Vertical tabsMonastery name, type, categorySite Name: Mount Scopus (east)Monastery name: THEODORUS AND CYRIACUSMonastery type: CenobiumMonastery category: Para UrbanPilgrims LocationCoordinates, ITM system: 22,444.0063,284.00 Coordinates, ICS system: 17,444.0013,284.00 Geographical region: Judean Desert fringesProvincial affiliation: Palaestina IBishopric: JerusalemTopographical location: On the eastern slopes of the Mt. of OlivesDistance from nearest bishop-seat: ca. 1.5 km (Jerusalem)Distance from nearest settlement: ca.1.5 km (Jerusalem)Distance from Roman roads: ca. 0.5 km from the road leading from Jerusalem to the Jordan valley. Source of knowledgeHideEpigraphy Text number Summary 1 Building inscription in a round mosaic medallion, in Room 27 of the western annex of the monastery. Archaeological remainsSurveyed siteSurveyors: NameDate Kloner2000 Excavated siteExcavators: NameDate Amit, Seligman and Zilberbod 1999- 2000 Bibliograpy: Amit, D., Seligman, J. and Zilberbod, I., 200094-98 Kloner, A., 2001117 Amit, D., Seligman, J. and Zilberbod, I., 2003139-48 Di Segni, L., 2003149-52 Di Segni, L., 2003247-67 Stone, M. E., Amit, D., Seligman, J. and Zilberbod, I., 2011230-35 Magen, Y. and Kagan, E. D., 201234-35 Tchekhanovets, Y., 201682-83 Tchekhanovets Y., 2018 Abbreviation for Journals and SeriesState of certainty: Archaeologicaly definitive General descriptionState of preservation/which parts were uncovered: The excavation revealed a complex consisting of a large central courtyard surrounded by halls, storerooms and rooms with other functions. Illustrative material: Illustrative_material Photos Figures General descriptionPaths: A section of paved road was uncovered southeast of the complex. Enclosing walls: The enclosed area was ca. 90 x 50 m, 4500 m2. Gate/s: A secondary gate in the eastern Courtyards: A large central courtyard (27 x 13 m) surrounded by halls forms the heart of the complex. The courtyard was entered via two corridors, one leading from the church, the other from the southeast. A bench was built along the western wall of the courtyard and several holes in the wall apparently served for tethering pack animals. The floor of the courtyard had two phases: in the first phase, the rock was leveled. In the second phase, a layer of soil was laid over which stone flags were placed. To the west of the church there is an atrium or narthex (15.5 x 9 m), paved in a white mosaic and divided in two by a row of rectangular piers. Apparently the western part of this area was roofed, with benches built along the walls. Churche/s: The church (est. 18- 20 x 8.5 m) is located in the northern part of the complex. The eastern part of the church, including the apse was constructed on fill which had been washed away. Entrance to the church was on the west through a single doorway (1.6 m wide). To its north, parallel to it, there is a rectangular hall (5.6 m wide, its total length unknown) which served as a baptistery or a prosthesis chapel. A plastered basin (baptismal font?) was uncovered in its northwestern corner with a drain leading outside the monastery wall. To the west there is an atrium or narthex (see above). A corridor (5 m long) separates the church unit from the central courtyard. Dwellings: On the western side of the courtyard there are several rooms of varying sizes. A row of rooms with a private entrance from the outside, and private access to the main body of the monastery, probably served high status visitors who were not housed in the hostel that served those of a lower status. The eastern wing of the monastery apparently possessed two stories, only the lower one remains. The excavators suggested that the upper story contained the dwelling cells of monks and perhaps those of visitors. Refectory: The excavators identified a hall that they called a "Reception hall". It is possible that this hall served as a refectory. In this hall an inscription enclosed in a medallion mentions the abbot Theodorus and the monk Cyriacus in whose time the mosaic was laid. Bathhouse: Located in the southern part of the complex, the baths belong to the last phase of the existence of the monastery, in the Early Islamic period. Between the original southern wing and the bathhouse is a rectangular space (12.5 x 6.5 m), its use is not clear, possibly an antechamber. South of the antechamber, a second rectangular hall (9.2 x 4.3 m) with a mosaic pavement patterned with a simple polychrome lozenge design may have served as a dressing room (apodyterium). A small basin (1.1 x 0.5 m) is in the southwestern corner. In the western wall of the apodyterium there is an opening leading to a small room (2.4 x 2.4 m), paved with a white mosaic, benches constructed around three walls and a drain in the