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Church of the Nativity
(كنيسة المهد)

Title	Church of the Nativity
Title Original	كنيسة المهد
Publication Date:	529 AD
Type	Other
Language	Undetermined
Digital	Yes
Manuscript	No
Library:	Museum With No Frontiers
Record ID	monument;ISL;pa;Mon01;23;ar
Library Location	Located in the center of the Old City, Bethlehem, Palestine
Date	529 AD
Notes	The origin of the building is a natural cave, in which Jesus Christ was born. In commemoration of this event, a first church was built on May 31, 339 AD on this site. The Church of the Nativity (in addition to the Church of the Resurrection) is considered one of the most famous places of Christian pilgrimage in the Holy Land. The layout of the church was simple, octagonal in shape, but only a small portion of a mosaic floor remained from the building of this first church, which was integrated into the floor of the second (current) church. The current church dates back to the era of the Byzantine Emperor Justinian, who ordered the construction of a great church around the year 529 AD instead of the small church that existed in the same location. This church was not destroyed during the Persian invasion in 614 AD, and it is said that this is due to the presence of figurative mosaic elements at its entrance that resemble in their details some elements of Persian art. At the time of the Arab-Islamic conquest, the church was included in the Omari Covenant (an agreement that regulated the relationship between Muslims and Christians signed by Caliph Omar bin Al-Khattab). In the years 560 / 1165 and 564 / 1169 during the Crusader period, the church underwent some restoration and minor changes. Despite an earthquake in 1250 / 1834 and a fire in 1286 / 1869, the church preserved its layout and most of its architectural and decorative elements. An exception to this is its floor and ceiling, which were restored several times. The entrance to the church is preceded by a large outdoor courtyard, with the entrance at its eastern end. The entrance is a modest door opening in a wall that appears to be a fort and not a great church. The entrance is surmounted by a stone lintel, and the height of the entrance is less than 1.5 m, which requires curvature from the inside of the church. A close look at the facade into which the Mamluk or Ottoman period entrance opened reveals the varied architectural richness of the facade. At the height of four stone courses from the entrance lintel, there is a pointed arch dating back to the Crusader period, surmounted by a cornice (protruding stone frame) supported by several pediments, and at this level a large lintel appears. This huge lintel and eaves are the remains of the magnificent entrance dating back to the reign of Justinian. The small entrance opening leads to an advanced rectangular courtyard (Narthex). This building had three doors leading into the church, but the two side doors were later blocked and the courtyard was divided into several sections. The church can be accessed through the middle door of the courtyard. The layout of the church is a basilica consisting of four rows of columns forming five aisles, the highest and widest of which is the middle aisle. Each row includes eleven columns, each with a gilded Corinthian-style capital. There are two holes in the floor of the middle hallway containing remains of mosaic floors dating back to the era of Constantine. To the east of the aisles is the church's large apse, which consists of three smaller apses standing on the northern, southern, and eastern sides, each of which is surmounted by a semicircular arch. In the middle of the space surrounded by the three arches, there is a staircase that starts from the north and from there descends towards the south to reach the cave where Jesus Christ was born. On the floor of the cave there is a silver star on which is written in Latin: “Here Christ was born from the Virgin Mary.” Inside the cave there is a recessed apse with a semicircular arch in which an altar was erected. To the west of the place of the birth of Jesus Christ stands a corridor arched with a half-barrel vault. The Grotto of the Nativity is connected to another group of small caves that formed a home for some Christian theologians and saints, and are known today by the names of some of them, such as St. Jerome and Eusebius.
Sample Text	Yusuf al-Natsheh “Church of the Nativity” in Discover Islamic Art. Museum Without Borders, 2026. 2026. https://islamicart.museumwnf.org/database_item.php?id=monument;ISL;pa;Mon01;23;ar

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Museum With No Frontiers

Church of the Nativity

(كنيسة المهد)

Publication Date 529 AD

Type Other

Language Undetermined

Digital Yes

Manuscript No

Library Museum With No Frontiers

Record ID monument;ISL;pa;Mon01;23;ar

Library Location Located in the center of the Old City, Bethlehem, Palestine

Date 529 AD

Notes The origin of the building is a natural cave, in which Jesus Christ was born. In commemoration of this event, a first church was built on May 31, 339 AD on this site. The Church of the Nativity (in addition to the Church of the Resurrection) is considered one of the most famous places of Christian pilgrimage in the Holy Land. The layout of the church was simple, octagonal in shape, but only a small portion of a mosaic floor remained from the building of this first church, which was integrated into the floor of the second (current) church. The current church dates back to the era of the Byzantine Emperor Justinian, who ordered the construction of a great church around the year 529 AD instead of the small church that existed in the same location. This church was not destroyed during the Persian invasion in 614 AD, and it is said that this is due to the presence of figurative mosaic elements at its entrance that resemble in their details some elements of Persian art. At the time of the Arab-Islamic conquest, the church was included in the Omari Covenant (an agreement that regulated the relationship between Muslims and Christians signed by Caliph Omar bin Al-Khattab). In the years 560 / 1165 and 564 / 1169 during the Crusader period, the church underwent some restoration and minor changes. Despite an earthquake in 1250 / 1834 and a fire in 1286 / 1869, the church preserved its layout and most of its architectural and decorative elements. An exception to this is its floor and ceiling, which were restored several times. The entrance to the church is preceded by a large outdoor courtyard, with the entrance at its eastern end. The entrance is a modest door opening in a wall that appears to be a fort and not a great church. The entrance is surmounted by a stone lintel, and the height of the entrance is less than 1.5 m, which requires curvature from the inside of the church. A close look at the facade into which the Mamluk or Ottoman period entrance opened reveals the varied architectural richness of the facade. At the height of four stone courses from the entrance lintel, there is a pointed arch dating back to the Crusader period, surmounted by a cornice (protruding stone frame) supported by several pediments, and at this level a large lintel appears. This huge lintel and eaves are the remains of the magnificent entrance dating back to the reign of Justinian. The small entrance opening leads to an advanced rectangular courtyard (Narthex). This building had three doors leading into the church, but the two side doors were later blocked and the courtyard was divided into several sections. The church can be accessed through the middle door of the courtyard. The layout of the church is a basilica consisting of four rows of columns forming five aisles, the highest and widest of which is the middle aisle. Each row includes eleven columns, each with a gilded Corinthian-style capital. There are two holes in the floor of the middle hallway containing remains of mosaic floors dating back to the era of Constantine. To the east of the aisles is the church's large apse, which consists of three smaller apses standing on the northern, southern, and eastern sides, each of which is surmounted by a semicircular arch. In the middle of the space surrounded by the three arches, there is a staircase that starts from the north and from there descends towards the south to reach the cave where Jesus Christ was born. On the floor of the cave there is a silver star on which is written in Latin: “Here Christ was born from the Virgin Mary.” Inside the cave there is a recessed apse with a semicircular arch in which an altar was erected. To the west of the place of the birth of Jesus Christ stands a corridor arched with a half-barrel vault. The Grotto of the Nativity is connected to another group of small caves that formed a home for some Christian theologians and saints, and are known today by the names of some of them, such as St. Jerome and Eusebius.

Sample Text Yusuf al-Natsheh “Church of the Nativity” in Discover Islamic Art. Museum Without Borders, 2026. 2026. https://islamicart.museumwnf.org/database_item.php?id=monument;ISL;pa;Mon01;23;ar