=0=
=0=
=0=
=0=
=0=
=0=
=0=
=0=
=0=
=0=
=0=
=0=| This is the outside of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre which the Catholics beleive is where Christ was crucified (it covers the entire hill) and is also close to where they believe Christ was entombed. There are no ways to really take any pictures of it. The entire hill has been dug out and covered with a maze like series of rooms and chapels. The central point was a chapel which we found disappointing as it was just an ordinary chapel and was nothing like a hill as it would have been when Christ was crucified. There was also a long line to go into a mausoleum which we went in as there were a lot of people in it. However, it only took you into a room abouyt the size of a mausoleum. They only let people in five at a time and Barbara and I were separated as she was the last of the last group and I was the first in the second. It was suppsoed to be the location where Christ was entombed but was not at all like it would have been. In the room there was the guide to explain what it was and a Byzantine Monk with incense who at the end asked each person if they wanted to contribute to the renovation of the church. We weren't that happy that the church was there in the first place and didn't contribute but also resented the arm twisting tactics seeking contributions. Protestants believe that Christ was crucifed on a hill outside the city walls at the Hill of the Skull which is shown on the left. Barbara took the picture and didn't get all of the hill. The top of the hill would be where Christ was crucified (now a graveyard) and the cave on the left would be the left eye. There were other caves not shown in the picture for the other eye and mouth making it look somewhat skull like. Close by is the tomb where Protestants believe Christ was entombed. It would have been a natural cave which had been enlarged and finished with stone work as shown. |
=0= |
|
=0= |
=0= |
| The tomb above was set in a garden shown here. They believe that it was garden then because of the existence of a large cistern to water a grove of olive trees. If you look closely at the picture of the tomb you can see a groove which would be where the stone would go to seal the tomb. Below on the left is a similar stone, but much smaller, only three or four feet around. The stone in front of the tomb above would be seven feet or so tall to cover the six foot entrance. On the right below is a close up of the stone just above the tomb where a cross had been carved at some time. This is why some people believe this was Christ's tombs though there are no records from just after Christ's death and so all beliefs are based on some conjecture. |
=0= |
|
=0= |
=0= |
| From there we move on the Jerusalem zoo which is called the Biblical Zoo because it has every animal which is mentioned in the bible (though in retrospective I don't remember seeing the Leviathon or even whales there). This is a camel with apartment complexes in the background. |
=0= |
| This is a llama, which threw us into a loop. There couldn't have been any llamas in the bible, but then they only say that they have every animal mentioned in the bible not that they only have animals mentioned in the bible and they do have some other animals as well. Below on the left is a relative of the llamas which are thinner and lighter. On the right is an elephant. |
=0= |
|
=0= |
=0= |
| This is a church at the base of the Mount of Olives with a particularly nice mosaic. |
=0= |
| This picture is of a Byzantine churh further up the hill with the beautiful onion shaped towers. The mount seemed more like a hill to me and extends on up to the right of that picture. This ends the pictures of Jerusalem mostly because we lost a roll of film from the end of Jerusalem and the start of Turkey. What to do? |
=0= |
This page was last updated on December 23, 2005.
