17176 - Wadi Khureitun - Rock of the Crosses

Church Name, type, function

Site Name:

Wadi Khureitun

Church name:

Rock of the Crosses

Functional Type:

Monastic

Dedication:

unknown

Church type:

Cave church

Location

Coordinates, ITM system:

224,007.00

615,900.00

Geographical region:

Judean Desert

Topographical location:

Northern side of Wadi Khareitun, 1.7 km east of Kh. Khareitun

Distance from Roman roads:

On the intersection of the paths joining Kh. Khareitun, ʿEin es-Sakhari, and Kh. Umm el-ʿAmed; ca. 3 km to the east from the road, connected Jerusalem and Ein Geddi

Provincial affiliation:

Palaestina I

Bishopric:

Jerusalem

Source of knowledge

Literary sources:

Literary sources

Archaeological remains

Surveyed site

Surveyors:

Name	Date
Hirschfeld	1980-1990s

Bibliograpy:

Hirschfeld, Y., 1985	72-4, no. 45
Hirschfeld, Y., 1988
Hirschfeld, Y., 1990	75-7
Hirschfeld, Y., 1992	224-6
Hirschfeld, Y., 1993	303-4
Tsafrir, Y., Di Segni, L. and Green, J., 1994	215

Abbreviation for Journals and Series

General description

State of preservation/which parts were uncovered:

A large cave (22 m wide, 25 m deep, ca. 9 m high) with three niches at the easteern side and round depression on the "roof" in front of the "apses" might served as a chapel. The cave with five engraved crosses (8.4 m long, 3.5 m wide, 3 m high) was located not far from it (ca. 100-150 m to the west) and might be connected to the chapel. There was a system of cut in the rock stairways between them. There were no traces of the roof, so the cave might be left open to the sky. There are plenty of other caves with the built outer walls and doorways with lintels and jambs in the vicinity. They might be used for the dwelling of the monks. Various architectural members, such as cornices or voussoirs, were revealed at the site.