Nabi Musa
Holy Moslem site in the Judean Desert half a mile south of the Jerusalem-Jericho road,12.5 miles east of Jerusalem.
Inside the Mosque is a tomb which Moslem tradition believes to be the tomb of Moses – hence its name Nabi Musa (the Prophet Moses).
The mosque was built in 1269 by the Mamluk Sultan Baybars. Its compound is surrounded by a wall with a single gate facing westwards. The minaret was built in 1500.
Until 1947, every spring, Moslems celebrated the week-long Nabi Musa festival here, coinciding with the Jewish Passover as both commemorate the Exodus from Egypt. The festival opened with a procession of believers from the El Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem.
Nearby is a cemetery for the Bedouin tribes of the region.
Also in the vicinity is the tomb of Sitna Aisha, the prophet Mohammed’s beloved concubine.
