Mount Nebo
Mount Nebo | |
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جَبَل نِيبُو הַר נְבוֹ | |
Arabic) | |
Geography | |
Location | Jordan |
Region | Madaba Governorate |
Mount Nebo (
Religious significance
According to the Bible (Deuteronomy), Moses ascended Mount Nebo, in the land of Moab (today in Jordan), and from there he saw the Land of Canaan (the Promised Land), which God had said he would not enter; Moses then died there.[1] The Bible (Deuteronomy 34:6) says Moses' burial place was unknown. A monument atop Mount Nebo commemorates Moses' death after seeing Canaan, across the Jordan valley. A purported grave of Moses is located at Maqam El-Nabi Musa, in the West Bank, 11 km (6.8 mi) south of Jericho and 20 km (12 mi) east of Jerusalem.[2]
Mount Nebo is then mentioned again in 2 Maccabees (2:4–7), when the prophet Jeremiah hid the tabernacle and the Ark of the Covenant in a cave there.
A Christian church from Byzantine times stands on the top of Mount Nebo.
On March 20, 2000, Pope John Paul II visited the summit of Mount Nebo during his pilgrimage to the Holy Land.[3] During his visit, he planted an olive tree next to the Byzantine chapel, as a symbol of peace.[4] Pope Benedict XVI visited the site in 2009, gave a speech, and looked out from the top of the mountain in the direction of Jerusalem.[5]
A serpentine cross sculpture atop Mount Nebo was created by Italian artist Gian Paolo Fantoni. It is symbolic of the miracle of the bronze serpent invoked by Moses in the wilderness (Numbers 21:4–9) and the cross upon which Jesus was crucified (John 3:14).
Archaeology
Systematic exploration begun by Sylvester J. Saller O.F.M. was continued in 1933 by Jerome Mihaic of the Studium Biblicum Franciscanum. On the highest point of the mountain, Syagha,[6] the remains of a Byzantine church[7] and monastery were discovered in 1933.[8] The church was first constructed in the second half of the 4th century to commemorate the place of Moses' death. The church design follows a typical basilica pattern. It was enlarged in the late fifth century AD and rebuilt in AD 597. The church is first mentioned in an account of a pilgrimage made by a lady Aetheria in AD 394. Six tombs have been found hollowed from the natural rock beneath the mosaic-covered floor of the church.
Bellarmino Bagatti worked on the site in 1935. Virgilio Canio Corbo later excavated the interior of the basilica.[9]
History of the modern Memorial of Moses
The ancient church, a pilgrimage destination since the 4th century, was excavated between 1933 and 1938 by Sylvester Saller, bringing to light the basilica with its chapels and the annexes of the monastery.
Exhibited mosaics
In the modern chapel
Gallery
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Stone marker at the entrance
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Stone marker next to the building
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Plaque showing the distance from Mount Nebo to various locations
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Old (pre-2017) structure protecting the excavated church remains
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Old (pre-2017) structure
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Theotokos chapel: apse with altar and mosaic[11]
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Baptismal font
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Mosaic floor in the diaconicon-baptistery
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Mosaic: peacock
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Mosaic: zebu (humped ox)
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Mosaic inscription ("Offering of Caesarion, at the time of Alexios and Theophilos priests")
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The Brazen Serpent sculpture, Mount Nebo
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Detail of Brazen Serpent statue
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View from Mount Nebo
See also
- Mount Nebo, Utah
- Mount Pisgah (Bible)
- Nabau
- Nabi Musa
- Michele Piccirillo (archaeologist) (1944–2008), active at Mount Nebo and buried there
References
- ^ Deuteronomy 34:1–6
- ISBN 9781741044560.
- ^ "Pope speaks of 'inseparable' bond between Christians, Jews". Associated Press. May 9, 2009 – via www.ynetnews.com.
- ^ Piccirillo, Michele (2009). Mount Nebo (Studium Biblicum Franciscanum Guide Books, 2) p. 107.
- ^ "Pope Benedict begins his pilgrimage on Mt. Nebo". Catholic News Agency.
- ^ Also found as "Siyagha" the peak is (710 metres), while the south eastern peak "el-Mukhayyat" is 790 metres. Piccirillo, Michele (2009). Mount Nebo. p. 17.
- ^ "Complete compendium of Mount Nebo". Madain Project. Retrieved 2 April 2018.
- ^ Piccirillo, Michele (2009) Mount Nebo (Studium Biblicum Franciscanum Guide Books, 2) pp. 14–15. Extract from Sylvester Saller The Memorial of Moses on Mount Nebo Jerusalem 1941, pp. 15–18.
- ^ "Chronology of Mount Nebo". Madain Project. Retrieved 2 April 2018.
- ^ )
- ^ "Theotokos Chapel (Mount Nebo)". Archived from the original on 13 April 2020.
Further reading
- Mount Nebo: New Archaeological Excavations: 1967–1997, Michele Piccirillo and Eugenio Alliata
External links
- Franciscans at Mount Nebo
- Archaeology and Art – photographs of excavations in Jordan
- Pictures from Mount Nebo 1
- New International Encyclopedia. 1905.
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- Photos of Mount Nebo at the American Center of Research
- Photos of Mount Nebo at the Manar al-Athar photo archive