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Wadi
Qelt - Monastery of St. George of Koziba
The Monastery
of St. George of Koziba, nestled in the lush valley of the Wadi
Qelt, was founded in 420 AD by five hermits. It was built next
to the cave where the prophet Elijah stopped enroute from Sinai and was
fed by ravens. Numerous cave-dwelling hermits lived here in imitation
of the great prophet. The monastery was abandoned after the Persians
swept through the valley in the 600s and massacred 14 monks. It was
restored again by the Crusaders in 1179. The present monastery was rebuilt
around 1900 by the Greek Orthodox Church. The bones and skulls of the martyred
monks can still be seen today in the monastery chapel.
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