Jebus Museum
editJebus Museum is a project aimed at exploration and development of the Palestinian culture and the Arab world. Every single piece in the museum is not just an exhibit covered with dust and hidden behind glass, but a relic which traces the 10,000-years history of Palestine.
Jebus owes its very existence to Mohammed Audi, a man known today as Mathaf, which means “Museum”. Mathaf grew up in the world, where cows used to be fed from antique crockery and chicken necks were adorned with ancient clay necklaces. Watching how the cultural heritage of Palestine is crumbling and dramatically disappearing, Mathaf came up with the idea of a museum that would become not only an exhibition space, but the archaeological center of Palestine. He started to assemble his first collections taking part in scouting expeditions and cultural events. And as a result, Mathaf got more than enough material to stage the first exhibition of the Jebus Museum.
“Jebus” is the name of the state, derived from the tribe of the Jebusites that 10,000 years BC dwelt in the land of Jerusalem and had occupied the territory, which is currently divided between Syria, Lebanon, Palestine and Jordan. The first exhibition counts up to 50 artifacts displayed on the ground floor of the family house. Today, the Jebus Museum, a two-storey building, represents more than 3,000 archaeological, ethnographic and cultural sites; it’s a center for archaeological and cultural studies and traditional medicine. More than 500 Palestinian and foreign researchers are working as volunteers for the prosperity of the Museum.