Jump to content

Church of the Holy Sepulchre

Coordinates:31°46′42″N35°13′47″E/ 31.77833°N 35.22972°E/31.77833; 35.22972
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
"Holy Sepulchre" redirects here. For an overview of sites believed to be Jesus's burial place, seeTomb of Jesus.For other uses, seeHoly Sepulchre (disambiguation).

Church of the Holy Sepulchre
The church in 2010, from left to right: thebell tower(12th century),rotunda(big dome),catholicon(smaller dome), andambulatory
Map
31°46′42″N35°13′47″E/ 31.77833°N 35.22972°E/31.77833; 35.22972
LocationChristian Quarter,Old City of Jerusalem
DenominationCatholic,Eastern Orthodox,Armenian Apostolic
Website
History
StatusActive
Founder(s)Constantine the Great
Consecrated13 September 335
(1689 years ago)
Architecture
Architect(s)Nikolaos Ch. Komnenos (1810 restoration)
StylePaleochristian,Romanesque,Baroque
Groundbreakingc. AD 326
CompletedAD 335 (demolished in 1009, rebuilt in 1048)
Specifications
Capacity8,000
Number ofdomes3
MaterialsStone
Part ofa serieson
Jerusalem
City of David1000 BCE
Second Temple Period538 BCE–70 CE
Aelia Capitolina130–325 CE
Byzantine325–638 CE
Early Muslim638–1099
Crusader1099–1187
Late Medieval1187–1517
Ottoman1517–1917
British Mandate1917–1948
Modern period
  • (JordanianandIsraeli annexation of East Jerusalem)
    		• 1948-
    Sieges
    Before Christ
    Anno Domini
    Places
  • Mayor
  • Chief Rabbi
  • Grand Mufti
  • Greek Orthodox Patriarch
  • Crusader kings
    		•
    Political status
    Other topics

    TheChurch of the Holy Sepulchre,[a][b]also known as theChurch of the Resurrection,[c]is a fourth-century church in theChristian Quarterof theOld CityofJerusalem.The church is also the seat of theGreek Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem.[1]Some consider it the holiest site inChristianityand it has been an important pilgrimage site for Christians since thefourth century.

    According to traditions dating to the fourth century, the church contains both the site whereJesuswascrucified[2]atCalvary,or Golgotha, and the location of Jesus's emptytomb,where he wasburiedandresurrected.Both locations are considered immensely holy sites by Christians.[3]In earlier times, the site was used as a Jewish burial ground, upon which a pagan temple was built. The church and rotunda was built underConstantinein the 4th century and destroyed byal-Hakimin 1009. Al-Hakim's son allowed EmperorConstantine IX Monomachosto reconstruct the church, which was completed in 1048. After it was captured by theCrusadersin 1099, it continued to undergo modifications, resulting in a significant departure from the original structure.[4]Several renovations and restorations were made under the Ottomans.[5]The tomb itself is enclosed by a 19th-century shrine called theAedicule.

    Within the church proper are the last fourstations of the Crossof theVia Dolorosa,representing the final episodes of thePassion of Jesus.The church has been a majorChristian pilgrimagedestination since its creation in the fourth century, as the traditional site of the resurrection of Christ, thus its original Greek name, Church of the Anastasis ('Resurrection').

    TheStatus Quo,an understanding between religious communities dating to 1757, applies to the site.[6][7]Control of the church itself is shared among severalChristian denominationsand secular entities in complicated arrangements essentially unchanged for over 160 years, and some for much longer. The main denominations sharing property over parts of the church are theRoman Catholic,Greek Orthodox,Armenian Apostolic,Coptic,Syriac,andEthiopian Orthodoxchurches.

    Name

    [edit]

    The church was named either for theResurrection of Jesus,or for his tomb, which is at its focal point.

    TheChurch of the Holy Sepulchreis also known as theBasilica of the Holy Sepulchre[8]and theHoly Sepulchre.

    Eastern Christiansalso call it theChurch of the Resurrectionand theChurch of the Anastasis,Anastasis being Greek for Resurrection.

    History

    [edit]
    See also:§ Connection to Roman temple

    Background (1st–4th centuries)

    [edit]

    After thesiege of Jerusalemin AD 70 during theFirst Jewish–Roman War,Jerusalem had been reduced to ruins. In AD 130, the Roman emperorHadrianbegan the building of a Roman colony, the new city ofAelia Capitolina,on the site. About AD 135, he ordered that a cave containing arock-cut tomb[d]be filled in to make a flat foundation for a temple dedicated toJupiterorVenus.[3][13]The templeremained until the early fourth century.[14][15]

    Constantine and Macarius: context for the first sanctuary

    [edit]

    After seeing a vision of a cross in the sky in 312,[16]Constantine the Greatbegan to favourChristianityand signed theEdict of Milanlegalizing the religion. The Bishop of JerusalemMacariusasked Constantine for permission to dig for the tomb. With the help ofEusebius(a Bishop of Caesarea) and Macarius, three crosses were found near a tomb; one, which was said to havecured people of death,was presumed to be theTrue Cross,on which Jesus wascrucified,leading the Romans to believe that they had foundCalvary.[16][17]

    About 326, Constantine ordered that the temple to Jupiter or Venus be replaced by a church.[3]After the temple was torn down and its ruins removed, the soil was removed from the cave, revealing a rock-cut tomb that Macarius identified as the burial site of Jesus.[2][18][19][20]

    First sanctuary (4th century)

    [edit]
    Two manuscript versions of the oldest known floor plans of the church, fromDe Locis Sanctis(c. AD 680)[21]

    A shrine was built on the site of the tomb Macarius had identified as that of Jesus, enclosing the rock tomb walls within its own.[22][12][23][e]

    The Church of the Holy Sepulchre, planned by the architect Zenobius,[24]was built as separate constructs over two holy sites:

    1. arotundacalled theAnastasis('Resurrection'), where Macarius believed Jesus to have been buried,[2][better source needed]and;
    2. the greatbasilica(also known asMartyrium),[25]across a courtyard to the east (an enclosedcolonnadedatrium,known as theTriportico) with the traditional site of Calvary in one corner.[13][26]
    Diagram of a possible church layout (facing west) published in 1956 byKenneth John Conant

    The Church of the Holy Sepulchre site has been recognized since early in the fourth century as the place where Jesus was crucified, buried, and rose from the dead.[27][f]The church was consecrated on 13 September 335.[27][g]

    In 327, Constantine and Helena separately commissioned theChurch of the NativityinBethlehemto commemorate the birth of Jesus.

    Damage and destruction (614–1009)

    [edit]
    See also:Sasanian capture of JerusalemandDestruction of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre

    The Constantinian sanctuary in Jerusalem was destroyed by a firein May of 614,when theSassanid Empire,underKhosrau II,[16]invaded Jerusalem and captured the True Cross. In 630, the EmperorHeracliusrebuilt the church after recapturing the city.[29]

    AfterJerusalem came under Islamic rule,it remained a Christian church, with the early Muslim rulers protecting the city's Christian sites, prohibiting their destruction or use as living quarters. A story reports that the caliphUmar ibn al-Khattabvisited the church and stopped to pray on the balcony, but at the time of prayer, turned away from the church and prayed outside. He feared that future generations would misinterpret this gesture, taking it as a pretext to turn the church into a mosque.Eutychius of Alexandriaadds that Umar wrotea decreesaying that Muslims would not inhabit this location. The building suffered severe damage from an earthquake in 746.[29]

    Early in the ninth century, another earthquake damaged the dome of the Anastasis. The damage was repaired in 810 byPatriarchThomas I.In 841, the church suffered a fire. In 935, the Christians prevented the construction of a Muslim mosque adjacent to the Church. In 938, a new fire damaged the inside of the basilica and came close to the rotunda. In 966, due to a defeat of Muslim armies in the region of Syria, a riot broke out, which was followed by reprisals. The basilica was burned again. The doors and roof were burnt, and PatriarchJohn VIIwas murdered.[citation needed]

    On 18 October 1009,Fatimid caliphal-Hakim bi-Amr Allahordered thecomplete destruction of the churchas part of a more general campaign against Christian places of worship in Palestine and Egypt.[h]The damage was extensive, with few parts of the early church remaining, and the roof of the rock-cut tomb damaged; the original shrine was destroyed.[22]Some partial repairs followed.[30]Christian Europe reacted with shock: it was a spur toexpulsions of Jewsand, later on, theCrusades.[31][32][dubious–discuss]

    Reconstruction (11th century)

    [edit]

    In wide-ranging negotiations between the Fatimids and theByzantine Empirein 1027–1028, an agreement was reached whereby the new CaliphAli az-Zahir(al-Hakim's son) agreed to allow the rebuilding and redecoration of the church.[33]The rebuilding was finally completed during the tenures of EmperorConstantine IX MonomachosandPatriarch Nicephorus of Jerusalemin 1048.[34]As a concession, the mosque inConstantinoplewas reopened and thekhutbasermons were to be pronounced in az-Zahir's name.[33]Muslim sources say a by-product of the agreement was the renunciation of Islam by many Christians who had been forced to convert under al-Hakim's persecutions. In addition, the Byzantines, while releasing 5,000 Muslim prisoners, made demands for the restoration of other churches destroyed by al-Hakim and the reestablishment of apatriarchin Jerusalem. Contemporary sources credit the emperor with spending vast sums in an effort to restore the Church of the Holy Sepulchre after this agreement was made.[33]Still, "a total replacement was far beyond available resources. The new construction was concentrated on the rotunda and its surrounding buildings: the great basilica remained in ruins."[30]

