Page 26 - Virtual Tour Outside Jerusalem Walls Advanced Level 110716

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Mount Zion Hotel and the Turkish Hamam

The Hamam is a bath, the roots of which are in Byzantine Roman culture.
The Hamam evolved in Muslim society based on religious customs
related to purity and cleansing of the body.
At the Hamam (they) usually hold ceremonies for brides and grooms on
the day of the wedding, and also for a baby on the fortieth day from birth.
In addition, the Hamam is used for social gatherings and is open for
women and men on separate days.
These baths were very common in Jerusalem in the past, and they had an
important place both to the Jews and to the Arabs. Back then grooms and
brides came to them, and it was also customary to go and shower there,
because there were no showers in (people’s) homes.
Next to every wall at a Hamam there is a small pool, into which hot water
flow from a hole in the wall. The bather sits on the stone floor next to the
pool, pulls water from it and pours (it) on himself, sits for a few minutes
on a stone shelf and absorbs the fumes into his skin…

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