- Nabi Yahya Mosque
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The Nabi Yahya Mosque (Arabic: جامع النبي يحيى, Jama'a Nabi Yahya, meaning "mosque of the Prophet John") is the main mosque in the village of Sebastiya, near Nablus. It is located in the central square of the village. It is constructed of large buttressed walls. Within its courtyard, a stairway in the small domed building leads down into a cave. There are six burial niches here, among them are the tombs of Elisha and Obadiah.[1]
History
The Nabi Yahya Mosque stands on the site identified since Byzantine times as the place where John the Baptist's head was buried. Local tradition in both the Christian and Muslim communities of the area has it that it was also the site of the prison of John the Baptist and is the place where he was beheaded.[2] A church was erected on the spot during the Byzantine era and then superseded by a Crusader-built church in 1160.[1]
It was transformed into a mosque by Saladin in 1187, although some sources say it was converted by the Mamluks in 1261. Nabi Yahya refers to John the Baptist in the Arabic language. The mosque was restored and mostly rebuilt during the 19th century while Palestine was under Ottoman rule.[1]
References
- ^ a b c Jacobs, 1998, p.443.
- ^ Christianity in Nablus Zajel.
Bibliography
- Jacobs, Daniel (1998), Israel and the Palestinian territories, Rough Guides, ISBN 9781858282480, http://books.google.com/?id=JXoY2vCZ5AEC&pg=RA5-PA453&dq=Omar+Mukhtar+Street+Gaza
Mosques in Israel and the Palestinian territories Israel al-Bahr Mosque • Hassan Bek Mosque • Jezzar Pasha Mosque • Mahmood Mosque • Mahmoudiya Mosque • Makam al-Nabi Sain Mosque • al-Muallaq Mosque • Sidna Ali Mosque • White Mosque (Nazareth) • White Mosque (Ramla)
East Jerusalem West Bank Great Mosque of Nablus • al-Hamadiyya Mosque • Jamal Abdel Nasser Mosque • al-Khadra Mosque • Ibrahimi Mosque • Nabi Yahya Mosque • an-Nasr Mosque • Mosque of Omar • Sultan Ibrahim Ibn Adham MosqueGaza Strip Great Mosque of Gaza • Ibn Marwan Mosque • Ibn Uthman Mosque • Sayed al-Hashim Mosque • Umm al-Naser Mosque • Welayat MosqueCategories: Israel, Palestine – Islam in Israel and the Palestinian territories – Mosques by country
Categories:- Mosques in the West Bank
- 12th-century architecture
- 19th-century architecture
- Christian pilgrimages
- John the Baptist
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