Museum of the Greek Patriarchate

The Museum of the Greek Patriarchate is located in the Christian Quarter of the Old City near the Church of the Holy Sepulcher. The museum is a special department located in the building adjacent to the building of the Greek Patriarchate. The exposition presents objects discovered during the excavations of Jerusalem - icons, embroidered clothes and objects of worship and much more.

The most interesting exhibits are two sarcophagi made of white stone, found in the late XIX century near the modern hotel "King David". Some historians believe that they belonged to members of the family of Herod the Great. The decorative decoration of the sarcophagi is striking - elegant floral ornaments, which are considered one of the best examples of the funeral culture of the era of Herod.

Many finds are related to the Crusader period, including the carved capital of the XII century from Nazareth and numerous artifacts found in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre and the tomb of the Jerusalem king Baldwin I, who ruled in 1100-1118. Among the museum treasures is a mitre made of rock crystal, dating from the XII century. It is decorated with copper stripes and inlaid with precious stones, and some inserts could be fragments of the Holy Cross. The museum’s collection contains many historical documents, one of which was signed by Caliph Omar in 638 and states that the caliph grants the Greek Church in Jerusalem the right to care for the sacred places. And this is not a complete list of relics!