Conrad Schick was a German architect, archaeologist and
ProtestantProtestantism is one of the three major groupings within Christianity. It is a movement that began in Germany in the early 16th century as a reaction against medieval Roman Catholic doctrines and practices, especially in regards to salvation, justification, and ecclesiology.The doctrines of the...
missionary who settled in
Jerusalem in the mid-nineteenth century.
Biography
Conrad Schick was born in
BitzBitz is a municipality in the Zollernalbkreis district, in Baden-Württemberg, Germany.-Notable people:* Conrad Schick* Justin Jarvis...
,
WürttembergThe Kingdom of Württemberg was a state that existed from 1806 to 1918, located in present-day Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It was a continuation of the Duchy of Württemberg, which came into existence in 1495...
,
GermanyGermany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
. At the age of 24, after completing his studies in
BaselBasel or Basle In the national languages of Switzerland the city is also known as Bâle , Basilea and Basilea is Switzerland's third most populous city with about 166,000 inhabitants. Located where the Swiss, French and German borders meet, Basel also has suburbs in France and Germany...
, he settled in
PalestinePalestine is a conventional name, among others, used to describe the geographic region between the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River, and various adjoining lands....
in October 1846. The
ReformedThe Reformed churches are a group of Protestant denominations characterized by Calvinist doctrines. They are descended from the Swiss Reformation inaugurated by Huldrych Zwingli but developed more coherently by Martin Bucer, Heinrich Bullinger and especially John Calvin...
St. Chrischona Pilgrim Mission at
BettingenBettingen is a municipality in the canton of Basel-Stadt in Switzerland.-Geography:Bettingen has an area, , of . Of this area, or 34.1% is used for agricultural purposes, while or 44.8% is forested. Of the rest of the land, or 18.8% is settled .Of the built up area, housing and buildings made...
sent him out as missionary.
The house that Schick built for his family,
Tabor HouseTabor House is a landmark building in Jerusalem, Israel.Tabor House was built in 1882 by archaeologist, missionary and architect Conrad Schick as a home for his family...
, or
Beit Tabor, on Jerusalem's
Street of the ProphetsStreet of the Prophets is an east-west axis road in Jerusalem beginning outside Damascus Gate and ending at Davidka Square. Located to the north of Jaffa Road, it bisects the neighborhood of Musrara....
, is still standing. The name of the house is based on a verse from
PsalmsThe Book of Psalms , commonly referred to simply as Psalms, is a book of the Hebrew Bible and the Christian Bible...
(89:12): "The north and the south, Thou has created them; Tabor and Hermon shall rejoice in Thy name." The facade is decorated with carvings of palm leaves and the Greek letters Alpha and Omega, symbolizing the beginning and the end.
When Schick died in Jerusalem in 1901, he was mourned by Jews, Muslims and Christians alike. He was buried in the
Protestant cemetery on Mount ZionThe Protestant Mount Zion Cemetery on Mount Zion in Jerusalem, Israel is a cemetery owned by the Anglican Church Missionary Trust Association Ltd., London, represented by the Episcopal Church in Jerusalem and The Middle East...
. The house was bought in 1951 by Swedish Protestants, and now houses Swedish Theological Institute for religious instruction and
Land of IsraelThe Land of Israel is the Biblical name for the territory roughly corresponding to the area encompassed by the Southern Levant, also known as Canaan and Palestine, Promised Land and Holy Land. The belief that the area is a God-given homeland of the Jewish people is based on the narrative of the...
studies.
Architecture and archaeology
Schick was chosen to design
Mea ShearimMea Shearim is one of the oldest Jewish neighborhoods in Jerusalem, Israel. It is populated mainly by Haredi Jews and was built by the original settlers of the Yishuv haYashan.-Name:...
, one of the first neighborhoods in Jerusalem built outside the walls of the Old City. Schick is chiefly remembered for his fifty years of archaeological investigations of Jerusalem and its surroundings. He worked for many years for the
Palestine Exploration FundThe Palestine Exploration Fund is a British society often simply known as the PEF. It was founded in 1865 and is still functioning today. Its initial object was to carry out surveys of the topography and ethnography of Ottoman Palestine with a remit that fell somewhere between an expeditionary...
, publishing frequently in the Fund's journal. In 1872, Schick was permitted to conduct research on the
Temple MountThe Temple Mount, known in Hebrew as , and in Arabic as the Haram Ash-Sharif , is one of the most important religious sites in the Old City of Jerusalem. It has been used as a religious site for thousands of years...
