17/01/2026
🧭 Gertrude Bell was a female British writer, traveler, archaeologist, and more who spent many years exploring and mapping the Middle East.
On May 19, 1909, during the time of Bishop Mor Philoxenos Abdelahad Beth Mase, she visited the Syriac Orthodox Monastery of Mor Augin in Tur Abdin.
She likely reached the monastery from the village of Sederi (Üçyol), which she referred to as "Usedere." In her diary, she recorded her visit in these words:
"Left at 6 and rode up through the oak woods to Der Mar Augen just over the lip of the hills … Mar Augen is the mother house [main monastery] of this district. We got to it after about 2 hours succeeding in pulling our horses down over the rocks.
There are 10 monks; they live mostly in caves some of which have upper chambers. I do not doubt that this is the real primitive monasticism.
The bp [Mor Philoxenos Abdelahad Beth Mase], an old man, has shut himself up in a cave, walled in and almost inaccessible above the monastery and intends to spend the rest of his days in silence. He eats once a day; the food is hoisted[?] up to him in a basket - burghul, bread, lentils and oil - none of the monks eat anything else.
The rais [abbot] … took me up to Mar Augen’s cell [living and prayer space] in the rocks above the monastery to the W [west]. The kitchen is a half open cave with a big cave behind it as storehouse - skins of burghul in it.
Several of the monks wd not [would not] look at a woman and were carefully sent into their caves. The rais [abbot] made an exception in my favour.
The monastery owns lands and vinyards but only so much of the produce is assigned to it by the church at large as is necessary for the livelihood of the monks …
The Rais [abbot] gave me lunch in his cell, omelet, burghul and raisins. He proposes, if allowed, to spend the rest of his days at Mar Augen. His native place is Mardin."
The Gertrude Bell Archive is located at the University of Newcastle in England.
