Ras et-Tawil - Chapel
Church Name, type, function
Site Name:
Ras et-Tawil
Church name:
Chapel
Functional Type:
Monastic
Church type:
Cave church
Location
Coordinates, ITM system:
222.96
637.62
Coordinates, ICS system:
172.96
1,137.60
Geographical region:
Jerusalem (Greater Jerusalem)
Topographical location:
On a hill near Tell el-Ful.
Distance from nearest bishop-seat:
Ca. 6 km northeast of Jerusalem.
Distance from nearest settlement:
In the northern neighborhoods of modern city of Jerusalem
Distance from Roman roads:
Near the road between Jerusalem and Neapolis (Shechem).
Provincial affiliation:
Palaestina I
Bishopric:
Jerusalem
Source of knowledge
Archaeological remains
Surveyed site
Surveyors:
| Name | Date |
|---|---|
Conder and Kitchener | 1860s |
Excavated site
Excavators:
| Name | Date |
|---|---|
Gibson, Kloner (IAA) | 1981 |
General description
State of preservation/which parts were uncovered:
Monastery surrounded by a wall. Within it is a complex of structures, including a chapel, rooms and two courtyards. The chapel is built over a partially hewn cave, which is entered from the east of the chapel. A hewn staircase led to the cave. The chapel’s remains include an apse(only parts of the foundation), a colorful mosaic floor with geometric designs and colored plaster fragments. The rooms contained fragments of an offering table and a marble chancel screen.
Description
Small finds
Small finds:
| Category | Description |
|---|---|
Glass | Plenty of fragments of glass window panes |
Coins | A large hoard, consisting of 206 bronze coins of low denominations value, all were of Egyptian provenance. It was revealed within a pit, which was made in the floor of the complex. The latest coins were minted in the third quarter of the 8th century CE. |
Small finds illustrative material:
Detailed description
Crypt
Accessibility and description:
The chapel was built above a big cave, which was partially cut in the rock, partially built. The entrance into this cave was located from outer side, to the east of the chapel. Six wide rock-cut steps were leading into the cave. As Gibson had suggested, it could be originally a hermitage of local saint/monk. In the northwest part of the chapel a rectangular shaft was once carved, which linked the floor with the ceiling of the cave. The monastery was probably built in the memory of the saint who lived or was buried in this cave. Gibson had suggested, that a hermit could be "associated with one of the laurae in the region to the east of Ras et-Tawil" (1985/6: 72).
Cult of relics
Reliquiaries: shapes and contents:
Anticipated reliquary in the cave.
Architectural Evolution
| Phase name (as published) | Dating material | Phase no. | Century |
|---|---|---|---|
Byzantine | General historical background (the main phase of establishing of monastic settlements in Judean desert). Late fifth or early sixth century CE. | Phase 1 | 5th-6th c. |
Abbasid | A hoard of coins, which were dated not later than the third quarter of the 8th century CE. | Abandonment | 8th c. |