    The rebuilt church site consisted of "a court open to the sky, with five small chapels attached to it."[35][failed verification]The chapels were east of the court of resurrection (when reconstructed, the location of the tomb was under open sky), where the western wall of the great basilica had been. They commemorated scenes from the passion, such as the location of the prison of Christ and his flagellation, and presumably were so placed because of the difficulties of free movement among shrines in the city streets. The dedication of these chapels indicates the importance of the pilgrims' devotion to the suffering of Christ. They have been described as "a sort ofVia Dolorosain miniature "since little or no rebuilding took place on the site of the great basilica. Western pilgrims to Jerusalem during the 11th century found much of the sacred site in ruins.[30][failed verification]Control of Jerusalem, and thereby the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, continued to change hands several times between the Fatimids and theSeljuk Turks(loyal to theAbbasid caliphinBaghdad) until the Crusaders' arrival in 1099.[36]

    Crusader period (1099–1244)

    [edit]
    Further information:Order of the Holy Sepulchre
    See also:Art of the Crusades

    Background

    [edit]

    Many historians maintain that the main concern ofPope Urban II,when calling for theFirst Crusade,was the threat to Constantinople from theSeljukinvasion ofAsia Minorin response to the appeal of Byzantine EmperorAlexios I Komnenos.Historians agree that the fate of Jerusalem and thereby the Church of the Holy Sepulchre was also of concern, if not the immediate goal of papal policy in 1095. The idea of taking Jerusalem gained more focus as the Crusade was underway. The rebuilt church site was taken from the Fatimids (who had recently taken it from the Abbasids) by the knights of the First Crusade on 15 July 1099.[30]

    The First Crusade was envisioned as an armedpilgrimage,and no crusader could consider his journey complete unless he had prayed as a pilgrim at the Holy Sepulchre. The classical theory is that Crusader leaderGodfrey of Bouillon,who became the firstLatin ruler of Jerusalem,decided not to use the title "king" during his lifetime, and declared himselfAdvocatus Sancti Sepulchri('Protector [or Defender] of the Holy Sepulchre').

    According to the German priest and pilgrimLudolf von Sudheim,the keys of the Chapel of the Holy Sepulchre were in hands of the "ancientGeorgians",and the food, alms, candles and oil for lamps were given to them by the pilgrims at the south door of the church.[37]

    Crusaders: reconstruction (12th century) and ownership

    [edit]

    By the Crusader period, acisternunder the former basilica was rumoured to have been where Helena had found the True Cross, and began to be venerated as such; the cistern later became theChapel of the Invention of the Cross,but there is no evidence of the site's identification before the 11th century, and modern archaeological investigation has now dated the cistern to 11th-century repairs by Monomachos.[15]

    William of Tyre,chronicler of the Crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem, reports on the rebuilding of the church in the mid-12th century. The Crusaders investigated the eastern ruins on the site, occasionally excavating through the rubble, and while attempting to reach the cistern, they discovered part of the original ground level of Hadrian's temple enclosure; they transformed this space into achapel dedicated to Helena,widening their original excavation tunnel into a proper staircase.[38]

    Crusadergraffitiin the church: crosses engraved in the staircase leading down to theChapel of Saint Helena[39]

    The Crusaders began to refurnish the church inRomanesquestyle and added abell tower.[38]These renovations unified the small chapels on the site[clarification needed]and were completed during the reign ofQueen Melisendein 1149, placing all the holy places under one roof for the first time.[38]

    The church became the seat of the firstLatin patriarchsand the site of the kingdom'sscriptorium.[38]

    Eight 11th- and 12th-century Crusader leaders (Godfrey,Baldwin I,Baldwin II,Fulk,Baldwin III,Amalric,Baldwin IVandBaldwin V– the first eightrulers of the Kingdom of Jerusalem) were buried in the south transept and inside theChapel of Adam.[40][41][42] The royal tombs were looted during theKhwarizmian sack of Jerusalemin 1244 but probably remained mostly intact until 1808 when a fire damaged the church. The tombs may have been destroyed by the fire, or during renovations by the Greek Orthodox custodians of the church in 1809–1810. The remains of the kings may still be in unmarked pits under the church's pavement.[43]

    The church was lost toSaladin,[38]along with the rest of the city, in 1187, although the treaty established after theThird Crusadeallowed Christian pilgrims to visit the site.Emperor Frederick II(r. 1220–50) regained the city and the church by treaty in the 13th century while under a ban of excommunication, with the consequence that the holiest church in Christianity was laid underinterdict.[citation needed]The church seems to have been largely in the hands of Greek Orthodox patriarchAthanasius II of Jerusalem(c. 1231–47) during the last period of Latin control over Jerusalem.[44]Both city and church were captured by theKhwarezmiansin 1244.[38]

    Ottoman period

    [edit]

    There was certainly a recognisableNestorian(Church of the East) presence at the Holy Sepulchre from the years 1348 through 1575, as contemporaryFranciscanaccounts indicate.[45]TheFranciscanfriars renovated the church in 1555, as it had been neglected despite increased numbers of pilgrims. The Franciscans rebuilt theAedicule,extending the structure to create an antechamber.[5]A marble shrine commissioned by FriarBoniface of Ragusawas placed to envelop the remains of Christ's tomb,[22]probably to prevent pilgrims from touching the original rock or taking small pieces as souvenirs.[23]A marble slab was placed over the limestone burial bed where Jesus's body is believed to have lain.[22]

    Eastern Orthodoxicon (c. 1600) commemorating a church renovation

    After the renovation of 1555, control of the church oscillated between the Franciscans and the Orthodox, depending on which community could obtain a favourablefirmanfrom the "Sublime Porte"at a particular time, often through outright bribery. Violent clashes were not uncommon. There was no agreement about this question, although it was discussed at the negotiations to theTreaty of Karlowitzin 1699.[46]During theHoly Weekof 1757, Orthodox Christians reportedly took over some of the Franciscan-controlled church. This may have been the cause of the sultan'sfirman(decree) later developed into theStatus Quo.[47][better source needed][i]

    A fire severely damagedthe structureagain in 1808,[22]causing the dome of the rotunda to collapse and smashing the Aedicule's exterior decoration. The rotunda and the Aedicule's exterior were rebuilt in 1809–10 by architect Nikolaos Ch. Komnenos ofMytilenein the contemporaryOttoman Baroquestyle.[48]The interior of the antechamber, now known as theChapel of the Angel,[j]was partly rebuilt to a square ground plan in place of the previously semicircular western end.

    Another decree in 1853 from the sultan solidified the existing territorial division among the communities and solidified the Status Quo for arrangements to "remain in their present state", requiring consensus to make even minor changes.[49][i]

    Floorplan, illustrated byConrad Schick(1863)

    The dome was restored by Catholics, Greeks, and Turks in 1868, being made of iron ever since.[51]

    British Mandate period

    [edit]

    By the time of the BritishMandate for Palestinefollowing the end ofWorld War I,thecladdingof red limestone applied to theAediculeby Komnenos had deteriorated badly and was detaching from the underlying structure; from 1947 until restoration work in 2016–17, it was held in place with an exterior scaffolding of iron girders installed by theBritish authorities.[52]

    After the care of theBritish Empire,theChurch of Englandhad an important role in the appropriation of the Holy Sepulcher, such as funds for the maintenance of external infrastructures, and the abolition of territorial claims near the Temple of the Holy Sepulcher, theProtestantChurch allowed to carry out the elimination of taxes from the Holy Sepulcher, currently theAnglicanand Lutheran dioceses of Jerusalem are allowed to attend Armenian cults.

    Jordanian and Israeli periods

    [edit]
    Diagram of the modern church showing the traditional site ofCalvaryand theTomb of Jesus

    In 1948, Jerusalem was divided between Israel and Jordan and where the church was located, in the Old City, were made part of Jordan. In 1967, Israeli forces captured East Jerusalem in theSix Day War,and that area has remained under Israeli control ever since. Under Israeli rule, legal arrangements relating to the churches of East Jerusalem were maintained in coordination with the Jordanian government. The dome at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre was restored again in 1994–97 as part of extensive modern renovations that have been ongoing since 1959. During the 1970–78 restoration works and excavations inside the building, and under the nearbyMuristanbazaar, it was found that the area was originally a quarry, from which whitemelekelimestonewas struck.[53]

    Chapel of St. Vartan

    [edit]

    East of the Chapel of Saint Helena, the excavators discovered a void containing a second-century[dubious–discuss]drawing of a Roman pilgrim ship,[54]two low walls supporting the platform of Hadrian's second-century temple, and a higher fourth-century wall built to support Constantine's basilica.[5][55]After the excavations of the early 1970s, the Armenian authorities converted this archaeological space into the Chapel ofSaint Vartan,and created an artificial walkway over the quarry on the north of the chapel, so that the new chapel could be accessed (by permission) from the Chapel of Saint Helena.[55]

    Aedicule restoration

    [edit]

    After seven decades of being held together by steel girders, theIsrael Antiquities Authority(IAA) declared the visibly deterioratingAediculestructure unsafe. A restoration of the Aedicule was agreed upon and executed from May 2016 to March 2017. Much of the $4 million project was funded by theWorld Monuments Fund,as well as $1.3 million from Mica Ertegün and a significant sum fromKing Abdullah IIofJordan.[52][56]The existence of the original limestone cave walls within the Aedicule was confirmed, and a window was created to view this from the inside.[23]The presence of moisture led to the discovery of an underground shaft resembling anescape tunnelcarved into the bedrock, seeming to lead from the tomb.[12][k]For the first time since at least 1555, on 26 October 2016, marble cladding that protects the supposed burial bed of Jesus was removed.[23][57]Members of theNational Technical University of Athenswere present. Initially, only a layer of debris was visible. This was cleared in the next day, and a partially broken marble slab with a Crusader-style cross carved was revealed.[12]By the night of 28 October, the original limestone burial bed was shown to be intact. The tomb was resealed shortly thereafter.[23]Mortar from just above the burial bed was later dated to the mid-fourth century.[58]

    2020 pandemic

    [edit]

    On 25 March 2020, Israeli health officials ordered the site closed to the public due to theCOVID-19 pandemic.According to the keeper of the keys, it was the first such closure since 1349, during theBlack Death.[59]Clerics continued regular prayers inside the building, and it reopened to visitors two months later, on 24 May.[60]

    Crusader altar slab discovered (2022)

    [edit]

    During church renovations in 2022, a stone slab covered in modern graffiti was moved from a wall, revealingCosmatesque-style decoration on one face. According to anIAAarchaeologist, the decoration was once inlaid with pieces of glass and fine marble; it indicates that the relic was the front of the church's high altar from theCrusader era(c. 1149), which was later used by theGreek Orthodoxuntil being damaged in the 1808 fire.[61]

    Description

    [edit]

    Parvis (courtyard)

    [edit]
    Tourists, pilgrims and locals at one of two access gates to the courtyard; photo byFélix Bonfils,1870s
    The northeast of the courtyard (parvis), with theimmovable ladderunder a window, and theChapel of the Franks(right).

