Day 9 - Mount Zion -> Upper Room -> Dormition Abbey -> Church of St Peter in Galicantu -> Mount Scopus - study of a Jewish tomb

Along the street in the Jewish Quarter in the Old City

Old Jewish Quarter

Mount Zion is located on the western ridge of the older portions of Jerusalem—just south of the Old City wall. Part of the old city wall

Walking on Mt Zion


Zion Gate

King David and his harp

Dormition Abbey

Bell Tower of the Benedictine Dormition Abbey




Church of St Peter in Galicantu

The church takes its name from the Latin word "Gallicantu", meaning the crowing of the rooster. This is in commemoration of Peter's triple rejection of Jesus "... before the cock crows twice." (Mark 14:30)
A Byzantine shrine dedicated to Peter's repentance was erected on this spot in 457 AD, but was destroyed by the Fatimid caliph Al-Hakim bi-Amr Allah in 1010. The chapel was rebuilt by Crusaders in 1102 and given its present name. After the fall of Jerusalem the church again fell into ruin and was not rebuilt until 1931. Today a golden rooster protrudes prominently from the sanctuary roof in honor of its biblical connection.

This spot is also believed to be the location of the High Priest Caiaphas’ palace.

Ceiling of Church of St Peter in Galicantu

Inside Church of St Peter in Galicantu

You can see Temple Mount from here


Peter denying the Lord Jesus

Entrance to Church of St Peter in Galicantu

Next, we travelled up to Mount Scopus. Group photo on the Mount.


Rev Quek's notes :
Mount Scopus' Hebrew name means "mount of the spectators" as it is one of the few places from which both the Dead Sea and the Dome of the Rock can be seen. It has consequently always been seen in terms of military importance; Titus, the First Crusade and General Allenby all used the place to pitch camp. Today about 3,000 of Allenby's troops continue to look over the city from their impeccable cemetery.

It is 826 meters above sea level. In the wake of the 1948 Arab-Israeli War, Mount Scopus became a UN protected Israeli exclave within Jordanian-administered territory until the Six-Day War in 1967. Today, Mount Scopus lies within the municipal boundaries of the city of Jerusalem.

Mount Scopus has been strategically important as a base from which to attack the city since antiquity. The 12th Roman Legion camped there in AD 66. In AD 70, at the conclusion of the same war, which led to the destruction of the Jewish Temple, Mount Scopus was used as a base to carry out the final siege of the city by the same 12th Legion.

A typical jewish tomb. the body is embalmed on the slab of stone bed. The bone boxes will be kept in many of the holes.