The Hawaiian star. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu]) 1893-1912, 1911-12-23

JERUSALEM, Dec "a discovery
which promises to be of great interest
to the Christian world has been made
on the top of the Mount of Olives.
Under the auspices of the Greek
Catholic order of monks called the
White Fathers" excavations were be-
gun recently in the grounds of the in
stitution known as the Carmelite con-
vent 70 the "Pater Noster."
The white Fathers" have long held
to the belief that the grounds must
cover the site of some ancient church
or edifice, and, acting on this belief,
excavations were commenced in the
western section of the extensive
grounds. The excavators were not
long in coming upon the broken walls
of a ruined church, and judging from
the extent of the walls unearthed, this
church must have enjoyed quite lib
eral dimensions. 1t measures some
, so feet in length from entrance TO
apse, the latter facing eastward, and
us dNGIdBG "lull dN luS ht~'N - N6OAS
fifty feet and at the transepts eighty
feet.
The main floor of the nave still re-
mains unearthed, but those Of the tran
septs, the extent of whose areas meas
ures some fifteen feet square each,
have been exposed to view. They con
sist of beautifully laid mosiacs in a
perfect state of preservation. In the
middle of the floor on the south tran
sept is sunk a baptismal immersion
pool, some two feet in depth AMI four
feet square, with a nicely rounded and
finished rim, all wonderfully preserved
The plastering on the sides of the
walls enclosing this transept shows
traces of a large painting
On the floor of the north transept
were found several shafts o. columns
scattered here and there among the
debris, and at the junction of the west
ern corner of the transept with the
nave were uncovered two or three
tombs containing human bones on the
tombstones of one of which is inscrib
ed in Greek the name "Theodorus.'
Further up the nave, northeast Of
the south transept, another bit oI
mosaic flooring was uneaTthed, dis
closing that there were two separate
and distinct floors of different mosaic
design, the upper lying some two fee
six inches above the other making i
clear that the church's history covers
two separate periods, namely: The
first period following its original con
struction by Queen Helena, mother ,
Constantine the Great, for there Il
now no doubbt that this is one o
the first three Christian churches bull
in the Holy Land by Queen Helen;
some time during the early part of thu
fourth century, the other two beinl
the Church of the Holy Sepulchre II
Jerusalem and the Church of the Nati
witty in Bethlehem, and the secon'
period dating from the restoration b,
the Crusaders of the twelfth centur,
of the previously destroyed crigina
church of Queen Helena, the destruc
ton taking place probably during tn
early part Of the sixth century at tn
hands of the Persian King, Chorsoe
II. or possibly some other Orienta
vandals. The latter view is support
ed by the peculiar construction in
semi-circular fashion of the wall q
the apse, which is characteristic of tn
Crusader type of church architecture
The church has been given the nam
of 'Eleona," in reference perhaps I
Queen Helena, it's founder. or AGAR
the "Crurch of the Lords Prayer TO
it stands, as tradition has It, over tn