    The courtyardfacing the entrance to the church is known as theparvis.Two streets open into the parvis:St Helena Road(west) andSuq ed-Dabbagha(east). Around the parvis are a few smaller structures.

    South of the parvis, opposite the church:

    • Broken columns—once forming part of anarcade—stand opposite the church, at the top of a short descending staircase stretching over the entire breadth of the parvis. In the 13th century, the tops of the columns were removed and sent to Mecca by theKhwarezmids.
    • TheGethsemane Metochion,a small Greek Orthodox monastery (metochion).

    On the eastern side of the parvis, south to north:

    North of the parvis, in front of the churchfaçadeor against it:

    Agroup of three chapelsborders the parvis on its west side. They originally formed thebaptisterycomplex of the Constantinian church. The southernmost chapel was the vestibule, the middle chapel the baptistery, and the north chapel the chamber in which the patriarchchrismatedthe newly baptized before leading them into the rotunda north of this complex. Now they are dedicated as (from south to north)

    Bell tower

    [edit]
    Bell tower left of the entrance

    The 12th-century Crusaderbell toweris just south of the Rotunda, to the left of the entrance.[68]Its upper level was lost in a 1545 collapse.[69]In 1719, another two storeys were lost.[64]

    Façade and entrance

    [edit]
    Entrance door

    The wooden doors that compose the main entrance are the original, highly carved arched doors.[70][full citation needed]Today, only the left-hand entrance is currently accessible, as the right doorway has long since been bricked up. The entrance to the church leads to the southtransept,through the crusaderfaçadein theparvisof a larger courtyard.[71][72]This is found past a group of streets winding through the outerVia Dolorosaby way of asouqin theMuristan.This narrow way of access to such a large structure has proven to be hazardous at times. For example, when a fire broke out in 1840, dozens of pilgrims were trampled to death.[73]

    According to their own family lore, the MuslimNuseibeh familyhas been responsible for opening the door as an impartial party to the church's denominations already since the seventh century.[74][75]However, they themselves admit that the documents held by various Christian denominations only mention their role since the 12th century, in the time of Saladin, which is the date more generally accepted.[74][76][77]Afterretaking Jerusalem from the Crusaders in 1187,Saladin entrusted the Joudeh family with the key to the church, which is made of iron and 30 centimetres (12 in) long; the Nuseibehs either became or remained its doorkeepers.[74][76][77]

    The 'immovable ladder' stands beneath a window on the façade.

    Calvary (Golgotha)

    [edit]
    The Altar of the Crucifixion, where The Rock of Calvary (bottom) is encased in glass

    Just inside the church entrance is a stairway leading up to Calvary (Golgotha), traditionally regarded as the site of Jesus's crucifixion[78]and the most lavishly decorated part of the church. The exit is via another stairway opposite the first, leading down to theambulatory.Golgotha and its chapels are just south of the main altar of thecatholicon.

    Calvary is split into two chapels: one Greek Orthodox and one Catholic, each with its own altar. On the left (north) side, the Greek Orthodox chapel's altar is placed over the supposed rock of Calvary (the12th Stationof the Cross), which can be touched through a hole in the floor beneath the altar.[78]The rock can be seen under protective glass on both sides of the altar. The softer surrounding stone was removed when the church was built.[78]The Roman Catholic (Franciscan) Chapel of the Nailing of the Cross (the11th Stationof the Cross) stretches to the south. Between the Catholic Altar of the Nailing to the Cross and the Orthodox altar is the Catholic Altar of theStabat Mater,[79]which has a statue of Mary with an 18th-century bust; this middle altar marks the13th Stationof the Cross.[78]

    On the ground floor, just underneath the Golgotha chapel, is theChapel of Adam.[78]According to tradition, Jesus was crucified over the place where Adam's skull was buried.[78]According to some, the blood of Christ ran down the cross and through the rocks to fill Adam's skull.[80]Through a window at the back of the 11th-centuryapse,the rock of Calvary can be seen with a crack traditionally held to be caused by the earthquake that followed Jesus's death;[78]some scholars claim it is the result of quarrying against a natural flaw in the rock.[81]

    Behind the Chapel of Adam is theGreek Treasury(Treasury of the Greek Patriarch). Some of its relics, such as a 12th-century crystalmitre,were transferred to the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate Museum (the Patriarchal Museum) onGreek Orthodox Patriarchate Street.[82][83][84]

    Stone of Anointing

    [edit]
    Mosaic depiction of Christ's body being prepared after his death, opposite the Stone of Anointing
    The Stone of Anointing, where Jesus's body is said to have been anointed before burial

    Just inside the entrance to the church is theStone of Anointing(also Stone of the Anointing or Stone of Unction), which tradition holds to be where Jesus's body was prepared for burial byJoseph of Arimathea,though this tradition is only attested since the crusader era (notably by the ItalianDominicanpilgrimRiccoldo da Monte di Crocein 1288), and the present stone was only added in the 1810 reconstruction.[5]

    The wall behind the stone is defined by its striking blue balconies andtaphos symbol-bearing red banners (depicting the insignia of theBrotherhood of the Holy Sepulchre), and is decorated with lamps.The modern mosaicalong the wall depicts the anointing of Jesus's body, preceded on the right by theDescent from the Cross,and succeeded on the left by theBurial of Jesus.[85]

    The wall was a temporary addition to support the arch above it, which had been weakened after the damage in the 1808 fire; it blocks the view of the rotunda, separates the entrance from thecatholicon,sits on top of four of the now empty and desecratedCrusader graves[86]and is no longer structurally necessary. Opinions differ as to whether it is to be seen asthe 13th Station of the Cross,which others identify as thelowering of Jesus from the crossand located between the 11th and 12th stations onCalvary.[85]

    The lamps that hang over the Stone of Unction, adorned with cross-bearing chain links, are contributed by Armenians,Copts,Greeks andLatins.[85]

    Immediately inside and to the left of the entrance isa bench(formerly adivan)[87]that has traditionally been used by the church's Muslim doorkeepers, along with some Christian clergy, as well as electrical wiring. To the right of the entrance is a wall along theambulatorycontaining the staircase leading toGolgotha.Further along the same wall is the entrance to theChapel of Adam.[citation needed]

    Rotunda and Aedicule

    [edit]

    • Rotunda interior painted by Luigi Mayer, before 1804
      Rotunda interior painted byLuigi Mayer,before 1804
    • 1842 lithograph of the Aedicule built after the 1808 fire, after David Roberts
      1842 lithograph of the Aedicule built after the 1808 fire, afterDavid Roberts
    • The Aedicule containing the traditional burial of Jesus
      The Aedicule containing the traditional burial of Jesus
    • The Aedicule with the Coptic chapel to the left with golden roof; main entrance to the right
      The Aedicule with the Coptic chapel to the left with golden roof; main entrance to the right
    • Facade of the Aedicule with pilgrims
      Facade of the Aedicule with pilgrims
    • Detail of Aedicule with temporary supports, prior to the 2016 restoration
      Detail of Aedicule with temporary supports, prior to the 2016 restoration
    • The Dome of the Anastasis above the aedicule
      The Dome of the Anastasis above the aedicule
    • Angel's Stone in the first chamber inside the aedicula
      Angel's Stone in the first chamber inside the aedicula
    • The Tomb of Jesus (raised platform to the right, interior the second chamber inside the aedicula)
      The Tomb of Jesus (raised platform to the right, interior the second chamber inside the aedicula)

    Therotundais the building of the larger dome located on the far west side.[68]In the centre of the rotunda is a small chapel called theAediculein English, from the Latinaedicula,in reference to a small shrine.[l]The Aedicule has two rooms: the first holds a relic called the Angel's Stone, which is believed to be a fragment of the large stone that sealed the tomb; the second, smaller room contains the tomb of Jesus. Possibly to prevent pilgrims from removing bits of the original rock as souvenirs, by 1555, a surface of marble cladding was placed on the tomb to prevent further damage to the tomb.[23]In October 2016, the top slab was pulled back to reveal an older, partially broken marble slab with a Crusader-style cross carved in it. Beneath it, the limestone burial bed was revealed to be intact.[23]

    Under theStatus Quo,theEastern Orthodox,Roman Catholic,andArmenian ApostolicChurches all have rights to the interior of the tomb, and all three communities celebrate theDivine LiturgyorHoly Massthere daily. It is also used for other ceremonies on special occasions, such as theHoly Saturdayceremony of theHoly Fireled by the Greek Orthodox patriarch (with the participation of the Coptic and Armenian patriarchs).[88]To its rear, in theCoptic Chapel,constructed of ironlatticework,lies the altar used by theCoptic Orthodox.[89][clarification needed]Historically, theGeorgiansalso retained the key to the Aedicule.[90][91][92]

    To the right of the sepulchre on the northwestern edge of the rotunda is theChapel of the Apparition,which is reserved for Roman Catholic use.[93]

    Catholicon

    [edit]
    East end of the Greek Orthodoxcatholicon,withits iconostasis

    In the centralnaveof the Crusader-era church, just east of the larger rotunda,[68]is the Crusader structure housing the main altar of the Church, today the Greek Orthodoxcatholicon.Its dome is 19.8 metres (65 ft) in diameter,[51]and is set directly over the centre of thetransept crossingof thechoirwhere thecompasis situated, anomphalos( "navel" ) stone once thought to be the center of the world and still venerated as such by Orthodox Christians (associated with the site of the Crucifixion and the Resurrection).

