Khan el-Ahmar - EUTHYMIUS

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Monastery name, type, category

Site Name:

Khan el-Ahmar

Identification:

The site was first identified with the monastery of Euthymius by Furrer in the late nineteenth century. This identification has been accepted by scholars, especially after the identity was confirmed by excavation.

Monastery name:

EUTHYMIUS

Monastery type:

Cenobium

Monastery category:

Desert

Pilgrims

Source of sacredness:

Founder's Tomb

Location

Coordinates, ITM system:

231,924.00

633,306.00

Coordinates, ICS system:

181,920.00

133,305.00

Geographical region:

Judean Desert

Provincial affiliation:

Palaestina I

Bishopric:

Jerusalem

Topographical location:

Level ground

Distance from nearest bishop-seat:

10 km (Jerusalem)

Distance from Roman roads:

1 km south of the road connecting Jerusalem with Jericho

Source of knowledge

HideLiterary sources

Text number	Summary
1	Foundation of Euthymius’ laura, AD 420s.
2	On the water supply of the laura, ca. AD 431-451.
3	Miraculous vision in the church of the laura, ca. AD 453-473.
4	Sabas comes to Euthymius, AD 457.
5	Description of the cells of Euthymius’ laura, AD 466.
6	Death and burial of Euthymius, AD 473.
7	The construction of the funerary chapel.
8	Transformation of Euthymius’ laura into a coenobium, AD 478-482.
9	The diakonikon, ca. AD 535.
10	On the water-supply of the coenobium, ca. AD 544.
11	Various miracles relating to the monastery.
12	Mention of the coenobium in a list of Sabas’ monasteries.
13	Cyriacus' association with the monastery of Euthymius; the monasteries of Euthymius and Theoctistus split up on account of economic friction and the common property was divided, AD 466-485.
14	Corrupted mention of the monastery of St Euthymius, from an itinerary of AD 722-729, composed ca. 780.
15	Mention of the tomb of St Euthymius east of Bethany, from an 8th cent. guidebook for pilgrims.
16	Inventory of monks at the monastery of St Euthymius (?), from an official report ordered in AD 808.

HideEpigraphy

Text number	Summary
1	Marble fragment used as weight, found near the main arched gateway of the monastery.
2	Three small fragments of an epitaph (?) of Theodorus (?) the chartularius, found in the debris or used as a ledge.
3	Damaged dedicatory mosaic inscription of a deacon within a tabula ansata, in the floor of the court adjoining the church in the north.
4	Two grafitti with Christian acclamations engraved on a soft stone.
5	Christian acclamation engraved on a decorated limestone lintel, found among the fallen stones east of the western tower.
6	Fragmentary dedicatory (?) inscription of Petrus, reused for Theodulus, on a large piece of white marble, found blocking the entrance to the western burial chamber.
7	Small alabaster fragment from the edge of an alter table (?).
8	Flagstone with abbreviated inscription, found at the western side of the main burial chamber.

Archaeological remains

Surveyed site

Surveyors:

Name	Date
Conder and Kitchener	1871-1877

Excavated site

Excavators:

Name	Date
Chitty and Jones	1928-1930
Meimaris	1970's
Birger and Hirschfeld	1987-1989
Tal	1990's (not published)
Tal and Ben-Ziony	1990's (not published)
Fogel	2000's (not published)
Har-Even and Yuzefovsky	2000's (not published)

History:

The monastery was founded by Euthymius in 428 CE. It was his third foundation, after the monastery of Theoctistus and the monastery at Caparbaricha. According to Cyril of Scythopolis, who described the foundation in detail, Euthymius settled in a cave in the plain now known in Hebrew as Mishor Adumim. With time he was joined by 12 desciples and the laura was constructed with the help of Euthymius' Saracen followers. After the death of Euthymius in 478, the laura was converted in 482 into a communal monastery, in accordance with his will. The monastery continued to function into the 7th century and was badly damaged in an earthquake in 659 CE after which it was restored and continued to function. The monastery was abandoned sometime before the beginning of the 12th century as reported by the Russian Abbot Daniel who found it in ruins. The monastery was restored by the Crusaders in the twelfth century and abandoned once more when their kingdom fell. The site was surveyed several times and was excavated initially in the first half of the twentieth century by Chitty, later in the same century by Meimaris and later still by Hirschfeld and others.

