Holy Sepulchre Research Articles

The Ottoman Status Quo Regime and the Christian Sects in Jerusalem in the Late Nineteenth Century

What is known as the Status Quo Law is actually a law promulgated by the Ottoman State which ruled Jerusalem and the Arab lands in the middle of the nineteenth century and beyond after prolonged years of disputes between the Christian sects and communities subject to the suzerainty of the Ottoman State in Jerusalem, not to mention the interventions of European states, each one of which attempted to secure privileges inside Jerusalem. Actually, France was the first European state to secure capitulations (privileges) from the Ottoman state, followed by a number of other Europeans states at a subsequent time, the first of which was Britain which obtained commercial capitulations in the year 1580 A.D., followed by the Netherlands in 1612 A.D., and then Austria in 1616 A.D., followed by other states a century later or more, such as Sweden, Sicily, Denmark, Prussia and Spain. The abovementioned states utilized those concessions to be protectors of one or another of the Orthodox or Catholic sects in Jerusalem, where France was the protector of the Latin Catholics, and Russia of the Orthodox. Thus disputes between the Christian sects intensified as a consequence, which led to the Turkish Sultans issuing a firman since the year 1740 A.D. known as the Status Quo to each Christian sect safeguarding their rights in the holy places which established the rights of every sect and religious community which was present in Jerusalem, without permitting undertaking any change to the status quo since that date until the status was firmly established in 1852, and thus the rights of the various religious sects and communities were protected, at the forefront of which were the rights of the Christian sects in the Church of the Holy Sepulcher. In reality the law is still to a great extent in effect till today.

DOCUMENTING COMMUNITY IN THE LATE OTTOMAN EMPIRE

AbstractThis article traces a conflict that erupted in the late 19th century between the Armenians and the Süryani. This conflict, I argue, precipitated nothing less than the creation of the Süryani community itself. The dispute began over the key to a closet in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, but it quickly evolved. Soon, the Armenians and the Süryani were clashing over holy places all around Jerusalem. The dispute centered on an Ottoman administrative arrangement which had been institutionalized nearly 400 years earlier:yamaklık. The Ottoman investigators, however, were unfamiliar with this archaic arrangement and had to be reeducated as to its terms and its history. The Süryani and the Armenians offered divergent accounts. Where the Armenians furnished hard documentation, however, the Süryani could produce only claims to tradition and local practice. In this article I argue that, through this protracted conflict, the Süryani came to understand the importance of the documentary record in a post-Tanzimat Ottoman world. They thus turned to an alternative strategy that would conform to this documentary sensibility and render their community visible to the state: a series of petitions with thousands of Süryani signatures from around the Ottoman Empire.

Replicated Jerusalem : Architectural Copies of Holy Sepulchre in Medieval Europe

이 발표문은 순례자들이나 십자군들이 성지에서 돌아와 예루살렘에 있는 성 묘를 복제한 건축물들을 건설한 현상에 초점을 맞춘다. 이들 복제된 성묘는 각 지역의 차원에서나 규모에 있어 두드러지는 기념물들은 아니었으나, 서구 기독 교 세계라는 큰 맥락에서 바라본다면 우리는 이들이 사회문화적 현상으로서 얼 마나 광범위하고 뿌리가 깊으며 상호 긴밀히 연결되어 있는가를 알게 된다. 자신들의 고장에서 성묘의 복제건물을 세우는 동기는 예루살렘으로 순례를 다녀왔다거나 십자군에 참여했던 등의 개인적인 경험에서 비롯된다. 이들 경험 들은 참가자들에게 대단한 감흥을 불러일으키는 사건들이었으며 최후의 심판에 서 영혼의 치유를 얻고자하는 기대를 고취시켰다. 이러한 감정의 동요나 열망은 예루살렘의 여러 이미지가 사람들 사이에 점점 더 퍼져나가고 거듭되는 예배의 식을 거치면서 증폭되었다. 그리하여 성묘는 부활로 가는 단서로서 일종의 만질 수 있는 예루살렘의 의미를 갖고 세워지게 되었다. St.Bertin’s Collector (약 1170-1180년대)와 같은 순례자들을 위한 안내서들은 부분적으로는 실제 예루살 렘을 향해 길을 떠나는 순례자들을 위해 만들어졌지만, 부분적으로는 고장을 떠 날 수 없기에 오로지 상상 속에서만 성지로 순례를 떠날 수밖에 없는 처지의 사람들을 위해서도 쓰였다. 또 성묘는 중세 유럽에서 믿음이 깊은 사람들이 상 상과 감흥으로 순례를 떠나기 위해 동원한 도구로서 이해될 수도 있다.