    Since 1996 this dome is topped by the monumental Golgotha Crucifix, which the Greek PatriarchDiodoros Iof Jerusalem consecrated. It was at the initiative of Israeli professor Gustav Kühnel to erect a new crucifix at the church that would not only be worthy of the singularity of the site, but that would also become a symbol of the efforts of unity in the community of Christian faith.[94]

    The catholicon'siconostasisdemarcates the Orthodox sanctuary behind it, to its east.[95] The iconostasis is flanked to the front by two episcopal thrones: the southern seat (cathedra) is the patriarchal throne of theGreek Orthodox patriarch of Jerusalem,and the northern seat is for an archbishop or bishop.[96][97](There is also a popular claim that both are patriarchal thrones, with the northern one being for thepatriarch of Antioch[98]– which has been described as a misstatement, however.)[96]

    Armenian monastery south of the Aedicule

    [edit]

    South of theAediculeis the "Place of the Three Marys",[99]marked by a stone canopy (theStation of the Holy Women) and a large modernwall mosaic.From here one can enter the Armenian monastery, which stretches over the ground and first upper floor of the church's southeastern part.

    Syriac Chapel with Tomb of Joseph of Arimathea

    [edit]
    Altar in the Syriac chapel

    West of the Aedicule, to the rear of the Rotunda, is theSyriac Chapelwith the Tomb of Joseph of Arimathea, located in a Constantinian apse and containing an opening to an ancient Jewish rock-cut tomb. This chapel is where theSyriac Orthodoxcelebrate their Liturgy on Sundays.

    TheSyriac OrthodoxChapel ofSaint Joseph of ArimatheaandSaint Nicodemus.On Sundays and feast days it is furnished for the celebration of Mass. It is accessed from the Rotunda, by a door west of the Aedicule.

    First-century tomb

    [edit]

    On the far side of the chapel is the low entrance to an almost complete first-century Jewish tomb, initially holding sixkokh-type funeral shafts radiating from a central chamber, two of which are still exposed. Although this space was discovered relatively recently and contains no identifying marks, some believe that Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus were buried here.[100]Since Jews always buried their dead outside the city, the presence of this tomb seems to prove that the Holy Sepulchre site was outside the city walls at the time of the crucifixion.[23][101]

    Franciscan area north of the Aedicule

    [edit]
    Chapel of Saint Mary Magdalene
    Chapel of the Apparition

    Arches of the Virgin

    [edit]
    Arches of the Virgin

    TheArches of the Virginare seven arches (anarcade) at the northern end of the north transept, which is to thecatholicon's north.[104] Disputed by the Orthodox and the Latin, the area is used to store ladders.[105] Over the years the Greek-Orthodox patriarchate placed several icons along the arcade. Dating mostly to the 19th century and designed in Orthodox Post-Byzantine style, they were restored in 2021.[106]

    Prison of Christ

    [edit]
    Prison of Christ before renovation

    In the northeast side of the complex, there is thePrison of Christ,alleged to be where Jesus was held.[107]TheGreek Orthodoxare showing pilgrims yet another place where Jesus was allegedly held, the similarly named Prison of Christ in theirMonastery of the Praetorium[C],located near theChurch of Ecce Homo,between the Second and Third Stations of theVia Dolorosa.The Armenians regard a recess in theMonastery of the Flagellationat the Second Station of the Via Dolorosa as the Prison of Christ. A cistern among the ruins beneath theChurch of St. Peter in Gallicantuon Mount Zion is also alleged to have been the Prison of Christ. To reconcile the traditions, some allege that Jesus was held in the Mount Zion cell in connection with his trial by the Jewishhigh priest,at the Praetorium in connection with his trial by the Roman governor Pilate, and near the Golgotha before crucifixion.

    Ambulatory

    [edit]
    The Chapel of the Parting of the Raiment, in the Church of Holy Sepulchre

    The chapels in theambulatoryare, from north to south: the GreekChapel of Saint Longinus(named afterLonginus), the ArmenianChapel of the Division of Robes,the entrance to the Chapel of Saint Helena, and the GreekChapel of the Derision.

    Chapel of Saint Helena

    [edit]
    Main article:Chapel of Saint Helena, Jerusalem
    Chapel of Saint Helena

    Chapel of Saint Vartan

    [edit]
    See also:Vardan Mamikonian
    St. Vartan Chapel
    • Chapel of St Vartan(or Vardan) Mamikonian – on the north side of the Chapel of Saint Helena is an ornatewrought irondoor, beyond which a raised artificial platform affords views of thequarry,and which leads to the Chapel ofSaint Vartan.The latter chapel contains archaeological remains from Hadrian's temple and Constantine's basilica. These areas are open only on request.[110]

    Chapel of the Invention of the Holy Cross

    [edit]
    Grotto of the Holy Cross

    Status Quo

    [edit]

    Ottoman decrees

    [edit]
    Main article:Status Quo (Jerusalem and Bethlehem)
    As a result of theStatus Quo,Immovable Ladderplaced before 1757 remains in place to this day.[50]

    An Ottoman decree of 1757 helped establish astatus quoupholding the state of affairs for various Holy Land sites. Thestatus quowas upheld in SultanAbdülmecid I'sfirman(decree) of 1852/3, which pinned down the now-permanent statutes of property and the regulations concerning the roles of the different denominations and other custodians.[111]

    The primary custodians are theRoman Catholic,Greek OrthodoxandArmenian Apostolicchurches. The Greek Orthodox act through theGreek Orthodox Patriarchateas well as through theBrotherhood of the Holy Sepulchre.Roman Catholics act through theFranciscanCustody of the Holy Land.In the 19th century, theCoptic Orthodox,theEthiopian Orthodoxand theSyriac Orthodoxalso acquired lesser responsibilities, which include shrines and other structures in and around the building.

    None of these controls the main entrance. In 1192,Saladinassigned door-keeping responsibilities to the MuslimNusaybah family.The wooden doors that compose the main entrance are the original, highly carved doors.[70]The Joudeh al-Goudia (al-Ghodayya) family were entrusted as custodian to the keys of the Holy Sepulchre by Saladin in 1187.[77][112]Despite occasional disagreements, religious services take place in the Church with regularity and coexistence is generally peaceful. An example of concord between the Church custodians is the full restoration of the Aedicule from 2016 to 2017.

    Interdenominational issues

    [edit]

    The establishment of the modern Status Quo in 1853 did not halt controversy and occasional violence. In 1902, 18 friars were hospitalized and some monks were jailed after the Franciscans and Greeks disagreed over who could clean the lowest step of theChapel of the Franks.In the aftermath, the Greek patriarch, Franciscancustos,Ottoman governor and Frenchconsul generalsigned a convention that both denominations could sweep it.[113] On a hot summer day in 2002, aCoptic monkmoved his chair from its agreed spot into the shade. This was interpreted as a hostile move by the Ethiopians and eleven were hospitalized after the resulting fight.[114]In another incident in 2004, during Orthodox celebrations of theExaltation of the Holy Cross,a door to the Franciscan chapel was left open. This was taken as a sign of disrespect by the Orthodox and a fistfight broke out. Some people were arrested, but no one was seriously injured.[115]

    OnPalm Sunday,in April 2008, a brawl broke out when a Greek monk was ejected from the building by a rival faction. Police were called to the scene but were also attacked by the enraged brawlers.[116]On Sunday, 9 November 2008, a clash erupted between Armenian and Greek monks during celebrations for theFeast of the Cross.[117][118]

    Issues with Israeli authorities

    [edit]

    Tax and land disputes

    [edit]

    In February 2018, the church was closed following a tax dispute over 152 million euros of uncollected taxes on church properties. The city hall stressed that the Church of the Holy Sepulchre and all other churches are exempt from the taxes, with the changes only affecting establishments like "hotels, halls and businesses" owned by the churches.[119]

    There was a lock-in protest against an Israeli legislative proposal which would expropriate church lands that had been sold to private companies since 2010, a measure which church leaders assert constitutes a serious violation of their property rights and the Status Quo. In a joint official statement the church authorities protested what they considered to be the peak of a systematic campaign in:

    a discriminatory and racist bill that targets solely the properties of the Christian community in the Holy Land... This reminds us all of laws of a similar nature which were enacted against the Jews during dark periods in Europe.[120]

