The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1891-01-23
THE POOL CT BETHESDA.
SOMETHING ABOUT ITS LATER
HISTORY.

HIS OhY.
HAS 1t Again Iseen Found PA Report
by Consul GIIlman-Cu Curious Discovery
of II Fresco That the Turks Had
Marred The Pool With Five Porches.
The Pool of Bethesda, in Jerusalem,
has always been an object of interest to
the people of Christendom on account
of the sacred narrative of miraculous
healing connected with it. In the gos-
pei of st. John, Bethesda is described as
q pool by the sheep market, having five
porches. The porches were occupied by
invalids awaiting the miraculous "troub-
ling of the waters.
Some time during the early centuries
of the Christian era all certainty as to
the exact location of the Pool Of Be-
thesda was lost. 1t was supposed by
some TO have been completely over
whelmed in the destruction of Jerusa-
lem by the Roman emperor Titus in ~
A. d. 1t is not strange that it should
have disappeared, since the Holy City
vas twice destroyed, and the materials
Which composed it were afterward used
in new constructions
Nevertheless, certain Christian pill
ims who visited Jerusalem in the
ourtl century found The fountain OF
Bethesda still in existence, and left an
ceo,lnt of it which suited the location
nd brief description given i'll the gospel
If ST. John.
This description and location, how
ever, did not fit the Birket Israel. the
pool or pond in Jerusalem which in
modern tines has been commonly re-
gsidel as the site of Bethesda. Many
earned men have maintained that the
Birket Israel could not be Bethesda, but
thev lave not been able to tell where
the pool alluded to in the new testa-
nent was.
A report recently made to his Govern
.ment by the United States consul at
Jerusalem Mr.. Henry Gilman, seems
to render it certain that the site OF
Bethesda has been found at last
Recently some Algerine monks, in
making an excavation under the ruins
of the Crusader Church of st. Anne, in
the Holy City. discovered, beneath the
remains of three successive structures, a
rock hewn pool containing water. Pur-
suing their excavations further, they
uncovered the remains of two tiers of
FIVE arched porches, the lower tier being
N the pool.
Still later, the monks came upon
another pool containing water, to the
westward of that first discovered, the
vi ole agreei g with the descriptions OF
Bethesda given lay the fathers of the
Church d the earl Christian pilgrims.
The number of the porches a'so agrees
with that mentioned in ST. John.
Steps cut in the rcc.i led down to the
water, and an ancient Christian church
in ruins surmounts the whole. The re-
mains If the upper tier of rorches ex
tend above the lool at right angles from
the north wall of the e1ypt beneath the
church.
On clearing away the debris that
choked the fifth porch all these dis
caveries eliminated in revealing the re
mains of painting OF fresco upon the
plaster of the wall in the rear, repre-
senting an angel as if descending into
and troubling the water. The water is
del3icted by conventional zigzag and
wavy lines of an olive green, shaded
" it'll black, more suggestive Of Egypt
an hieroglyphics than of modern art,
nd surrounding the figure on every
ile
The ii sht hand of the angel was
-hown as uplift d, but this had been
carefully destroyed. probably by the
Moslems. The face had also been in
tentionally battered, so as conn letely
to obliterate it. The glory OF nimbus
about the head remained but little in
jared.
On the side of the same arch-the wall
extending at right angles with the other
are tile remains of another figure, also
N fresco. much defaced, and supposed
10 represent the Saviour Above the
mead. evidently Intentionally mutilated
IS q portion of the nimbus, and in the
lower outer corner of the painting part
IF blue robe After little exposure
to the light the colors in both these
frescos faded greatly.
Consul Gilman thus summarizes the
discoveries: First comes the rubbish
covering tie ruins, and built upon by
tile more or less modern Turkish houses;
next beneath is the small church, with
apse; under this the crypt, with five
porches containing the frescos; and,
fourth and last. underneath all is the
pool itself, cut in the solid rock, and
with five arches of well preserved
masonry. This last, from the historical
and other evidence. I have not the
slightest doubt is the veritable Pool of
Bethesda.