Cave-complexes at el-ʿAleiliyat Complete

ID: 123

Building type: unknown

Context:

monastery

Site:

Inscriptions:

195

Description:

Crosses and wall inscriptions—Greek (no. 2804) and Christian Palestinian Aramaic (no. 2805)—bear witness to a monastic phase later identified with the Laura of St. Firmin. Earlier material indicates that the caves served as refuges for Jews during the late Second Temple period and the Bar Kochba revolt. The site concerned is the eastern sector at el-ʿAleiliyat, consisting of a pair of cave complexes.