its small and attractive cloister, built for the late Bishop Blyth by Mr. George Jeffery. Conspicuous are the German Catholic Church of the Dormition outside the Zion Gate (its design based on that of the Cathedral of Aix-la-Chapelle), and the Lutheran Church of the Muristan, embodying fragments of the mediaeval Church of S. Maria Latina.
One and a half miles west of the Jaffa Gate lies the ancient Orthodox Monastery of the Cross, for many centuries in the possession of the Georgians.
Bethlehem.—Bethlehem lies 5½ miles south of Jerusalem, and is reached by a main road which passes, after 4 miles, the Tomb of Rachel. The birthplace of Christ and of King David is now a town of 6,200 inhabitants, mostly Christians, and stands 2,500 ft. above sea-level. The name Bethlehem (Beit al-Lahm) means the "house of meat," and has been the appellation of the place from earliest times. Bethlehem is the scene of the story of the Book of Ruth, and in Old Testament times is famous for its association with the House of David. Since the time of Constantine Bethlehem has been predominantly Christian, and is remarkable for the number of its churches and religious institutions of all periods surrounding an agglomeration of ancient, narrow and picturesque streets. Noteworthy is the mediaeval dress still worn by the Bethlehem women, married women being distinguished by a tall white coif.
Bethlehem’s outstanding monument is the Basilica of the Nativity[1] erected over the traditional birthplace of Christ. It is the oldest Christian church still in use, and, although restored and enlarged by Justinian in the sixth century, is essentially one with the basilica built by Constantine in 330. The church, whose diminutive entrance was intended as a protection against the entry of camels, donkeys, etc., consists of a nave and double aisles, of a wide transept and a semi-circular apse. The nave and aisles are separated from each other by four rows of monolithic columns, surmounted by Corinthian capitals. The walls
- ↑ See Vincent and Abel, Bethléem: Le Sanctuaire de la Nativité, Gabalda, Paris, 1914.
