The religious devotion of an ascetic young monk has been preserved through the centuries at Giv‘at Hamatos,
chained in death as in life.
The site lies just 550 yards southeast of Bethlehem’s Mar Elias monastery. Ancient remains at the site have been
recorded over the years in various pilgrim accounts and surveys of the area. Excavations in the 1990s, led by Elena
Kogan-Zehavi of the Israel Antiquities Authority, uncovered finds and structures indicating that the site was inhabited at
various times from the Iron Age (12th–6th centuries B.C.) to the Mameluke period (13th–16th centuries
A.D.).
Of particular interest was a two-chambered subterranean complex, over which a round structure had been built. The
underground rooms were very simple, with a few small niches carved into the walls to serve as storage space. In the middle
of one of the rooms was a skeleton laid out on the floor. A handful of objects were also recovered: a ceramic cup, a jug, a
bronze and glass lamp, a knife, an iron belt buckle and a pair of horseshoes. Based on these finds, scholars have dated the
entire complex to the Byzantine period (sixth–eighth centuries A.D.).
The skeleton, belonging to a man about 25 years old, was found bound in chains and lying on his back, with the legs
bent. The skull had been crushed, probably by the later collapse of the roof. The iron chain, which was nearly 20 feet long
and weighed 13 pounds, was fashioned in three sections and welded together to form a vest. It crossed over the man’s
back and chest and then wrapped around the pelvis four times, enabling the wearer to remove the chain when needed.
The excavators have identified the underground complex as the dwelling (and burial) of an anchorite monk. Anchorites
(from the Greek anacho¯reo¯, “to withdraw”) are ascetics who
leave secular society to lead a prayer-focused life. Anchorites generally never leave home, eat frugal meals and spend their
days in contemplative 013prayer. Though they bear some resemblance to hermits, anchorites do not shun contact with the outside
world and often live in small cells associated with churches.
The ascetic who lived at Giv‘at Hamatos appears also to have practiced self-mortification by means of the chain
vest, a common method of demonstrating penance and religious devotion in the Byzantine period. Although the practice was not
very widespread in Palestine (it was most common in the Middle Ages), ancient literary sources do describe similar people
and practices in Jerusalem.
The round tower built over the anchorite’s dwelling effectively sealed off the underground chamber. This
structure was probably erected as a memorial to honor the monk buried beneath. Similar examples have been found over the
graves of ascetics in Syria.—D.D.R.
The religious devotion of an ascetic young monk has been preserved through the centuries at Giv‘at Hamatos,
chained in death as in life.
The site lies just 550 yards southeast of Bethlehem’s Mar Elias monastery. Ancient remains at the site have been
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