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Bethlehem in Palästina |
BETHLEHEM IN PALÄSTINA
The 1840s Travelogue of a Visitor to the Holy Land Titus Tobler Translated by: Michelle Standley Foreword by Khalil Shokeh & Maxim Sansour The a fascinating account of a young Swiss doctor exploring the famous town of Bethlehem, the place of Jesus Christ’s birth, more than 170 years ago. It is an essential research document for Palestine studies which had until now been only available in German.
In 1835, a 27-year-old Swiss doctor, Titus Tobler, travelled to Palestine for the sole purpose of undertaking medical research. The trip sparked a lifelong fascination with the Holy Land. Over the course of four major visits to the area, Tobler wrote several extensive geographical studies and travelogues on Palestine. He eventually became a prominent authority on Palestine studies in Europe and used this platform to enter politics.
On his second journey to Palestine, Tobler spent considerable time in Bethlehem and decided that the city of Christ’s birth, which had so often been studied as a mere environ to Jerusalem, deserved its own detailed publication. The book, published in German in 1849, delivers a fascinating and meticulous insight into the historic small town in the critical few years before global events changed it forever and opened it up to the world. It details all aspects of the inhabitants’ lives, including access to water, agricultural practices, cooking traditions, dress, hygiene, family dynamics, attitudes towards one another and towards foreigners, economics, professions and, most significantly, the growing trade of making and shipping souvenirs abroad. Some of Tobler’s most interesting observations describe the long-term feuds between different Christian denominations in the town, which, along with similar feuds in Jerusalem, would be used as a pretext for the Crimean War just four years after the publication of his book. As insightful as Tobler’s accounts are, the book is possibly more interesting for what it says about Tobler himself and his frequently unfiltered European perspectives, which, despite Tobler’s repeated claims to the contrary, are anything but neutral In spite of the book’s historic importance and its essential value to Palestine studies, it has until now remained available in German only. Its translation into English now renews its significance as an essential piece for understanding Palestine and the evolution of European attitudes towards it. |
About the Author
Titus Tobler was born on 25 July 1806 in Stein, Appenzell, Switzerland. He studied and practised medicine. He travelled to Palestine and, after taking part in the political affairs of Switzerland, settled in 1871 in Munich, Germany. He died on 21 January 1877 in Munich.
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Contents
A. Bethlehem.
§1. Name, location, hills, valleys, climate §2. Water, David’s Wells §3. Vegetation §4. The town, weapons, size, houses, their construction, numbers §5. History of the city. a. pre-Christian and b. post-Christian §6. Inhabitants, race, mortality rate, population, national and confessional diversity, traditional dress, foods §7. Employment, crops, livestock, beekeeping, guilds and trades §8. Language, manners and customs, moral character, public authorities §9. Church of the Nativity, its chapels and monasteries §10. The Milk Grotto §11. Pilgrimage §12. Library; Schools §13. Cemeteries
B. Surroundings.
§1. Place of Joseph’s Dream, Urging him to Egypt §2. Shepherds’ Field and Place §3. Bêt Sâhûr en=Rraffârâ
§Appendix §List of Bible passages cited or discussed
A. Bethlehem.
§1. Name, location, hills, valleys, climate §2. Water, David’s Wells §3. Vegetation §4. The town, weapons, size, houses, their construction, numbers §5. History of the city. a. pre-Christian and b. post-Christian §6. Inhabitants, race, mortality rate, population, national and confessional diversity, traditional dress, foods §7. Employment, crops, livestock, beekeeping, guilds and trades §8. Language, manners and customs, moral character, public authorities §9. Church of the Nativity, its chapels and monasteries §10. The Milk Grotto §11. Pilgrimage §12. Library; Schools §13. Cemeteries
B. Surroundings.
§1. Place of Joseph’s Dream, Urging him to Egypt §2. Shepherds’ Field and Place §3. Bêt Sâhûr en=Rraffârâ
§Appendix §List of Bible passages cited or discussed