Centaurs in Contexts: The Eastern Lintel of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, Crusading Spirituality, Agency and Society in the Latin Kingdom of Jerusalem

<?page nr="159"?>Abstract Taking the eastern lintel of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre as its primary focus, the present study examines the way by which the image of the centaur functioned in a specific historical context – that of the Crusades – to help the Christians define the character of their enemy; and in so doing also define their own concepts of society and order.In addition, society in the Latin Kingdom of Jerusalem was complex, presenting multilayered relations between the ruling Franks, the various indigenous Eastern Christian communities, and the Muslim population. Among the Latins themselves power structures were also multifaceted, balancing, to name just a few, between the King, the Patriarch, and the various Lords. As this paper would like to contend, the imagery of the eastern lintel was designed to manifest the different concerns of these groups and agents, enabling alternative readings by each of them according to their particular perspectives.

Музыка на службе Габсбургов: австрийские ораториальные жанры XVII — XVIII века в точке пересечения духовной и придворной культуры

In the 17th and the first half of the 18th centuries, music played an important role representing the House of Habsburg as both the political and the ecclesiastic leader of the Holy Roman Empire. The genre of oratorio rose to special prominence as a major instrument of imperial propaganda: not directly liturgical yet based on biblical texts, the oratorio offered a perfect combination of the secular and the sacred. This article explores the distinct, often idiosyncratic ways in which the genre developed at the Imperial Court Chapel, the center of Vienna’s musical life. In addition to oratorios proper, the Court Chapel cultivated the genre of sepolcro, which, despite its Italian origin, can be seen as a specifically Austrian type of oratorio. The one-part sepolcri were performed alongside the model of the holy sepulchre and had a limited number of plots, all centering on the last days of Christ’s life. A thorough analysis of textual and music-stylistic specificities of the Austrian sepolcri demonstrates deep connections between this genre and Viennese court culture as well as local religious traditions. The extent to which ecclesiastic genres were dependent on the tastes and demands of the Austrian court much determined the evolution of these genres. The juncture of music, politics, and religion greatly contributed to the creation of the rich tradition that, in its own turn, influenced the ecclesiastic output of the Viennese classical school.

The sacrarium lamp of the Holy Sepulchre Church in Osuna: a masterpiece of the Sevillian Renaissance

espanolEn este estudio se da a conocer una obra excepcional de la plateria renacentista sevillana, la lampara del sagrario de la iglesia del Santo Sepulcro de Osuna. Una creacion que se inserta dentro de la promocion artistica llevada a cabo por don Juan Tellez Giron durante la construccion y adorno de este templo y panteon dinastico. Ademas, en la actualidad es uno de los ejemplares mas antiguos conservados dentro de su tipologia en la orfebreria sevillana. EnglishThis paper studies a masterpiece of the Sevillian Renaissance silverware, the sacrarium lamp of the Holy Sepulchre Church in Osuna. This piece is a work promoted by don Juan Tellez in the mid16th century, when the fourth Count of Urena raised this temple-pantheon in Osuna. In addition, it is one of the oldest works within its typology.

NDT as a monitoring tool of the works progress and the assessment of materials and rehabilitation interventions at the Holy Aedicule of the Holy Sepulchre

This work aims to point out the key role that Non-Destructive Techniques (NDTs) like Infra-Red Thermography, Ground Penetrating Radar, Ultrasonic Testing, Digital Microscopy, Colorimetry and Karsten Tubes, can play, not only on the diagnostic level and for the assessment of conservation interventions at the end of a project, but also during rehabilitation works. The above-mentioned NDTs, were applied for the preservation state assessment and during different stages of rehabilitation works at the Holy Aedicule of the Holy Sepulchre. Their importance for scientific support to decision making throughout diagnosis and rehabilitation works of complex historical structures is demonstrated in practice in cases such as: revealing structural layers, defect areas and voids; detecting rising damp, and thermo-hygric anisotropy of different building materials; in real time compatibility assessment of interventions as repointing, building restoration masonries, grouting, consolidating wall-paintings and protection of stone facades.