floor. The hot room (caldarium) is poorly preserved, only the colonnettes of the hypocaust remaining. The room is parallel to the apodyterium and of similar dimentions. East of the hot room are remains of an installation consisting of plastered basins, all connecting to a drainage channel. The state of preservation does not allow its identification and whether or not it formed part of the bathhouse. Burials: Beneath the corridor that separated the church unit from the central courtyard a cellar formed by the levelling of the floor contained four cist tombs, possibly those of the monastery founders. In the western wing of the complex a space (15.5 x 7 m) in the northern part of which three tombs had been hewn. The easternmost tomb was entered through a hewn opening near the western wall, the other two tombs were reached via vertical shafts and contained arcosolia. The tombs were not excavated. Hostelry: The “reception hall” located at the southern end of the western wing may have served to recieve guests. Stable: Two stables (6.8 x 3.7 and 7.8 x 3.7 m) were uncovered in the lower story of the eastern wing. Mangers were constructed at floor level along the western walls of the stables. Both stables opened towards the central corridor (23 x 3.2 m) of the wing. Water installations: The monastery possessed an extensive, sophisticated system of water collection. Water was collected from the slope of the mountain and from all parts of the structure via a system (total length 350 m) of channels, clay pipes and drains into several pools and cisterns. The system allowed regulation of the water level and overflow could be directed to other cisterns. Water could also be directed towards the agricultural terraces below the monastery. Two large open pools had been hewn northwest of the complex, their total capacity being 2,400 m3. Four cisterns were dug beneath the various parts of the monastery complex. Beneath the entire atrium/narthex is a hewn rectangular cistern, its roof (floor of the atrium/narthex) is supported by arches. A system of channels directed water from the central courtyard to this cistern. Agricultural and industrial installations: A hall in the eastern wing was entered through three doorways along the main corridor of the wing.In the center of the hall stone flags were laid in concentric circles around an installation that did not survive (a mill or crushimg floor of press). The stones were scored to prevent the draught animals from slipping. Rectangular plastered basins survived along the western wall of the hall. The installation went out of use in the second phase. Small findsSmall finds: CategoryDescription Inscription - see under epigraphy Stone vesselsA marble table decorated with hunters and wild beasts. PotteryByzantine GlassGlass vessels Coins OtherRemains of charred wooden beams. Detailed descriptionDimensions: Total area (sqm)Size class 4,500Large StructureMaterials applied (walls): LimestoneMaterials applied (roofing): tilestimber ComponentsEnclosing wallGate/s: 2Courtyard/sMonastery church: Church typeDiakonikonLink to church sectionChurch location single naveGround floor RefectoryDwelling type: cellsNumber of stories: 2BathhouseHostelryBuilt pathsAgricultural installations: Terraces [=t]Water installations: CisternsChannelsGuttersPainted plaster Architectural evolutionPhase 1 Phase 2 Phase 3 Abandonment General outline: The monastery was founded in the fifth century CE. The north wing, where the Armenian inscription was located, formed the earliest phase, the halls too belong to this phase Dating material: Architectural considerations Phase dateCentury: 5th c. General outline: The halls, apparently constructed in the first phase, were repaved with the mosaic bearing the dated inscription, in the sixth century.Dating material: Numismatics Phase dateCentury: 6th c. General outline: The southern wing consists of more rooms including a bathhouse dated to the early eighth century. Chunks of mosaics and charred wooden beams in this area attest to a second story. Dating material: The Armenian inscription is dated to the late seventh/early eighth century CE. based on numismatic evidence, the bathhouse was either built or renovated during the Abbasid although Umayyad coins found under the floor with the inscription may indicate that the work started earlier, i.e. in the second half of the seventh century. Phase dateCentury: 7th-8th c. Iconoclastic evidenceIconoclastic evidence: No General outline: The monastery was destroyed and abandoned in the Abbasid period.Phase dateCentury: 8th-9th c. Post Arab conquest history: Still in usePost conquest history comments: The site was destroyed and abandoned in the Abbasid period. Charred wooden beams attest to a conflagration.
