A village situated on the south part of a rocky hill, on the top of which there is a famous Greek nunnery, founded by the emperor Justinian, who endowed it with lands that brought in a considerable revenue, for which they now pay rent to the grand signor; he also gave the convent three hundred Georgian slaves for vassals, whose descendants are the people of the village and are of the Roman Greek church. The convent has the appearance of a castle, with high walls around it; the buildings within are irregular; towards the bottom of the hill there is a building where strangers are lodged; the church remains according to the old model, though it has been ruined and repaired; it consists of five naves, divided by four rows of pillars, and has a portico before it. Behind the high altar they have what they call a miraculous picture of the Virgin Mary, which, they say, was painted by St. Luke, but it is not to be seen. The convent is governed by an abbess, whose office continues during life; she is put in by the patriarch and nominates the nuns, who are about twenty in number; these nunneries are more like hospitals than convents, the members of them being mostly old women, and are employed in working, especially in the managing of silkworms. The abbess showed me her hands and observed to me that they were callous with work; she ate with us both above in the convent and below in the apartment for strangers. The women seldom take the vow in less than seven years and often remain many years at liberty; they may see and converse with men and go anywhere, even to distant places, with leave. A great part of the revenue of the convent arises from their vineyards, which produce an excellent strong red wine. They have two chaplains to the convent: one is a monk who lives in the convent, and the other is married and resides in the town.
Text: Richard Pococke. A Description of the East, and Some Other countries 1743 (p. 133).
Photo: André Geiger. Syrie et Liban 1932 (p. 214).
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