Relics of place: stone fragments of the Holy Sepulchre in eleventh-century France

ABSTRACTThis article considers stone pieces from the Holy Sepulchre brought to France in the eleventh century. Recent years have seen a growing awareness of architectural replications of the Holy Sepulchre built throughout the Latin West. Less attention has been devoted to its unmediated translation, namely, transporting its matter. Many French pilgrims who set out for Jerusalem before Urban preached crusade to the East in 1095 returned with stone fragments of the Holy Tomb to commemorate their visit and to consecrate architectural copies. Like the bodily remains of saints, these stone fragments acted as parts signifying the whole: they represented their place of origin and lent authenticity to local monuments. They could also act in unusual ways, attracting cults and prompting narratives, visual representations and staging in the church that announced their significance.

Travel – Milorad Rajčević’s Life Option

Milorad Rajcevic/Raitchevitch (Mala Drenova, 1890 – Lubbecke, 1964), the first Serb “world traveler”, travelled for twenty years, tak­ing four big journeys – to the Far East, from Europe and Siberia to Palestine and back to Belgrade. His second journey (1913 – 1914) took him to the Americas, travelling from Alaska to Cape Horn. On his third journey (1923 – 1924) he travelled extensively throughout Africa. During his fourth big voyage (1933-1934), he found himself in India again, and then Australia, New Zealand, he made a stopover in Fiji and Hawaii, and also America. His travel articles were pub­lished in Mali Žurnal (The Little Journal) and Balkan (The Balkans) newspapers, and his travelogues were published in Serbian, French, and Spanish. He made a bet that he would visit Europe, Asia, Africa, and the Americas over a two-year journey on which he set out on March 15, 1910, and that he would cover 120,000 km. This, at the time, was indeed a rare feat on a global scale, and not just in Ser­bia. He was only twenty years old when he decided to embark on a trip around the world. (Before, as a young man, Rajcevic went on a journey for four years, becoming fascinated by travel, and learning several languages.) He always travelled alone and proudly wore the national tricolor on his left arm, making every effort to “walk with his head high, as a newspaper correspondent and a gentleman”. He was proud that he could “carry for the first time the national tricolor through foreign countries”. His dignified demeanor left the impression that his was a “nation of high culture and nobility”. He spoke several languages fluently – German, English, French, Russian, Spanish, Greek, Italian and half a dozen other languages. Rajcevic published several books, his first book Biografia e impresiones de los viajes del mundo a traves del famoso Milorad de Raitchevitch Explorador Mundial Publicista Serbio was published in Spanish in 1918 and his last book Biographien und Autogrammem Staatsanner und anderer Personlichkeiten des 20. Jahrhunderts was published in 1960 in German. He was decorated for his virtues by His Holiness the Patriarch of Jerusalem with the Cross of the Holy Sepulcher, which gave him the right to the title “Chevalier de St. Grave”. Rajcevic, like other authors of travelogues, pointed to the cultural differences he encountered. But, although he was a benevolent in­termediary between the two cultures, he was also prone to accepting certain stereotypes. For Rajcevic, the journey itself was more import­ant than writing. Travel gave purpose to his life, the opportunity to see new countries, but at the same time to represent his own. For him, travel writing was both a way to immortalise his own existence and to contribute to readers’ knowledge of other cultures. He tried to be the best mediator possible, mediating between his country and culture and other, mostly little-known, countries and cultures of the world.

Study of the historical mortars of the Holy Aedicule as a basis for the design, application and assessment of repair mortars: A multispectral approach applied on the Holy Aedicule

The rehabilitation of the Holy Aedicule of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem, completed in March 2017, aimed to address the deformation problems encountered after its most recent reconstruction in 1810. A diagnostic study performed by the National Technical University of Athens (NTUA), indicated the cause of the deformations and revealed the Aedicule’s structural layers. The results permitted the design, selection and application of compatible and performing restoration mortars, while the assessment of their application was achieved through a multispectral approach and in combination with an integrated analysis throughout the rehabilitation project. The results acquired through analytical and non destructive techniques show that compatibility was ensured and the structure was adequately strengthened and concludes in a methodological approach regarding all stages of a rehabilitation project of a complex multilayered monument.

