Thursday, August 30, 2012

Modern arrangement of Church of the Holy Sepulchre

^{Welcome to a new round with beautiful Almzrat Christianity around the world}

^{Modern arrangement of the church}

^{The entrance to the church is through a single door in the south transept. This narrow way of access to such a large structure has proven to be hazardous at times. For example, when a fire broke out in 1840, dozens of pilgrims were trampled to death. In 1999 the communities agreed to install a new exit door in the church, but there was never any report of this door being completed.}

^{Calvary (Golgotha)}

^{The Altar of the Crucifixion. There, according to the tradition, Jesus was crucified.

The Rock of Calvary under glass as seen in 2012

The Altar of the Crucifixion

On the south side of the altar via the ambulatory (an aisle surrounding the end of the choir or chancel of a church) is a stairway climbing to Calvary (Golgotha), traditionally regarded as the site of Jesus' crucifixion and the most lavishly decorated part of the church. The main altar there belongs to the Greek Orthodox, which contains The Rock of Calvary (12th Station of the Cross). The rock can be seen under glass on both sides of the altar, and beneath the altar there is a hole said to be the place where the cross was raised. Due to the significance of this, it is the most visited site in the Holy Sepulchre. The Roman Catholics (Franciscans) have an altar to the side, The Chapel of the Nailing of the Cross (11th Station of the Cross). On the left of the altar, towards the Eastern Orthodox chapel, there is a statue of Mary, believed to be working wonders (the 13th Station of the Cross, where Jesus' body was removed from the cross and given to his family).

Beneath the Calvary and the two chapels there, on the main floor, there is The Chapel of Adam. According to tradition, Jesus was crucified over the place where Adam's skull was buried. The Rock of Calvary is seen cracked through a window on the altar wall, the crack traditionally being said to be caused by the earthquake that occurred when Jesus died on the cross, and being said by more critical scholars to be the result of quarrying against a natural flaw in the rock.[27]}

^{Later periods}

^{Church of the Holy Sepulchre (1885). Other than some restoration work, its appearance has essentially not changed since 1854. The same small ladder below the top-right window is also visible in recent photographs; this has remained in the same position since 1854 over a disagreement to move it.}

Franciscan

^{The Franciscan friars renovated it further in 1555, as it had been neglected despite increased numbers of pilgrims. The Franciscans rebuilt the Aedicule, extending the structure to create an ante-chamber.[20] After the renovation of 1555, control of the church oscillated between the Franciscans and the Orthodox, depending on which community could obtain a favorable firman from the Sublime Porte at a particular time, often through outright bribery, and violent clashes were not uncommon. There was no agreement about this question, although it was talked about it at the negotiations to the Treaty of Karlowitz in 1699.[21] In 1767, weary of the squabbling, the Porte issued a firman that divided the church among the claimants.}

damaged

^{A fire severely damaged the structure again in 1808, causing the dome of the Rotunda to collapse and smashing the Edicule's exterior decoration. The Rotunda and the Edicule's exterior were rebuilt in 1809–1810 by architect Komminos of Mytilene in the then current Ottoman Baroque style. The fire did not reach the interior of the Aedicule, and the marble decoration of the Tomb dates mainly to the 1555 restoration, although the interior of the ante-chamber, now known as the Chapel of the Angel, was partly re-built to a square ground-plan, in place of the previously semi-circular western end. Another decree in 1853 from the sultan solidified the existing territorial division among the communities and set a status quo for arrangements to "remain forever", caused differences of opinion about upkeep and even minor changes,[22] including disagreement on the removal of an exterior ladder under one of the windows; this ladder has remained in the same position since then.

The church, after its 1808 restoration

The cladding of red marble applied to the Aedicule by Komminos has deteriorated badly and is detaching from the underlying structure; since 1947 it has been held in place with an exterior scaffolding of iron girders installed by the British Mandate. No plans have been agreed upon for its renovation.

The current dome dates from 1870, although it was restored during 1994–1997, as part of extensive modern renovations to the church, which have been ongoing since 1959. During the 1970–1978 restoration works and excavations inside the building, and under the nearby Muristan, it was found that the area was originally a quarry, from which white meleke limestone was struck.[23] To the east of the Chapel of Saint Helena, the excavators discovered a void containing a 2nd century drawing of a Roman ship, two low walls which supported the platform of Hadrian's 2nd century temple, and a higher 4th century wall built to support Constantine's basilica.[24][25] After the excavations of the early 1970s, the Armenian authorities converted this archaeological space into the Chapel of Saint Vartan, and created an artificial walkway over the quarry on the north of the chapel, so that the new Chapel could be accessed (by permission) from the Chapel of Saint Helena.[25]

There was some controversy in 2010, when the Jerusalem City Council threatened to cut off water to the site, due to disputed water bills.[26]}
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