    The 2018 taxation affair does not cover any church buildings or religious related facilities (because they are exempt by law),[121]but commercial facilities such as the Notre Dame Hotel which was not paying themunicipal property tax,and any land which is owned and used as a commercial land.[121]The church holds the rights to land where private homes have been constructed, and some of the disagreement had been raised after theKnessethad proposed a bill that will make it harder for a private company not to extend a lease for land used by homeowners.[122]The church leaders have said that such a bill will make it harder for them to sell church-owned lands. According toThe Jerusalem Post:

    The stated aim of the bill is to protect homeowners against the possibility that private companies will not extend their leases of land on which their houses or apartments stand.[122]

    Land sale to Israeli settlers

    [edit]

    NPRhad reported that the Greek Orthodox Church owns many properties across Jerusalem, Israel and the West Bank. It owns some 30% of the land in theOld City.But, due to property sales, these properties are diminishing every year. The decision to sell is made by Greek leaders, even though most local followers of the church are Arab Palestinians. The Palestinian Christians have raised concerns about selling these properties to Israeli settler-affiliated organizations.[123]

    In June 2019, a number of Christian denominations in Jerusalem raised their voice against the Supreme Court's decision to uphold the sale of three properties by theGreek Orthodox PatriarchatetoAteret Cohanim– an organization that seeks to increase the number of Jews living in the Old City and East Jerusalem. The church leaders warned that if the organization gets to control the sites, Christians could lose access to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre.[124]In June 2022, the Supreme Court upheld the sale and ended the legal battle.[125]

    Connection to Roman temple

    [edit]
    Jerusalem after being rebuilt by Hadrian. Two maineast–west roadswere built rather than the typical one, due to the awkward location of the Temple Mount, blocking the central east–west route.

    The site of the church had been a temple to Jupiter or Venus built by Hadrian before Constantine's edifice was built. Hadrian's temple had been located there because it was the junction of themain north–south roadwith one of the twomain east–west roadsand directly adjacent to theforum(now the location of theMuristan,which is smaller than the former forum). The forum itself had been placed, as is traditional in Roman towns, at the junction of the main north–south road with the other main east–west road (which is now El-Bazar/David Street). The temple and forum together took up the entire space between the two main east–west roads (a few above-ground remains of the east end of the temple precinct still survive in the Alexander Nevsky Church complex of theRussian Mission in Exile).[126]

    From the archaeological excavations in the 1970s, it is clear that construction took over most of the site of the earlier temple enclosure and that theTriporticoandRotundaroughly overlapped with the temple building itself; the excavations indicate that the temple extended at least as far back as the Aedicule, and the temple enclosure would have reached back slightly further.Virgilio Canio Corbo,a Franciscan priest and archaeologist, who was present at the excavations, estimated from the archaeological evidence that the western retaining wall of the temple itself would have passed extremely close to the east side of the supposed tomb; if the wall had been any further west any tomb would have been crushed under the weight of the wall (which would be immediately above it) if it had not already been destroyed when foundations for the wall were made.[15]

    Other archaeologists have criticized Corbo's reconstructions.Dan Bahat,the former city archaeologist of Jerusalem, regards them as unsatisfactory, as there is no known temple ofAphrodite(Venus) matching Corbo's design, and no archaeological evidence for Corbo's suggestion that the temple building was on a platform raised high enough to avoid including anything sited where the Aedicule is now; indeed Bahat notes that many temples to Aphrodite have a rotunda-like design, and argues that there is no archaeological reason to assume that the present rotunda was not based on a rotunda in the temple previously on the site.[127]

    Location

    [edit]
    1842 lithograph afterDavid Roberts,inThe Holy Land, Syria, Idumea, Arabia, Egypt, and Nubia

    The New Testament describes Jesus's tomb as being outside the city wall,[m]as was normal for burials across the ancient world, which were regarded as unclean.[128]Today, the site of the Church is within the current walls of the old city of Jerusalem. It has been well documented by archaeologists that in the time of Jesus, the walled city was smaller and the wall then was to the east of the current site of the Church.[citation needed]In other words, the city had been much narrower in Jesus's time, with the site then having been outside the walls; sinceHerod Agrippa(41–44) is recorded by history as extending the city to the north (beyond the present northern walls), the required repositioning of the western wall is traditionally attributed to him as well.[citation needed]

    The area immediately to the south and east of the sepulchre was a quarry and outside the city during the early first century as excavations under the Lutheran Church of the Redeemer across the street demonstrated.[citation needed]

    The church is a part of theUNESCO World Heritage SiteOld City of Jerusalem.

    The Christian Quarter and the (also Christian)Armenian Quarterof the Old City of Jerusalem are both located in the northwestern and western part of the Old City, due to the fact that the Holy Sepulchre is located close to the northwestern corner of the walled city. The adjacent neighbourhood within the Christian Quarter is called theMuristan,a term derived from the Persian word for hospital – Christian pilgrim hospices have been maintained in this area near the Holy Sepulchre since at least the time ofCharlemagne.

    Influence

    [edit]

    From the ninth century onward, the construction of churches inspired by the Anastasis was extended across Europe.[129]One example isSanto StefanoinBologna,Italy, an agglomeration of seven churches recreating shrines of Jerusalem.[130]

    Several churches and monasteries in Europe, for instance, in Germany and Russia, and at least one church in the United States have been wholly or partially modelled on the Church of the Resurrection, some even reproducing otherholy placesfor the benefit of pilgrims who could not travel to the Holy Land. They include theHeiliges Grab[de]( "Holy Tomb" ) ofGörlitz,constructed between 1481 and 1504, theNew Jerusalem MonasteryinMoscow Oblast,constructed byPatriarch Nikonbetween 1656 and 1666, andMount St. Sepulchre Franciscan Monasterybuilt by the Franciscans in Washington, DC in 1898.[131]

    Author Andrew Holt writes that the church is the most important in allChristendom.[132]

    See also

    [edit]

    Notes

    [edit]
    1. ^Greek:Ναός του Παναγίου Τάφου,romanized:Naós tou Panagíou Táfou;Latin:Ecclesia Sancti Sepulchri;Armenian:Սուրբ Հարության տաճար,romanized:Surb Harutʿyan tačar;Amharic:የቅዱስ መቃብር ቤተክርስቲያን,romanized:Yäḳdus Mäḳabr betä-krəstiyan;Hebrew:כנסיית הקבר,romanized:K'nesiyát ha-Kéver
    2. ^seespelling differences
    3. ^Greek:Ναὸς τῆς Ἀναστάσεως,romanized:Naos tes Anastaseos;Arabic:كَنِيسَةُ ٱلْقِيَامَة,romanized:Kanīsatu al-Qiyāmah;Armenian:Սուրբ Յարութեան տաճար,romanized:Surb Harut'yan tač̣ar.
    4. ^Some Christian scholars have argued that this may have already been a site of veneration for the tomb of Jesus.[9][10][11]Joan E. Taylorposits that the tomb's location could have been preserved by the localcollective memoryof Jesus's followers.[12]
    5. ^This shrine would have to be replaced over the subsequent centuries, most recently in the 19th century.[22][12][23]
    6. ^ The Church of the Holy Sepulchre is known among theEastern Orthodoxbelievers as the Church of the Resurrection.[28]
    7. ^Every year, theEastern Orthodox Churchcelebrates the anniversary of theDedication of the Temple of the Resurrection of Christ[ru].[27]
    8. ^Adémar de Chabannesrecorded that the church of Saint George atLydda"with many other churches of the saints" had been attacked, and the "basilica of the Lord's Sepulchre destroyed down to the ground". The Christian writerYahya ibn Sa'idreported that everything was razed "except those parts which were impossible to destroy or would have been too difficult to carry away".Morris 2005
    9. ^abThe need for total agreement for even minor changes is exemplified in the 'immovable ladder' under one of the church's windows; it has remained in the same position since at least 1757, aside from two occasions of temporary removal.[50]
    10. ^One of the two chapels within the shrine, a pilaster incorporates a piece of the stone said to have been rolled away from the tomb; it functions as a Greek Orthodox altar.[22]
    11. ^According to archaeologist Fredrik Hiebert, this does not resemble an archaeological excavation, but "a well-built tunnel".[12]
    12. ^The word isKouvouklionin Greek (Kουβούκλιον,modern Greek for "small compartment".
    13. ^For example,Hebrews 13:12.

    References

    [edit]