Interdisciplinary Planning and Scientific Support to Rehabilitate and Preserve the Values of the Holy Aedicule of the Holy Sepulchre in Interrelation with Social Accessibility

The need for the immediate rehabilitation of the Holy Aedicule of the Holy Sepulchre involved the collaborative efforts done by the religious communities, scientific experts, and policy makers with the aim to secure the structural integrity and sustainable rehabilitation of the monument, which stands as a par excellence landmark of spiritual renewal and worshiping for the generations to come. Using best practices and integrating specific disciplinary expertise knowledge, the rehabilitation project has been throughout relevant and extrovert to the society, engaging the public in order to share problematic as well as scientific findings, to understand and promote its cultural resources. In order to achieve this, an innovative scientific method was developed by the National Technical University of Athens Interdisciplinary Team involving methods and perspectives from different disciplines, namely, from the scientific fields of architecture, civil engineering, surveying engineering, materials science and engineering, information technology, archaeometry and archaeology in dialogue with the religious communities. Reference is made to the cultural policy, highlighting the benefit of the interaction between ideas, institutions, and the common interest for the protection of monuments. The aforementioned, along with the organization programming, the integrated governance of the project, based on management functions, such as planning, budgeting, fundraising, evaluation and quality control, designed a prolific interdisciplinary agenda. This paper presents practical and theoretical work in heritage protection management, communicates the tools involved in master scientific issues, while it seeks to engage the interest of the public in order to interact actively, participate in its protection and add constructively on its future life.

El tabernáculo de Guillermo de Orta para la capilla del Sagrario de la catedral de Córdoba

This work focuses on the tabernacle in the Sanctuary of Cordoba Cathedral as an image of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem, in the context of the Sanctuary Chapel. This was designed as a House of Wisdom inside the Cathedral, which in the sixteenth century was thought of as the ‘New Jerusalem of Cordoba’. In this century, it became one of the key venues for the liturgical ceremonies held in the sanctified area of the old Mosque of Cordoba, and this celestial city was identified closely with the real city.

Traveling with Harold Pinter: Our Israeli Diary, 1978: Of That Time, Of That Place

Traveling with Harold Pinter: Our Israeli Diary, 1978: Of That Time, Of That Place

Estudio artístico de la descripción de la basílica de la Natividad de Belén y el Santo Sepulcro del presbítero Jacinto

The article offer a Spanish translation of the Latin text and an artistic analysis of the main architectural and plastic elements described by presbyter Jacinto in his visit to the Church of the Nativity of Bethlehem and the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem. The account, included in a Homiliary kept in the Archive of the Cathedral of Leon, is compared with other medieval stories with the aim of certifying the accuracy of the information given by the pilgrim, which in some cases is completely novel among the Spanish sources of this kind. Keywords: Jacinto, Church of the Nativity, Holy Sepulchre, peregrinations.

Восстановление храма Гроба Господня после пожара 1808 года: реставрация Н. Калфаса Комниноса

Восстановление храма Гроба Господня после пожара 1808 года: реставрация Н. Калфаса Комниноса

OSL mortar dating to elucidate the construction history of the Tomb Chamber of the Holy Aedicule of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem

Optically Stimulated Luminescence (OSL) was applied on mortar samples, collected from the internal layers of the complex Holy Aedicule structure of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem. OSL was accompanied by X-ray Fluorescence (XRF), Scanning Electron Microscopy with Energy Dispersion X-ray Analysis (SEM-EDS) and X-ray diffraction (XRD), and the resulted data provide new information regarding the construction evolution of the Tomb Chamber of the Holy Aedicule and the Holy Tomb. Four distinct chronological periods, based on the OSL dating, were produced corresponding to important construction and restoration phases of the 4th, 11th, 16th and 19th centuries. These correspond to the Constantinean era Aedicule, the Byzantine reconstruction (1034–1041 CE), the renaissance restoration by Boniface of Ragusa in 1555 and the reconstruction by the architect “Kalfas” Komnenos in 1810. The majority of the historical mortars were gypsum-based, regardless of their use in the structure and construction era, indicating continuity in production technology. Through this study the historical sequence of the Tomb Chamber evolution from the Constantinean era Aedicule to the Aedicule as it stands today is elucidated.

Oratorios performed at the Holy sepulchre in the Bohemian Lands and Austria in the 18th century (part II) : on the issue of transferring sepolcri and the possibilities of their semi-staged or staged performance

This part of study deals with the oratorios performed at the holy sepulchre (sepolcri) and focuses particularly on the transfer of certain compositions or librettos and on their potential stage performances. In the 18th century, among the most interesting, original phenomenons of this genre belonged the performances of particular sepolcri in various places and years, as well as the problematic of “traveling” librettos, which were arranged by various composers. Right now, the most unanswered questions concern the staged or semi-staged performance practise of these works. In any case, both the holy sepulchre and painted prospect, which was often placed in front of an altar, have noteworthy theatrical features. It seems that the staged and semi-staged performances were popular in some monastic communities; however, information about this kind of performing practise is oftentimes ambiguous.

