The Umayyad Mosque, also known as the Great Mosque of Damascus, located in the old city of Damascus, the capital of Syria, is one of the largest and oldest mosques in the world. Its religious importance stems from the eschatological reports concerning the mosque, and historic events associated with it. Christian and Muslim tradition alike consider it the burial place of John the Baptist‘s head, a tradition originating in the 6th century. Muslim tradition holds that the mosque will be the place Jesus will return before the End of Days. Two shrines inside the premises commemorate the Islamic prophet Muhammad‘s grandson Husayn ibn Ali, whose martyrdom is frequently compared to that of John the Baptist and Jesus. read more…
HaKirya, or The Kirya (lit.: The Campus), is an area in central Tel Aviv, consisting of an urban military base north of Kaplan Street, and a civilian area south of it. HaKirya contains the Tel Aviv District‘s government center and the major Israel Defense Forces (IDF) base Camp Rabin, named for Yitzhak Rabin. It was one of the first IDF bases and has served as the IDF’s headquarters since its founding in 1948. Being located in a dense urban environment, the base serves mainly command, administrative, communications, and support functions. read more…
The Monastery of Saint John of Rila, also known as Rila Monastery “Sveti Ivan Rilski”, is the largest and most famous Eastern Orthodox monastery in Bulgaria. It is situated in the southwestern Rila Mountains, 117 km (73 mi) south of the capital Sofia in the deep valley of the Rilska River (“Rila River”) at an elevation of 1,147 m (3,763 ft) above sea level, inside of Rila Monastery Nature Park. The monastery is named after its founder, the hermit Ivan of Rila (876 – 946 AD), and houses around 60 monks. read more…
Saint Virgin Mary’s Coptic Orthodox Church (Church of Mother of God Saint Mary in Egyptian Babylon), also known as the Hanging Church, is one of the oldest churches in Egypt which dates to the third century. It belongs to the Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria. read more…
Strasbourg Cathedral or the Cathedral of Our Lady of Strasbourg (French: Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Strasbourg, or Cathédrale de Strasbourg, German: Liebfrauenmünster zu Straßburg or Straßburger Münster), also known as Strasbourg Minster, is a Catholiccathedral in Strasbourg, Alsace, France. Although considerable parts of it are still in Romanesque architecture, it is widely considered to be among the finest examples of RayonnantGothic architecture. Architect Erwin von Steinbach is credited for major contributions from 1277 to his death in 1318, and beyond through his son Johannes von Steinbach, and his grandson Gerlach von Steinbach, who succeeded him as chief architects. The Steinbachs’s plans for the completion of the cathedral were not followed through by the chief architects who took over after them, and instead of the originally envisioned two spires, a single, octagonal tower with an elongated, octagonal crowning was built on the northern side of the west facade by master Ulrich von Ensingen and his successor, Johannes Hültz. The construction of the cathedral, which had started in the year 1015 and had been relaunched in 1190, was finished in 1439. read more…