Saint Catherine’s Monastery

Saint Catherine’s Monastery has a rich history. In honor of Saint Catherine of Alexandria, a Christian martyr, the monastery was built. Traditionally, her body was taken away by angels to Mt. Sinai, 500 years later on the peak that now has her name were discovered with her remains. The monastery was a centre for religious pilgrimages for over thousand five hundred years. Saint Catherine Monastery was built to save the monks in the region and it is a formidable fortification with walls made up of granite up to 35 m in height and is surrounded by cypresses and gardens. Up to the 12th century, the entrance to the monastery was just 30 ft high door and it was the only entrance, which lifted supplied with pulleys. Over its 1400 years, it has withstood various struggles and it is still a working monastery. It is one of the oldest working Christian monastery and one of the world’s smallest diocese.

The monastery is located at the foot of the mount and considered as a place where Moses got the 10th Commandments and a there is a chapel built on what is considered traditionally the site of the Burning Bush.

There is a sanctuary with the walls, incredibly rich in historical and religious compositions. Second, only to the Vatican, the Saint Catherine houses more than 4500 manuscripts in various languages, including Hebrew, Arabic, Coptic, Greek and Armenian. The monastery is also a place for setting priceless artworks from classy Byzantine mosaic dating back to the sixth century, Greek and Russian icons and western oil paintings, including one contributed by Catherine of Russia in the seventieth century and another by Czar Alexander in the ninetieth century. The natural setting makes the Saint Catherine a special place. The work nature of Mt. Sinai is without equal.