, which was generally off limits to foreigners. Two wooden models he built were exhibited in the Turkish pavilion at the
Vienna World Exposition of 1873]The Weltausstellung 1873 Wien was the large World exposition was held in 1873 in the Austria–Hungarian capital of Vienna. Its motto was Kultur und Erziehung ....
. One was later sold to a museum in Switzerland. King
Charles I of WürttembergCharles was the third King of Württemberg, from 25 June 1864 until his death in 1891.-Early life:He was born 6 March 1823 at Stuttgart, as HRH Charles Frederick Alexander, Crown Prince of Württemberg the son of William I, King of Württemberg and his third wife Pauline Therese of Württemberg .He...
bought the other and subsequently raised Schick to the rank of Royal Württembergian Hofbaurat (Privy Construction Councillor) for his excellent work.
In 1887, Schick designed the
Unity of the BrethrenThe Unity of the Brethren is a Christian denomination whose roots are in the pre-reformation work of priest and philosopher Jan Hus, who was martyred in 1415.-History in Bohemia:...
lepers' hospital
Jesushilfe, since 1885 led by his son-in-law Dr. Adalbert Einsler (1848–1919), a landmark building (today's Hansen Government Hospital for Lepers) that can still be seen today near the
Jerusalem TheaterThe Jerusalem Theater is a center for the performing arts in Jerusalem, Israel. The theater opened in 1971. The complex consists of the Sherover Theatre, which seats 950, the Henry Crown Symphony Hall with 750 seats, the Rebecca Crown Auditorium, with 450 seats, and the Little Theater with 110...
in
TalbiyaTalbiya or Talbiyeh , officially Komemiyut, is an upscale neighborhood in Jerusalem, Israel, located between Rehavia and Katamon. It was built in the 1920s and 1930s on land purchased from the Greek Patriarchate...
. Other buildings designed by Schick are St. Paul's Anglican Chapel and the German Deaconesses Hospital (today the eastern wing of
Bikur Holim HospitalBikur Holim Hospital is a hospital in Jerusalem, Israel.-History:Bikur Holim first opened in a residential building in the Old City in 1826. In 1843, the hospital had only three rooms for patients. In 1854, a building was purchased which soon grew overcrowded...
), both on Street of the Prophets.
Biblical models
Schick constructed a notable series of
Replicas of the Jewish TempleReplicas of the Jewish Temple are scale models or authentic buildings that attempt to replicate the Temple of Solomon, Second Temple and Herod's Temple in Jerusalem.-Scale models:...
. His replica of the biblical
TabernacleThe Tabernacle , according to the Hebrew Torah/Old Testament, was the portable dwelling place for the divine presence from the time of the Exodus from Egypt through the conquering of the land of Canaan. Built to specifications revealed by God to Moses at Mount Sinai, it accompanied the Israelites...
was visited in Jerusalem by several crowned heads of state, toured the United Kingdom, and exhibited at the 1873 Vienna World's Fair. It was purchased by the King of
WürttembergWürttemberg , formerly known as Wirtemberg or Wurtemberg, is an area and a former state in southwestern Germany, including parts of the regions Swabia and Franconia....
, who awarded Schick a knighthood in recognition of his work. Schick built a replica of the Temple Mount and
Dome of the RockThe Dome of the Rock is a shrine located on the Temple Mount in the Old City of Jerusalem. The structure has been refurbished many times since its initial completion in 691 CE at the order of Umayyad Caliph Abd al-Malik...
for the Ottoman Sultan. His final model, in four sections, each representing the Temple Mount as it appeared in a particular era, was exhibited at the St. Louis World's Fair of 1904.
Two models of the
Temple MountThe Temple Mount, known in Hebrew as , and in Arabic as the Haram Ash-Sharif , is one of the most important religious sites in the Old City of Jerusalem. It has been used as a religious site for thousands of years...
created by Schick are located in the basement of the Schmidt School for Girls on
Nablus RoadThe Nablus Road is one of the traditional routes into Jerusalem's walled city. Starting at the Damascus Gate, it is the ancient road north.-Places of interest:* The Garden Tomb* The Dominican School of Biblical Research and Saint Stephen's Monastery...
, just outside of the Old City of Jerusalem near the
Damascus GateDamascus Gate is the main entrance to the Old City of Jerusalem. It is located in the wall on the city's northwest side where the highway leads out to Nablus, and from there, in times past, to the capital of Syria, Damascus; as such, its modern English name is Damascus Gate, and its modern Hebrew...
. One model shows the Temple Mount as it was in the 1870s, based on his research. The other is a somewhat fanciful model of the Jewish Temple.
Commemoration
The Conrad Schick Library in the Old City of Jerusalem is named for him.
External links