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The Bush
When first discovered, the bush was growing at the place where the Chapel of the Burning Bush now stands. The chapel was first built around the bush, having no roof. According to the monks it was transplanted to the place where it now stands, outside the chapel walls, by predecessors in the 10th century when a roof was built on the chapel.
The burning Bush is actually a member of the species Rubus Sanctus, an extremely rare endemic species of Central Asiatic origin. It grows in areas close to a permanent water source. As the monastery has 3 springs inside its walls, it offers the right habitat. There are only 3 other places known where the Rubus Sanctus grows. One is mentioned in the description of Galt el Azraq.
Chapel of the Burning Bush
The chapel of the Burning Bush probably began as a open outdoor courtyard, accessible from the basilica. At some point, probably somewhere in the 10th century, a roof was built over the courtyard and the chapel created. The Bush was moved, and an altar placed on the place where the Bush had stood. The apse of the Chapel is adorned with a mosaic dating back to the time when the roof was laid.
The Well of Moses
According to tradition Moses arrived at this well, after having been expelled from Egypt, and saved the daughters of Jethro from the rudeness of the shepherds. Out of gratitude, Jethro gave Moses one of his daughters for a wife. There are two other wells inside the monastery walls: the well of St. Stephen and the well of St. Helena (both in the area closed for public). A water cistern just outside the monastery walls collects rainwater, which has been directed down from the mountain.
The Basilica
The basilica was built together with the monastery walls under Emperor Justinian's orders round 548 AD. It has 3 naves separated by 2 rows of 6 pillars. In the 11th century the narthex and the rooms, now small chapels, in the side-naves were added. The bell tower was built in 1871 under supervision of the monk Basil. The entrance to the basilica is a wooden four part door, also dating from the 6th century. The doors are richly decorated with plants, birds and animals. Monks boast that the doors are the worlds oldest functioning doors. The inside of the basilica is richly decorated, thanks to the long history of donations and gifts. In the front is the apse, hidden by a iconostasis from the 17th century depicting Christ, the Virgin Mary, St Katherine, St Nicholas, St Michael, St John the Baptist and the major liturgical feasts. The dome of the apse is decorated with the magnificent 6th century mosaic "The Transfiguration of Christ", in which Christ is depicted during his appearance on Mount Tabor flanked by Moses and Elijah and the disciples John and James (kneeling) and Peter reclining in front. The sarcophagus of St. Catherine is on the right hand side of the apse.
The Narthex
The narthex (a vestibule reserved for women, penitents and catechumens) was added to the basilica in the 11th century. The doors also date from the Fatimid period in the 11th century. One of the panels in the door depict the Transfiguration of Christ. In the narthex a selection of the icon collection is on display as well as a copy of the document signed by Mohammed the Prophet.
The Mosque
The mosque was built in 1106 by rebuilding a chapel dedicated to St. Basil. The mosque boasts of a very rare and valuable minbar (pulpit) dating back to the Fatimid period. It bears a Kufic text that records that the minbar was a gift of Abu Ali el-Mansur Anushtakin el-Amiri in the month Rabi I of the Hegira year 500 (1106 AD).
The Library (not open to public)
The library is considered to have the second finest collection of manuscripts and miniatures of the world. The codices, for the most part written in Greek, were produced by the monks themselves. Among these priceless codices are the Codex Siniaticus and the Codex Syriacus. The Codex Siniaticus was discovered in 1844 by Fridrich von Tischendorf. He was allowed to take the manuscript to Cairo for further study. Later he donated the manuscript to the Czar of Russia, Alexander II (1859). In 1933 the Bolshevik government sold the Codex to the British museum, where it still remains. The codex dates back to the 4th century. It contains part of the Old Testament, the whole New Testament as well as the Epistle of Barnabas and parts of the Shepherd of Hermas. In 1975 a dozen of the missing leaves of the codex were found in a hoard of varied manuscripts. These leaves remain in the library of the monastery. The Codex Syriacus dates back to the 5th century and contains part of the New Testament. This document still remain in the monastery's library.
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 Codex Sinaiticus
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St. Peter, late 6th C, encaustic icon |
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 The Heavenly ladder, early 12th C, tempura on panel
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The Icon Gallery (admittance fee)
The monastery has more than 2000 icons in its possession, some dating back as far as the 6th century. Some of the icons were painted by the monks of the monastery who developed a Sinaitic school of art. A large number of icons date back to 1200 AD when the Archbishop of Crete donated many works of art including many icons to the monastery. The oldest and rarest icons date back to the 6th and 7th century, using the encaustic technique (heated wax colours). The monastery, being in Islamic territory was spared during the iconoclasm that raged through Europe in the 8th and 9th century, and all the icons of the earlier periods survived. Iconoclasm, literally "icon-destruction," was a theological debate involving both the Byzantine church and state. The controversy spanned roughly a century, during the years 726-787 and 815-843. In these decades, imperial legislation barred the production and use of figural images; simultaneously, the cross was promoted as the most acceptable decorative form for Byzantine churches.
The Ancient Refectory (not open to public)
The rectangular Ancient Refectory (also known as the Crusaders Church ) has a Gothic vaulted roof, the arches decorated with the arms and other symbols of Crusader knights. There are murals on the walls, from the Crusader period and the 16th century. The main feature within the room is a long table with fine carvings, brought from Corfu in the 18th century.
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The garden & cemetery
The garden, surrounded by a stone wall, has fruit trees, olive trees and a few tall cypresses. The cemetery is also situated in the garden. As there is a lack of space, there are only 6 graves. The bodies remain in the grave for 5 years, after which they are dug up, re-exhumed and placed in the crypt of the Chapel of St. Tryphon - also called the Charnel House. |
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The Charnel House
The skeletons of all the monks that have lived and died in the monastery are kept here. To save space the bones are kept in one mound and the sculls in another. Only the remains of a few distinguished monks are laid to rest in their niche, like the remains of St. Stephen, who in the 6th century took pilgrims confessions at the Shrive Gate. |
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Monastery Lodgings
In front of the western wall of the Monastery rooms have been built to accommodate guests for the night. The rooms are neat, have a shower with hot water and toilet. Opposite the rooms is a coffee shop where one can get hot and cold drinks and snacks. The restaurant serves dinner and breakfast for guests of the hotel only. For more information see Accommodation. |
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Nabi Haruun
The hill to the left, at the entrance of the road leading to the Monastery, is called Nabi Haruun (or prophet Aaron). This is the place, according to the bedouins, where Aaron stood while supervising the building of the Golden Calf. The bedouins remember Aaron on the summit with a special white shrine. A larger Christian chapel also stands on the summit, a restoration (1911) of an much older chapel, remembering Aaron who was consecrated in the tabernacle on this summit, which Moses erected. |
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The Calf
Not far from Nabi Haruun, on the right hand side, in the mouth of wadi Shrayj, is a rock depression in the shape of a calf. Monks in the 18th and 19th centuries showed this depression to visitors, explaining that Aaron had used it as a mould to shape the Golden Calf.
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