2017. The city is known for its date palms, after which it is named.
Kadisha Valley, also romanized as the Qadisha Valley and also known as the Kadisha Gorge or Wadi Kadisha, is a gorge that lies within the Bsharri and Zgharta Districts of the North Governorate of Lebanon. The valley was carved by the Kadisha River, also known as the Nahr Abu Ali when it reaches Tripoli. Kadisha means "Holy" in Aramaic, and the valley is sometimes called the Holy Valley. It has sheltered Christian monastic communities for many centuries. The valley is located at the foot of Mount al-Makmal in northern Lebanon.
Umm ar-Rasas, ancient name: Kastron Mefa'a, is located 30 km southeast of Madaba in the Amman Governorate in central Jordan. It was once accessible by branches of the King's Highway, and is situated in the semi-arid steppe region of the Jordanian Desert. The site has been associated with the biblical settlement of Mephaat mentioned in the Book of Jeremiah. The Roman military utilized the site as a strategic garrison, but it was later converted and inhabited by Christian and Islamic communities. In 2004, the site was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and is valued by archaeologists for its extensive ruins dating to the Roman, Byzantine, and early Muslim periods. The Franciscan academic society in Jerusalem, Studium Biblicum Franciscanum (SBF), carried out excavations at the north end of the site in 1986, but much of the area remains buried under debris.
Levantine archaeology is the archaeological study of the Levant. It is also known as Syro-Palestinian archaeology or Palestinian archaeology. Besides its importance to the discipline of Biblical archaeology, the Levant is highly important when forming an understanding of the history of the earliest peoples of the Stone Age.
Tell es-Sakan is a tell about 5 km south of Gaza City in what is today the Gaza Strip, on the northern bank of Wadi Ghazzeh. It was the site of two separate Early Bronze Age urban settlements: an earlier one representing the fortified administrative center of the Egyptian colonies in southwestern Palestine from the end of the 4th millennium, and a later, local Canaanite fortified city of the third millennium. The location at the mouth of what was probably a palaeochannel of the river, allowed it to develop as an important maritime settlement with a natural harbour. Its geographical location endowed it with a position of importance at the crossroads of land-based trade routes between the Canaan region, the Old Kingdom of Egypt, and Arabia. As of 2000, the early Egyptian settlement was the oldest fortified site known to researchers in both Egypt and Palestine.
Al-Maghtas, officially known as Baptism Site "Bethany Beyond the Jordan", is an archaeological World Heritage Site in Jordan, on the east bank of the Jordan River, reputed to be the original location of the Baptism of Jesus by John the Baptist and venerated as such since at least the Byzantine period. The place has also been referred to as Bethabara and historically Bethany.
Tell Umm el-'Amr, also known as Tell Umm Amer, is an archaeological site located in the Nuseirat refugee camp, Deir al-Balah Governorate, Gaza Strip, Palestine.
The destruction of cultural heritage during the ongoing Israeli invasion of the Gaza Strip has included the damage and destruction by Israel of hundreds of culturally or historically significant buildings, libraries, museums and other repositories of knowledge in Gaza, alongside the destruction of intangible cultural heritage. By late January 2024, more than half of the buildings in Gaza had been damaged or destroyed and 1.7 million people displaced.