    Citations

    [edit]
    1. ^"Complete compendium of Church of the Holy Sepulchre".Madain Project.Archivedfrom the original on 29 April 2021.Retrieved18 March2018.
    2. ^abcMcMahon, Arthur L. (1913)."Holy Sepulchre".In Herbermann, Charles (ed.).Catholic Encyclopedia.New York: Robert Appleton Company.
    3. ^abc"Church of the Holy Sepulchre, Jerusalem".Sacred-destinations.Jerusalem. 21 February 2010. Archived fromthe originalon 3 September 2009.Retrieved7 July2012.
    4. ^Gates, Charles (2011).Ancient cities: the archaeology of urban life in the ancient Near East and Egypt, Greece and Rome(2nd ed.). London: Routledge. p. 424.ISBN978-0-203-83057-4.
    5. ^abcdMurphy-O'Connor, Jerome(1998).The Holy Land.Oxford University Press. pp. 56, 59.ISBN978-0191528675.
    6. ^United Nations Conciliation Commission(1949).United Nations Conciliation Commission for Palestine Working Paper on the Holy Places.Archivedfrom the original on 8 March 2021.Retrieved6 July2017.
    7. ^Cust, L. G. A.(1929).The Status Quo in the Holy Places.H.M.S.O. for the High Commissioner of the Government of Palestine.
    8. ^Freeman-Grenville, G. S. P. (1987). "The Basilica of the Holy Sepulchre, Jerusalem: History and Future".The Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland.119(2): 187–207.doi:10.1017/S0035869X00140614.JSTOR25212148.S2CID163764077.
    9. ^Murphy-O'Connor, Jerome(2010). "The Argument for the Holy Sepulchre".Revue Biblique.
    10. ^Taylor, Joan E.(1998). "Golgotha: A Reconsideration of the Evidence for the Sites of Jesus' Crucifixion and Burial".New Testament Studies.44(2): 180–203.doi:10.1017/S0028688500016465.S2CID170536292.
    11. ^Allison, Dale(2021).The Resurrection of Jesus.Bloomsbury.p. 142.
    12. ^abcdefStrange, Bob (2017).The Secret of Christ's Tomb(television production).National Geographic.
    13. ^abStephenson, Paul (2010).Constantine: Roman Emperor, Christian Victor.The Overlook Press. p. 206.ISBN978-1-46830-300-1.Archivedfrom the original on 1 August 2023.Retrieved27 November2018.
    14. ^Rudd, Steve."The Temple in Jerusalem over the threshing floor which is presently under the Al Kas fountain".Bible.ca.Archivedfrom the original on 20 May 2022.Retrieved29 November2018.
    15. ^abcCorbo, Virgilio (1981).Il Santo Sepolcro di Gerusalemme[The Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem] (in Italian). Franciscan Press. pp. 34–36.Archivedfrom the original on 10 March 2024.Retrieved14 September2020.
    16. ^abcOwen, G. Frederick, ed. (1983) [1964].The Thompson Chain-Reference Bible(4th improved (updated) ed.). Indianapolis: B.B. Kirkbride Bible Co. p. 323 (appendix).
    17. ^From theCatholic Encyclopedia:Archæology of the Cross and CrucifixArchived26 September 2010 at theWayback Machine:"Following an inspiration from on high, Macarius caused the three crosses to be carried, one after the other, to the bedside of a worthy woman who was at the point of death. The touch of the other two was of no avail; but on touching that upon which Christ had died the woman got suddenly well again. From a letter of St. Paulinus to Severus inserted in the Breviary of Paris it would appear that St. Helena herself had sought by means of a miracle to discover which was the True Cross and that she caused a man already dead and buried to be carried to the spot, whereupon, by contact with the third cross, he came to life. From yet another tradition, related bySt. Ambrosefollowing Rufinus, it would seem that thetitulus,or inscription, had remained fastened to the Cross. "
    18. ^NPNF2-01. Eusebius Pamphilius: Church History, Life of Constantine, Oration in Praise of Constantine.Christian Classics Ethereal Library. 2005.Archivedfrom the original on 2 June 2022.Retrieved19 September2014.Then indeed did this most holy cave present a faithful similitude of his return to life, in that, after lying buried in darkness, it again emerged to light, and afforded to all who came to witness the sight, a clear and visible proof of the wonders of which that spot had once been the scene, a testimony to the resurrection of the Saviour clearer than any voice could give.
    19. ^Renner, Gerald (14 December 1996)."Is it the Tomb of Christ? A Search for Evidence".Hartford Courant.Archivedfrom the original on 29 November 2018.Retrieved29 November2018.
    20. ^Socrates(c. 439).Historia Ecclesiastica.Revised and notes by A.C. Zenos, DD. Christian Classics Ethereal Library. pp. 21–22.Archivedfrom the original on 25 December 2017.Retrieved29 November2018.
    21. ^Stolzenburg, Xenia (2017).The holy place as formula. Floor plans in Adomnan's De locis sanctis to specify the description of pilgrimage sites in the Holy LandArchived10 November 2019 at theWayback Machinein: Wolfram R. Keller & Dagmar Schlueter (Ed.) 'A fantastic and abstruse Latinity'? Hiberno-Continental Cultural and Literary Interactions in the Middle Ages, Studien und Texte zur Keltologie (Münster: Nodus Publikationen), p. 66. "...there is not a single publication on the Holy Sepulchre or on holy burial sites that fails to include the floor plan by Adomnan, which consequently has become the topos of early depictions of Holy Sepulchre."
    22. ^abcdefgDK 2016,p. 99.
    23. ^abcdefghiRomey, Kristin (31 October 2016)."Unsealing of Christ's Reputed Tomb Turns Up New Revelations".National Geographic.Archived fromthe originalon 27 April 2021.Retrieved26 April2021.
    24. ^MacDonald, William L.(1962).Early Christian & Byzantine Architecture.New York: G. Braziller. p. 20 – via theInternet Archive.
    25. ^The "Pilgrim of Bordeaux"reports in 333:" There, at present, by the command of the Emperor Constantine, has been built a basilica, that is to say, a church of wondrous beauty ".Itinerarium Burdigalense,p. 594
    26. ^Wharton, Annabel Jane(1992)."The Baptistery of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem and the Politics of Sacred Landscape".Dumbarton Oaks Papers.46:313–325.doi:10.2307/1291664.ISSN0070-7546.JSTOR1291664.Archivedfrom the original on 11 October 2021.Retrieved11 October2021.
    27. ^abc"Commemoration of the Founding of the Church of the Resurrection (Holy Sepulchre) at Jerusalem".Orthodox Church in America.Archivedfrom the original on 25 January 2013.Retrieved2 March2012.
    28. ^Kelley, Justin L. (2019).The Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Text and Archaeology(PDF).Oxford:Archaeopress.p. 4 (note 3).ISBN978-1-78969-056-9.Archived(PDF)from the original on 18 December 2023.Retrieved18 December2023.The church was called 'the Resurrection' by many Byzantine writers, and it is this title that was adopted by Christian and Muslim Arab historians from the 10th century onward... Robinson and Smith (1856: 377, n. 1) noted that local Jerusalemites of the 19th century still called the church by its Arabic titleKanisah al-Qiyamah,'Church of the Resurrection'.
    29. ^abKroesen, Justin (2000).The Sepulchrum Domini Through the Ages: Its Form and Function.Leuven. p. 11.ISBN978-9042909526.Archivedfrom the original on 10 March 2024.Retrieved9 November2020.
    30. ^abcdMorris 2005,p.[page needed]
    31. ^Bokenkotter, Thomas (2004).A Concise History of the Catholic Church.Doubleday. p. 155.ISBN0-385-50584-1.Archivedfrom the original on 12 December 2023.Retrieved12 December2023.
    32. ^MacCulloch, Diarmaid (2009).A History of Christianity: The First Three Thousand Years.Penguin Books Ltd. p. 1339.ISBN978-0141957951.Archivedfrom the original on 10 March 2024.
    33. ^abcLev, Yaacov (1991).State and Society in Fatimid Egypt.Leiden; New York: E.J. Brill. p. 40.ISBN978-90-04-09344-7.Archivedfrom the original on 10 March 2024.Retrieved20 February2016.(subscription required)
    34. ^Foakes-Jackson, Frederick John(1921).An Introduction to the History of Christianity, A.D. 590–1314.London: Macmillan. p. 148.
    35. ^Fergusson, James(1865).A History of Architecture in All Countries.London: J. Murray.
    36. ^Gold, Dore(2007).The Fight for Jerusalem: Radical Islam, the West, and the Future of the Holy City.Washington, DC: Regnery Publishing.ISBN978-1-59698-029-7.
    37. ^Venetian Adventurer: The Life and Times of Marco Polo,p. 88
    38. ^abcdefPilgrimages and Pilgrim shrines in Palestine and Syria after 1095,Henry L. Savage,A History of the Crusades: The Art and Architecture of the Crusader States,Vol. IV, ed. Kenneth M. Setton and Harry W. Hazard, (University of Wisconsin Press, 1977), 37.
    39. ^"Chapel of Saint Helena".Madain Project.Archived fromthe originalon 16 May 2020.Retrieved16 May2020.
    40. ^Jeffery, George (1919).A Brief Description of the Holy Sepulchre Jerusalem and Other Christian Churches in the Holy City.CUP. p. 124.
    41. ^Conder, Claude Reignier (1909).The City of Jerusalem.J. Murray. p. 294.Archivedfrom the original on 8 November 2023.Retrieved30 September2022.[All kings named]
    42. ^Pringle, Denys (1993).The Churches of the Crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem.Vol. 3. Cambridge University Press. p. 65.ISBN978-0-521-39038-5.Archivedfrom the original on 8 November 2023.Retrieved30 September2022.destroyed in 1809–10
    43. ^Re’em, Amit; et al. (2022).Surviving Three Cycles of Destruction: The Graves of the Crusader Kings in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre.Vol. 15. pp. 71–103.ISBN978-9654067676.Archivedfrom the original on 17 November 2022.Retrieved17 November2022– via HAL-SHS.
