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ASSAF PERETZ, COURTESY OF THE ISRAEL ANTIQUITIES AUTHORITY

MARTYR’S CRYPT. Before it was a large church, the pilgrimage site was a small crypt chapel—inside a cave. The fifth-century crypt chapel was paved with a mosaic floor with a round wreath (a portion of which is visible here). In the sixth century, a church was built over the crypt chapel—connected by two stairways. This enabled pilgrims to enter and exit the pilgrimage site without overcrowding or disrupting the service in the church above.