Greek Orthodox Church of Saint John the Baptist, Jerusalem

Coordinates: 31°46′37″N 35°13′46″E / 31.7769°N 35.2294°E / 31.7769; 35.2294
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Not to be confused with Church of Saint John the Baptist, Ein Karem.
Church of Saint John the Baptist
Greek Orthodox
Location
LocationJerusalem
Greek Orthodox Church of Saint John the Baptist, Jerusalem is located in Jerusalem
Greek Orthodox Church of Saint John the Baptist, Jerusalem
Shown within Jerusalem
TerritoryChristian Quarter of the Old City of Jerusalem
Geographic coordinates31°46′37″N 35°13′46″E / 31.7769°N 35.2294°E / 31.7769; 35.2294

The Church of Saint John the Baptist (

Greek Orthodox church in the Muristan area of the Christian Quarter of Jerusalem
. In its current form, most of the above-ground church dates to the 11th century, and the crypt to the Late Roman or Byzantine period (between ca. AD 324 and 500).

History

Byzantine period

The first structure, a north-south oriented

John the Almoner, Patriarch of Alexandria.[1]

Medieval period

By the 11th century the ancient structure had sunk to at least 3 metres beneath the street level, with its doors and windows blocked, and served as a storage place for goods and water.

Benedictine monks.[1] In 1099, Crusader knights injured during the siege of Jerusalem were treated at the hospital and after recovering started here what was to become the Order of Knights of the Hospital of Saint John of Jerusalem, named after the church, also known as the Knights Hospitaller.[1] After the capture of Jerusalem by Saladin in 1187, the basement was apparently filled with debris.[2]

Ottoman period

At the end of the 15th century, the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem acquired the church and most probably transformed the basement into a chapel, which, according to excavator Jean-Baptiste Humbert of the École Biblique, might well constitute the first time that the structure was used for a cultic purpose.[1] During the 16th century, the church was used for a short period as a mosque, but was soon recovered by the Greek Orthodox, who in 1660 built a large pilgrim hospice next to it.[2] In the 19th century, the crypt was cleared out, and an impressive reliquary was brought to light from the masonry of the altar.[2]

Original purpose of the building

Scholarly view

The long-held opinion that the original Late Roman or Byzantine structure was built as a church, relies in part on

Charles the Great in ca. 800 was always mentioned as Saint Mary, not Saint John, indicates though that the connection with the Baptist is of later date.[1]

Be it as it may, at the arrival of the Amalfitans in the 11th century this tradition already existed, and they dedicated their new church, to which the ancient structure served as the basement, to St John the Baptist.[1]

Humbert proposes that the initial structure was used for the first time for ritual purposes by the Greek Orthodox, in the 19th century, as an underground chapel beneath the 11th-century church.[1]

Humbert does not dismiss the possibility that the ancient structure might have been erected as a secular building by

Justinian, or by Anastasius, who had built a church dedicated to the Baptist at the Jordan River around the year 500.[1]

Traditional view

The traditional view holds that the ancient building was already founded as a church in 450-460 by Empress Eudoсia and restored after the destruction by Persians in 614.

According to one Greek Orthodox tradition, the head of St. John the Baptist was held in this church.[3]

Archaeological investigation

The medieval church and the Late Roman or Byzantine structure which serves as its crypt were surveyed and excavated several times.

  • 1914 and 1919: H. Vincent and F. Abel documented the site[1]
  • 2010-2011: the Late Roman structure was excavated by Jean-Baptiste Humbert before being renovated by the Greek Orthodox[1]

Description

The upper church has 3 apses and a long narthex, its dome is supported by 4 pillars.[2]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u Jean-Baptiste Humbert (École Biblique) (2011). David Amit; Guy D. Stiebel; Orit Peleg-Barkat (eds.). "Excavations at Saint John Prodromos, Jerusalem" (PDF). New Studies in the Archaeology of Jerusalem and Its Region. V. Jerusalem: Israel Antiquities Authority - Jerusalem Region; The Hebrew University of Jerusalem; The Jerusalem Development Authority; Moriah – The Jerusalem Development Co.: *24-*47. Retrieved 16 November 2017.
  2. ^ a b c d "Church of John the Baptist, Jerusalem". Sacred-Destinations.com. Retrieved 16 November 2017.
  3. ^ St. John the Baptist, Christian quarter, BibleWalks
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