    44. ^Pringle, D.(1993).The Churches of the Crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem: Volume 3, The City of Jerusalem: A Corpus.Cambridge University Press. pp. 31–32.ISBN978-0-521-39038-5.Archivedfrom the original on 8 November 2023.Retrieved10 March2016.
    45. ^Luke 1924,p. 46–56.
    46. ^Mailáth, János Nepomuk Jozsef (1848).Geschichte der europäischen Staaten, Geschichte des östreichischen Kaiserstaates[History of the European states, history of Austrian Imperial State]. Vol. 4. Hamburg: F. Perthes. p. 262.Archivedfrom the original on 8 November 2023.Retrieved14 September2020.
    47. ^Basilica of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem, 1757Archived6 March 2021 at theWayback Machine(in Spanish).
    48. ^Cohen, Raymond (2008). "The Earthquake".Saving the Holy Sepulchre: How Rival Christians Came Together to Rescue Their Holiest Shrine.Oxford University Press. pp. 1–12.doi:10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195189667.003.0001.ISBN978-0-19-518966-7.
    49. ^Cohen, Raymond (May 2009)."The Church of the Holy Sepulchre: A Work in Progress".The Bible and Interpretation.Archived fromthe originalon 28 April 2014.Retrieved19 September2014.
    50. ^abLancaster, James E. (2015)."The Church and the Ladder: Frozen in Time".CoastDaylight.Archivedfrom the original on 13 August 2011.Retrieved11 May2019.
    51. ^abWarren, E.K.; Hartshorn, W.N.; McCrillis, A.B. (1905).Glimpses of Bible Lands: The Cruise of the Eight Hundred to Jerusalem.Boston, MA: The Central Committee. p. 174.
    52. ^abRomey, Kristin (26 October 2016)."Exclusive: Christ's Burial Place Exposed for First Time in Centuries".National Geographic.Archived fromthe originalon 30 October 2016.Retrieved30 October2016.
    53. ^Hesemann, Michael (1999).Die Jesus-Tafel(in German). Freiburg. p. 170.ISBN3-451-27092-7.
    54. ^"Saint Vartan's Chapel".Madain Project.Archived fromthe originalon 28 October 2020.Retrieved28 October2020.
    55. ^abLancaster, James E. (1998)."Finding the Keys to the Chapel of St. Vartan".Jim Lancaster's Web Space.Archivedfrom the original on 20 July 2014.Retrieved2 March2012.the height difference can be easily seen; the yellowish wall on the left is the 4th-century wall and the pinkish one on the right is the 2nd-century wall.
    56. ^Goldman, Russell (22 March 2017)."Tomb of Jesus Reopens to Public After $3 Million Restoration".The New York Times.Archived fromthe originalon 1 January 2022.Retrieved23 March2017.
    57. ^Pappas, Stephanie (31 October 2016)."Original Bedrock of Jesus' Tomb Revealed in New Images".Live Science.Archivedfrom the original on 1 November 2016.Retrieved1 November2016.
    58. ^Romey, Kristin (28 November 2017)."Exclusive: Age of Jesus Christ's Purported Tomb Revealed".National Geographic.Archived fromthe originalon 24 February 2021.Retrieved28 April2021.
    59. ^Parke, Caleb (30 March 2020)."Coronavirus forces Jerusalem's Holy Sepulchre to close its doors for first time since 1349: 'Very sad'".Fox News.Archivedfrom the original on 4 August 2022.Retrieved1 April2020.
    60. ^"Jerusalem's Holy Sepulchre reopens after coronavirus closure".The Times of Israel.Archivedfrom the original on 4 August 2022.Retrieved27 May2020.
    61. ^Harash, Rinat (13 April 2022). Heller, Jeffrey; MacSwan, Angus (eds.)."Church of the Holy Sepulchre's ancient altar rediscovered, researchers say".Reuters.Archivedfrom the original on 9 April 2023.Retrieved14 April2022.
    62. ^Harutyunyan, Khachik (2020)."Armenian Inscriptions of the Church of Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem. Part 1. The Chapel of John the Evangelist and Its Inscriptions".VEM(in Armenian).12(2): 159–177.Archivedfrom the original on 26 March 2023.Retrieved30 September2022.
    63. ^"Egypt's Coptic Church exercises soft power in Jerusalem".Al-Monitor.7 June 2021. Archived fromthe originalon 4 September 2022.The state-ownedAkhbar al-Youmnewspaper [wrote that the] Egyptian Orthodox Church owns […] Deir al-Sultan and […] the Church of the Angel [Michael] and the Chapel of the Four Living Creatures.
    64. ^abDK 2016,p. 97.
    65. ^Ludolph of Saxony(2022).The Life of Jesus Christ.Translated by Walsh, Milton T. Liturgical Press.ISBN9780879072841.Archivedfrom the original on 8 November 2023.Retrieved30 September2022.[footnote:] a small room […] at the top of a flight of steps […] is called the Chapel of Our Lady of Sorrows, but is popularly referred to as the Chapel of the Franks.
    66. ^Wright, John Robert (1995).The Holy Sepulchre: The Church of the Resurrection an Ecumenical Guide.Ecumenical Theological Research Fraternity in Israel. p. 15.ISBN978-965-7024-00-3.Archivedfrom the original on 8 November 2023.Retrieved19 September2022.Underneath Our Lady of Sorrows is the Greek Oratory of St. Mary of Egypt, in memory of her conversion that is said to have occurred in the atrium of the Holy Sepulchre before an icon of Mary the Mother of God that was kept there
    67. ^Quarterly Statement.Palestine Exploration Fund. 1903. p. 297.Archivedfrom the original on 26 March 2023.Retrieved21 November2022.
    68. ^abcDK 2016,pp. 94–97.
    69. ^"Parvis and Entry".Gerusalemme San Salvatore Convento Francescano St. Saviour's Monastery. Archived fromthe originalon 1 July 2012.Retrieved8 May2019.
    70. ^abWilliam R. Cook of University of New York, lecture series
    71. ^"History of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre – Church of the Holy Sepulchre".Archivedfrom the original on 27 May 2019.Retrieved10 June2019.
    72. ^"Church of the Holy Sepulchre – Madain Project (en)".madainproject.Archivedfrom the original on 2 January 2022.Retrieved5 December2020.
    73. ^LoLordo, Ann (28 June 1999)."Trouble in a holy place".The Baltimore Sun.Archivedfrom the original on 29 November 2014.Retrieved19 September2014.
    74. ^abc"The family's relationship with the Church of the Holy Sepulchre".The Official website of the Nuseibeh Family.9 August 2004.Archivedfrom the original on 22 July 2010.Retrieved17 May2022.To protect the Christian places of worship, theCaliph Omarentrusted the custody of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre....to 'Ubadah ibn al-Samit,acompanion of the Prophetand the first ruler of Palestine and a forefather of the Nuseibeh family..... Records and manuscripts kept by the various Christian denominations....all record the Nuseibeh family's and Bani Ghanem's relationship with the Holy Sepulchre,at least since the time of Sultan Saladin.In 1192, Sultan Saladin....re-entrusted the custody of the doors of the Holy Sepulchre to the Nuseibeh's [sic]....
    75. ^Sudilovsky, Judith (27 February 2018)."Muslims (literally) hold key to Jerusalem's Church of the Holy Sepulcher".catholicnews.Archived fromthe originalon 11 May 2019.Retrieved11 May2019.
    76. ^abHarash, Rinat (30 November 2017)."Muslim holds ancient key to Jesus tomb site in Jerusalem".Reuters.Archivedfrom the original on 11 May 2019.Retrieved11 May2019.
    77. ^abcSherwood, Harriet (21 March 2017)."Jesus's tomb unveiled after $4m restoration".The Guardian.Manchester.Archivedfrom the original on 3 July 2018.Retrieved2 July2018.
    78. ^abcdefgDK 2016,p. 98.
    79. ^Cohen, Raymond (2008).Saving the Holy Sepulchre.Oxford University Press. p. 7.ISBN978-0-19-971990-7.Archivedfrom the original on 8 November 2023.Retrieved21 September2022.The Latins were left with the two southern altars on Calvary, namely, the Stabat Mater (Our Lady of Sorrows) and the Nailing to the Cross.
    80. ^William R. Cook of State University of New York, lecture series
    81. ^"The Brotherhood of the Holy Sepulcher".Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem. Archived fromthe originalon 24 May 2008.Retrieved19 September2014.
    82. ^King, Edwin James (1931).The Knights Hospitallers in the Holy Land.Methuen. p. 236.Archivedfrom the original on 8 November 2023.Retrieved19 September2022.This reliquary, now in the Treasury of the Greek Patriarch in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, was discovered in 1893... the Church of Mar Hanna, formerly the Conventual Church of the Hospitallers... The reliquary is of crystal in the shape of mitre set in a framework of gilded bronze, decorated with gems
    83. ^Boas, Adrian (2001).Jerusalem in the Time of the Crusades.Routledge. p. 121.ISBN978-1-134-58272-3.Archivedfrom the original on 10 March 2024.Retrieved30 September2022.A remarkable gold and crystal mitre-shaped reliquary of the Crusader period was kept in the church and is now on display in the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate
    84. ^DK 2016,p. 104.
    85. ^abc"Stone of Anointing – Madain Project (en)".madainproject.Archivedfrom the original on 8 March 2021.Retrieved23 May2020.
    86. ^Pringle, Denys (1993).The Churches of the Crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem.Vol. 3. Cambridge University Press. p. 39.ISBN978-0-521-39038-5.Archivedfrom the original on 8 November 2023.Retrieved30 September2022.[On the map: from west: h, g, f, e: graves of Baldwin V, Baldwin IV, Amuary I, and Baldwin III]
    87. ^Encyclopaedia (1852).Encyclopædia Metropolitana.p. 307.Archivedfrom the original on 10 March 2024.Retrieved30 September2022.
    88. ^"Miracle of Holy Fire which happens every year".Holyfire.org.Archivedfrom the original on 1 August 2017.Retrieved2 March2012.