Bibliograpy:

Abbreviation for Journals and Series

State of certainty:

Archaeologically and Literarily definitive

General description

State of preservation/which parts were uncovered:

The monastery of Euthymius has been extensively excavated in several excavations starting in the 1920's. Its good state of preservation has enabled a reconstruction of the site. According to Hirschfeld, only the crypt can be attributed to the Byzantine period and the original monastery. The other remains are attributed to the Early Islamic period (post the 659 earthquake), and the Middle Ages.

Illustrative material:

Illustrative_material

Photos

Khan el Aḥmar- view from the east (Magen and Kagan 2012 II: 59, 194.2).

Khan el Ahmar- view from the northwest (Magen and Kagan 2012 II: 60, 194.3).

Figures

Monastery of Euthymius- general plan of the site (Magen and Kagan 2012 II: 58, 194.1).

General description

Enclosing walls:

The monastery was enclosed with a well constructed wall (65 x 54 m, encompassing an area of 3,510 sq. m). The wall is constructed of ashlars and was preserved in its entirty (2.1 m wide, 3.2 m high). The wall belongs to the last phase of construction (Middle Ages) but apparently follows the contour of the original Byzantine wall.

Gate/s:

The main gate to the complex is located in its northern wall. Today, a medieval arch remains over the gateway. two smaller entryways are located in the walls, one in the western part of the southern wall, facing the remains of the hostel and another in the southern part of the western wall.

Courtyards:

A central courtyard is located in the center of the structure, paved in well fitting stone slabs. A second, smaller courtyard was located between the church and the crypt. A cistern was located beneath its western part.

Tower/s:

A tower (6.5 x 5.4 m) is located in the southwest of the complex. Entrance to the tower was apparently from the east. The ground floor consisted of two long halls in an east-west orientation. The northern hall was vaulted and the southern hall's roof rested on a series of arches. Both halls were paved in a white mosaic. The pottery found in the halls was medieval. The tower was originally constructed in the Byzantine period and continued in use in the Middle Ages.

Remains of an external tower were found some 180 m northwest of the monastery, identified by Hirschfeld as the tower mentioned by Cyril of Scythopolis (V. Euth. 43, 65.3; V. Cyr. 7, 226.14).

Churche/s:

The remains of the church visible today were dated to the Early Islamic period, built after the damage of the earthquake in 659 CE. The church stands on the second story, over three barrel vaults. It was extensively renovated in the Crusader period. The church is a basilica (13.8 x 25.4 m), with a nave and two aisles separated by two rows of three stone pillars each. The southern aisle is paved with a polychrome mosaic featuring geometric patterns and animal representations, dated to the Ummayad period. The nave is paved in opus sectile, dated to the Crusader period. The early excavation revealed remains of frescoes, fragments of an altar table, chancel screen, windows and window panes.

Dwellings:

A row of rooms was unearthed south of the tower. The eastern room had a plastered floor and two constructed beds with stone "pillows" which were also plastered. A second room, to its west, was vaulted and paved with a white mosaic. Other cell were uncovered in other parts of the complex, some with the same constructed beds.

Refectory:

According to Cyril of Scythopolis, when the laura of Euthymius was transformed into a coenobium after his death, the old church was turned into a refectory over which the new church was built (V. Euthy. 43, 64). Three parallel barrel vaults support the second story church. The space formed by these vaults served as the refectory of the monastery.

Burials:

The sources recount how Euthymius' remains were buried in a vault built over the seclusion cave in which he dwelled (V. Euthy. 42). The crypt, first excavated by Chitty, revealed a burial complex accessed via a stone staircase, containing tombs covered with stone slabs. The main chamber (4.7 x 5.8 m), was constructed of ashlars and vaulted. The stone slabs paving the floor were mostly missing. Nine trough tombes were located beneath the pavement (average 2 x 0.5-0.7 m). Some contained human remains, stacked over each other with funerary offerings, mainly oil lamps.

A second, smaller chamber (2.4 x 8.5 m) adjoined to the west. This chamber was reached via a short passage and was constructed in an identical manner to the main chamber. The chamber contained two large burial troughs, cut ino the rock, for multiple burials. They were separated by a narrow passage as wide as the door. The troughs were plastered and contained the skeletons of over 100 human males.

Storage facilities:

Various storerooms were uncovered in the excavations in the 1970's.

Cave/s:

According to Cyril of Scythopolis, Euthymius' tomb was constructed over the cave in which he lived.

