Schick models of Jerusalem



The Schick models of Jerusalem are notable wooden models of buildings and areas in the city of Jerusalem constructed by Conrad Schick in the late 19th century. The series of models covered the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, the Islamic buildings of Al-Aqsa on the Temple Mount and the terrain beneath it, as well as replicas of the Jewish Temple based on the information available in his time, and benefitting from his architectural knowledge.

Schick's monograph on the Temple Mount, Die Stiftshütte ("The Tabernacle"), is primarily a commentary on his models.

Temple Mount (Haram) models


Schick's most notable models were of the Temple Mount, which he described as the Haram. Schick's models of the area, particularly of the foundations of the platform, are important to scholars of the area, because Schick was the last European in modern history to be allowed to carry out an archaeological survey of the subterranean spaces beneath the buildings of Al-Aqsa. Archaeology or surveying has rarely been permitted in the Temple Mount area, due to religious sensitivities. Only four such surveys of the area as a whole are known from modern times; those of Charles William Wilson, Charles Warren, Claude Reignier Conder, and Conrad Schick, with Schick's access being the most recent and with the broadest access. Schick's access was unique, because he was working to build his model for the Ottoman government during a period in which structural repairs were being made; the models were procured for and exhibited in the Turkish pavilion at the Vienna World Exposition of 1873, alongside the Illés Relief.

The first two models were made for the 1873 World's Fair; the smaller initial model likely as part of the competition to win the contract from the Ottoman authorities. The exhibited model, measuring 4 by 3 meters, was visited in Jerusalem by several crowned heads of state and toured the United Kingdom after the World's Fair, but did not find a buyer. It was housed at the Theologisches Seminar St. Chrischona near Basel, Switzerland, for 138 years, until 2012 when it was purchased by Christ Church in the Old City of Jerusalem.

Schick built further replicas of the Temple Mount for the Ottoman Sultan in 1885. This final model, in four sections, each representing the Temple Mount as it appeared in a particular era, was exhibited at the 1904 Louisiana Purchase Exposition. Two of these models are located in the basement of the Paulus-Haus museum on Nablus Road, just outside the Old City of Jerusalem near the Damascus Gate, and a third is in the Bijbels Museum, Amsterdam.

Dome of the Rock
One model of the Dome of the Rock, made for the 1873 world's fair. Originally at the St Chrischona Mission, it was sold to an unknown buyer in 2013 for £242,000.

Church of the Nativity
Model of the Church of the Nativity