    89. ^"Coptic Chapel".Church of the Holy Sepulchre.15 December 2016. Archived fromthe originalon 25 February 2019.Retrieved24 February2019.
    90. ^Janin, Raymond (1913).Échos d'Orient[Echos of the Orient]. Vol. 16. Institut français d'études byzantines. p. 35.Archivedfrom the original on 10 March 2024.Retrieved14 September2020.
    91. ^DeSandoli, Sabino (1986).The Church of Holy Sepulchre: Keys, Doors, Doorkeepers.Franciscian Press. p. 47.
    92. ^Jeffery, George (1919).A Brief Description of the Holy Sepulchre Jerusalem and Other Christian Churches in the Holy City: With Some Account of the Medieval Copies of the Holy Sepulchre Surviving in Europe.Cambridge University Press. p. 69.Archivedfrom the original on 27 February 2015.Retrieved19 September2014.
    93. ^"Catholic Chapel of the Apparition".See The Holy Land.net.Archivedfrom the original on 19 April 2018.Retrieved18 April2018.
    94. ^"The Cross of Golgotha".Michael Hammers. 24 June 2014.Archivedfrom the original on 14 July 2014.Retrieved19 September2014.
    95. ^Pierotti, Ermete (1864).Jerusalem Explored.Bell and Daldy.Archivedfrom the original on 8 November 2023.Retrieved30 September2022.On the east is the Iconostasis, dividing the 'Holy of Holies' from the rest of the church.
    96. ^abDowling, Theodore Edward (1913).The Orthodox Greek Patriarchate of Jerusalem.Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge.Archivedfrom the original on 8 November 2023.Retrieved30 September2022.The Patriarch's Seat is on the south-east end, and the corresponding one, immediately opposite, is occupied by one of the Archbishops of this Patriarchate, when required. This north-east Seat is popularly understood to be the throne of the Patriarch of Antioch. Even Dr. C. Schick […] and Baedeker […] make this misstatement.
    97. ^Wright, J. Robert (1995)."An Historical and Ecumenical Survey of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem, with Notes on Its Significance for Anglicans".Anglican and Episcopal History.64(4): 482–504.ISSN0896-8039.JSTOR42611737.Archivedfrom the original on 21 September 2022.Retrieved21 September2022.It contains two episcopal thrones: the one on the right (south), which is the official "cathedra" of the Patriarch of Jerusalem, and the one on the left (north), where any other Orthodox bishop whom he designates may sit and preside if he is absent.
    98. ^Trainor, Terry (2012).Bedlam. St. Mary of Bethlehem.Lulu. p. 32.ISBN9781471714283.Archivedfrom the original on 8 November 2023.Retrieved24 October2018.
    99. ^"Armenian Station of the Holy Women".Madain Project.Archived fromthe originalon 28 October 2020.Retrieved28 October2020.
    100. ^sepulchre, church of the holy (15 December 2016)."Chapel of Joseph of Arimateaitled".Church of the Holy Sepulchre.Archived fromthe originalon 20 August 2022.
    101. ^Featherman, Americus (1881).Social History of the Races of Mankind...Trübner & Company.Archivedfrom the original on 21 April 2023.Retrieved19 March2023.
    102. ^ab"The Franciscans at the Holy Sepulchre".The Franciscans of the Holy Land. Archived fromthe originalon 3 March 2012.Retrieved2 March2012.
    103. ^abChurch of the Holy Sepulchre chapels: Catholic Chapel of the ApparitionArchived15 April 2020 at theWayback Machine,See the Holy Land, accessed May 2020
    104. ^Longfellow, W.P.P. (1895).A Cyclopaedia of Works of Architecture: In Italy, Greece, and the Levant.Scribner. p. 179.Archivedfrom the original on 8 November 2023.Retrieved19 September2022.
    105. ^Cust, L.G.A. (2020).The Status Quo in the Holy Places.Good Press. p. 26.Archivedfrom the original on 8 November 2023.Retrieved30 September2022.
    106. ^https://dannythedigger /holy-sepluchre-greek-icons/
    107. ^"Chapel of Saint Helena".Holyland.Archived fromthe originalon 15 March 2012.Retrieved3 March2019.
    108. ^Goldhill, Simon(2009).Jerusalem, City of Longing.Harvard University Press. p. 35.ISBN9780674034686.Archivedfrom the original on 8 November 2023.Retrieved4 March2019.
    109. ^List of Christians in the Holy LandArchived18 April 2021 at theWayback Machine,Documenta Catholica Omnia, p. 87.
    110. ^"Chapel of St. Helena".holysepulchre.custodia.org.Archivedfrom the original on 28 June 2015.Retrieved3 February2018.
    111. ^Michael, Dumper; Stanley, Bruce E. (2007).Cities of the Middle East and North Africa: A Historical Encyclopedia.ABC-CLIO.ISBN9781576079195.OCLC80014324.
    112. ^Joudeh al-Husseini, Adeeb."Proud to hold keys of Muslim-Christian coexistence".Arabic Weekly.Archived fromthe originalon 20 September 2022.Retrieved19 September2022.the Hashemite noble family Joudeh al-Husseini al-Ghodayya
    113. ^Tucci, Grazia (2019).Jerusalem. The Holy Sepulchre: Research and investigations (2007–2011).Altralinea Edizioni. p. 117.ISBN978-88-94869-78-1.Archivedfrom the original on 8 November 2023.Retrieved19 September2022.
    114. ^Armstrong, Chris (1 July 2002)."Christian History Corner: Divvying up the Most Sacred Place".Christianity Today.Archivedfrom the original on 30 December 2011.Retrieved2 March2012.
    115. ^Fisher-Ilan, Allyn (28 September 2004)."Punch-up at tomb of Jesus".The Guardian.London.Archivedfrom the original on 7 April 2023.Retrieved19 September2014.
    116. ^El Deeb, Sarah (21 April 2008)."Christians brawl at Jesus' tomb".San Francisco Chronicle.Associated Press.Archivedfrom the original on 22 February 2015.Retrieved19 September2014.
    117. ^"Riot police called as monks clash in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre".The Times.London. 10 November 2008.Archivedfrom the original on 22 February 2015.Retrieved19 September2014.(subscription required)
    118. ^O'Laughlin, Toni (10 November 2008)."The monks who keep coming to blows in Jerusalem".The Guardian.Archivedfrom the original on 22 February 2015.Retrieved19 September2014.
    119. ^"Church at Jesus's burial site closed for second day after tax dispute".i24NEWS.26 February 2018.Archivedfrom the original on 3 July 2018.Retrieved27 February2018.
    120. ^Jonathan Lis and Nir Hasson, Jerusalem churches warn of Israel's 'systematic' erosion of Christian presence in Holy LandArchived25 February 2018 at theWayback Machine,Haaretz,25 February 2018
    121. ^abToken, Benny (27 February 2018).בעיריית ירושלים לא מתרגשים מהכנסייה[The Jerusalem Municipality is not moved by the church].Arutz Sheva(in Hebrew).Archivedfrom the original on 3 July 2018.Retrieved2 July2018.
    122. ^ab"WATCH: Pilgrims Face Closed Doors at Church of the Holy Sepulchre".The Jerusalem Post.Reuters. 26 February 2018.Archivedfrom the original on 20 April 2018.Retrieved2 July2018.
    123. ^Estrin, Daniel (2 December 2017)."Greek Orthodox Church Sells Land in Israel, Worrying Both Israelis And Palestinians".Weekend Edition.NPR.Archivedfrom the original on 27 February 2018.Retrieved27 February2018.
    124. ^Hasson, Nir (13 June 2019)."Jerusalem's Christian Leaders Blast Decision to Sell Old City Properties to Settler Group".Haaretz.Archivedfrom the original on 13 June 2019.Retrieved13 June2019.
    125. ^Surkes, Sue (9 June 2022)."Supreme Court upholds Greek church sales to far-right group, ending legal battle".Times of Israel.Archivedfrom the original on 27 December 2023.Retrieved27 December2023.
    126. ^"Church of the Holy Sepulcher".Jerusalem 101.Generation Word.Archivedfrom the original on 17 March 2018.Retrieved31 May2018.
    127. ^Bahat, Dan (May–June 1986)."Does the Holy Sepulchre Church Mark the Burial of Jesus?".Biblical Archaeology Review.Archivedfrom the original on 2 April 2015.Retrieved19 September2014.(subscription required)
    128. ^Toynbee, Jocelyn M. C.Death and Burial in the Roman WorldArchived7 April 2023 at theWayback Machine,pp. 48–49, JHU Press. 1996.ISBN0-8018-5507-1.An exception in the Classical World were theLyciansofAnatolia.There are also the Egyptian mortuary-temples, where the object of worship was the deified royal person entombed, but Egyptian temples to the major gods contained no burials.
    129. ^Monastero di Santo Stefano: Basilica Santuario Santo Stefano: StoriaArchived10 October 2007 at theWayback Machine,Bologna.
    130. ^Ousterhout, Robert G. (1 January 1981)."The Church of Santo Stefano: A 'Jerusalem' in Bologna".Gesta.20(2): 311–321.doi:10.2307/766940.ISSN0016-920X.JSTOR766940.S2CID191752841.Archivedfrom the original on 18 April 2022.Retrieved18 April2022.
    131. ^"February 8, 1999 – News – Bringing a part of the Holy Land to America".thecommondenominator.Archivedfrom the original on 23 January 2022.Retrieved19 April2022.
    132. ^Holt, Andrew (2019).The World of the Crusades: A Daily Life Encyclopedia [2 volumes].ABC-CLIO. p. 57.ISBN9781440854620.was housed in the most important church in Christendom, the Church of the Holy Sepulchre.

    Sources

    [edit]
    • Jerusalem, Israel, Petra & Sinai.DK.2016 [2000].ISBN978-1-4654-4131-7.
    • Morris, Colin (2005),The Sepulchre of Christ and the Medieval West: From the Beginning to 1600,Oxford: Oxford University Press,ISBN978-0198269281

    Further reading

    [edit]
    [edit]
    Wikimedia Commons has media related toChurch of the Holy Sepulchre.
    Wikisourcehas original text related to this article:

    Custodians

    Virtual tours

    Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Church_of_the_Holy_Sepulchre&oldid=1257385816"