Corpus Inscriptionum Arabicarum Palaestinae

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Epitaph to a Mustim

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artificiat caves are a very common feature of

iis sui rounclings. The sofi limosione of the lowhilis, the common topographical characteristic

of this region is pior eo by hundro is of thesecurious boli s apocl cavitios, and rightly cleserves the popular appellation 'The Lanil of the Thou-

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ano relative easy taking into Consideration the sos iness of the rock whic Counts for iis usago for many centurios. Unlike Englanil ano Franco, in D rDubban anil iis vicinity the Creta Cous materiat was not used for fertiligation. It supplicii tho limo furnacos and was widely employeil in the manufacturing

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lx q ad Dr consists of a number of boli sti eo cavos; the walis of whichwere pior eo to enable easy access froni the ouisicle, anil passage bo Cenoacti Othor. Fig. Ρ4) The roosse of some of the caves collapse l. No major Changes have happe neci sinco Guoi in visiteri tho sito, anil his cle scription is stili vallo, accurate, anil illuminating.

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Tho following inscriptions bolong to the samo period of the onos found in

the caverias of B t Jibrin. They show the sanie style, anil represent similarcommunities of Cave clwellers. It is Clear that great numbor of thOSO CRUCI ns, scatiore t ovor the largo area of the 'Lanil of the Thousano Cavos V woro inhabilied by groups of peoplo, fit si Christians and then Muslims, who Con- lucteo in them communal activitios, anil practiceri thoir religion; Thoro isericlen e that there was even a transitional period froni Christianity to Istam in these cave communities. It is possibie to follow the transformation of the supplications anil invocations in the inscriptions that were a Comi aniCil, Sometimos, by CI OSSOS, into more Isiamic ones. It s Oul l also bo potiatori out that there is no cloubi that many of theso caverias collapse i anil buriori thoirinSCriptions. Many Caverias, Sonae Co reo by Ο Γgrowth, stili mali properstui . Whon this is clone, I have no cloubi that the scopo of this phenomenon os cave clwellings in the area Mil prove to have been OXtensive both

in scope ano cluration.

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Invocation

Froin the enti ance in to the compleX on the noriti, cave l leniis into Cave 2 tho last on this section. On the easteria anil solith easteria ali of the Cave,

Pl. 6. Inscription in cave 2

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Invocations

B. Cave 3. Cave 3 is a very large en losure, whicli includes a Passage, or rathor a largeroom without a nolo in iis roos, lea ling to Cave 4 to iis solith. The easternwall of this enclosuro is couore t with 8 inscriptions os various sires, from