Die Theatralisierung des Heiligen Grabes. Beispiele aus der Schweiz

The Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem is the most important place of worship in Christianity. Since its popularisation in the era of Constantine the Great in the fourth century, pilgrims visit the presum...

Oratorios performed at the holy sepulchre in the Bohemian lands and Austria in the 18th century (Part I) : methodological questions on the sepolcro in the period of ca. 1700–1760

Oratorios performed at the holy sepulchre in the Bohemian lands and Austria in the 18th century (Part I) : methodological questions on the sepolcro in the period of ca. 1700–1760

Every Catholic an Apostle: A Life of Thomas A. Judge, CM, 1868–1933 by William L. Portier

Reviewed by: Every Catholic an Apostle: A Life of Thomas A. Judge, CM, 1868–1933 by William L. Portier John E. Rybolt CM Every Catholic an Apostle: A Life of Thomas A. Judge, CM, 1868–1933. By William L. Portier. Washington, DC: The Catholic University of America Press, 2018. 576 pp. $34.95. The author has produced the major biography of one of America’s influential Catholic leaders from the early years of the twentieth century. Its considerable bulk attests to the depth of research involved in such an undertaking, based on original documents. This biography is more chronological than thematic, which leaves the way open for others to systematize Judge’s theology, spirituality, and outlook on the world. Nevertheless, Portier has scattered through this excellent work some detail on those important topics. The chronological approach takes the reader through a thicket of events that eventually build up a perspective on Judge’s life. A member of the Congregation of the Mission, a Vincentian, Judge always remained a member of the community in which he took a vow of stability, involving a commitment to the poor in the spirit of St. Vincent de Paul. His tombstone is in Holy Sepulchre Cemetery, not far from St. Vincent’s Seminary in Germantown, Philadelphia, where he entered the Congregation, and the initials CM follow his name. His relationship with the Vincentians was conflicted at best, but he found support for his own developing ministry in the leadership of his province. Interestingly, Portier does not point to virtually any of his confreres who maintained a relationship with him. Although Judge was in later life always stretched to secure funding for his works, he does not seem to have turned to his Vincentian brothers for financial aid or counsel. His Trinitarian devotion, with the use of the title Most Blessed [End Page 69] Trinity/Most Holy Trinity, also betrays Vincent de Paul’s thinking as enfleshed in the rules that the saint gave to his two congregations, the Missioners and the Daughters of Charity. The figure of Father Judge comes across as a highly charismatic and visionary individual, a man of his time, and, as Portier demonstrates, even ahead of his time. Judge developed the Missionary Cenacle movement as an outgrowth of his own mission work, which, typically for Vincentians, resulted in the foundation of parish-based works of charity and service. The early volunteer members of the Cenacle, practicing a form of the apostolate of the laity, developed into two independent congregations. The account of their growth and ministry is one of successes and setbacks, often quite serious setbacks. Judge’s staunchest helper was Mother Boniface (née Louise/Lulu Keasey), who excelled in the strengths that Judge needed. Judge’s struggles with Bishop Thomas Toolen of Mobile, Alabama offer examples of Judge’s needs and Mother’s abilities. As a foundress, she certainly deserves a similar excellent biography. Intertwined with these relations are accounts of other prelates who supported the new communities as they developed. Their assistance in finding their proper canonical identity was one of the main features of two communities’ survival against major odds. The communities also needed help in finding their geographical centers. Both groups came to life in the South, based in some way on the Vincentian outreach in Alabama. Their later transfer to the north, Pennsylvania and Maryland, brought them further stability. The traditional trio of men, money, and mission was always a challenge for Judge, as was a fourth element, management. He left many things to others as he went about developing and supporting his followers. As Portier shows, this practice led to crises, worsened by the Great Depression toward the end of Judge’s life. The author has carefully placed Judge’s life and ministry within the American context of his period. For all these reasons, this biography will be the standard for many years to come. [End Page 70] John E. Rybolt CM DePaul University Copyright © 2018 American Catholic Historical Society