Hostelry:

A large structure was located south of the main complex. This was apparently a hospice for pilgrims. The remains visible today were dated to the Crusader period but it is probable that the builders made use of the remains of the earlier periods.

Water installations:

Four cisterns were found in the environs of the complex. The largest and most sophisticated is a cistern located east of the main structure. This cistern is rectangular (23 x 12 x 15 m, with a capacity of 4,140 m³). The cistern is roofed with two parallel barrel vaults and plastered with typical reddish plaster. A sophisticated system of channels brought the water to the cistern and a sink tank on the outside filtered out sand and other impurities before allowing the water into the cistern. To retrieve the water, a mechanism worked by a draught animal was used. Many fragments of the small juglets that were attached to the mechanism were found in the excavation. This cistern is identical to the one found at the monastery of Martyrius and very similar to the one found at the monastery of Chariton (the Old Laura).

Garden:

An area to the south of the main structure apparently served as the monastery's garden. Along the slope to the southeast, terraces were also found.

Small finds

Small finds:

Category	Description
Pottery	Mainly Medieval.
Bones	Remains of an estimated 150 adults and 30 children (all male)
Oil lamps	In the tombs

Detailed description

Dimensions:

Total area (sqm)	Size class
3,510	Large

Structure

Materials applied (walls):

Limestone

Materials applied (roofing):

tiles

Components

Enclosing wall

Gate/s:

Tower/s

Courtyard/s

Monastery church:

Church type	Diakonikon	Link to church section	Church location
basilical			Upper floor

Refectory

Dwelling type:

cells

Number of stories:

Storage facilities – warehouses

Hostelry

Tombs type:

Burial chamber

Garden

Agricultural installations:

Terraces [=t]

Water installations:

Cisterns

Channels

Water capacity (minimal) (cubic m):

4.140

Architectural evolution

Phase 1
Phase 2
Phase 3
Abandonment

General outline:

A laura was established by Euthymius, its church consecrated in 428 CE.

Dating material:

Few remains of the original cells were found in the vicinity, they had probably been demolished when the laura became a coenobium.

Phase date

Century:

5th c.

Within century:

First half

General outline:

In compliance with Euthymius' will, the laura became a coenobium and the monastery was built, surrounded by walls, a new church, courtyards and the crypt where Euthymius was interred.

Dating material:

The excavations revealed that only the crypt could be dated to the Byzantine period while all the other elements were dated to the post Byzantine period.

Phase date

Century:

5th-6th c.

General outline:

Unlike many of the Judean Desert monasteries, the monastery of Euthymius was not abandoned in the early seventh century. It continued to function until it was severely damaged by an earthquake in 659 CE, following which it was restored.

Phase date

Century:

7th c.

Within century:

Second half

General outline:

The monastery was abandoned before 1107. Its existence is testified to in the early ninth century (Commemoratorium de casis Dei) and the Russian abbot Daniel describes it as a walled compound but in ruins.

Dating material:

Literary.

Phase date

Century:

Middle Ages

Post Arab conquest history:

Built anew

Post conquest history comments:

Following the damage of the 659 CE earthquake, the monastery was restored. It was abandoned sometime before 1107 CE when the Russian Abbot Daniel visited the site. The monastery was restored in the Middle Ages by the Crusaders and once more abandoned with the destruction of the Crusader Kingdom.

Chitty, D. J. and Jones, A. H. M., 1928	175-78
Hankin, E. H. and Myers, J. L. , 1929	98-103
Chitty, D. J., 1930	43-47
Chitty, D. J., 1930	150-53
Chitty, D. J., 1932	188-203
Schneider, A. M., 1938	104
Ovadiah, A., 1970	103-4
Hirschfeld, Y., 1984	42-44
Birger, R. and Hirschfeld, Y., 1988	34
Birger, R. and Hirschfeld, Y., 1988/89	110
Meimaris, Y. E., 1989
Hirschfeld, Y., 1990
Hirschfeld, Y., 1993	339-71
Hirschfeld, Y., 1993	428-430
Hershkovitz, I. , Yakar, R., Taitz, C. , Wish-Baratz, S. , Pinhasov, A. and Ring, B. , 1993	373-85
Tsafrir, Y., Di Segni, L. and Green, J., 1994	167
Schick, R., 1995
Di Segni, L., 2001	31-36
Patrich, J., 2011	205-18
Magen, Y. and Kagan, E. D., 2012	58-60