Four cathedrals of Aleppo: a walk from Jdeideh to the Quwayq

The four Christian communities of Aleppo use four separate cathedrals, and all four stand on the same line. The Forty Martyrs, in the stone courtyard of Jdeideh, was finished in 1491; Saint Elijah, on the bank of the Quwayq, was consecrated in 2000. The walk between them is 1900 metres and takes that sequence from oldest to newest: courtyard to square, square to street, street to riverbank.

The route

Walk west from Sahat al-Hatab and step into the church courtyard of Jdeideh. Four churches stand back to back in it; the Forty Martyrs is among them, its front facing the courtyard. On the way out, keep north. After 900 metres you are beside Mother Teresa Square: the Syriac Catholic cathedral sits at its edge, its stone-clad body and ribbed dome hard to miss. From here carry on northwest. The second 900 metres climb into Suleimaniyeh, and Saint Joseph’s Cathedral is easy to find: the minarets of the Tawhid Mosque stand 100 metres southwest, and the two buildings come into one frame from the same street. The last leg is short. Saint Elijah is 200 metres north; its dome shows from the railing on the river side and its west front faces the street.

Timing

Do not come on a Sunday morning. All four are working cathedrals and visits stop during services; a weekday morning is the day for this route. Be in Jdeideh at 09:00, while the courtyard is still empty. Reach the Syriac Catholic cathedral around 10:00: the stone panels on its front throw relief shadows in morning light and flatten out after noon. Saint Joseph’s at 11:00. The tall window between the two towers takes the light from the side at that hour. Saint Elijah at 12:00. Outside service times you may find the door shut; asking in the courtyard usually opens it, but nobody promises.

Take care

Entry is free at all four. All are working places of worship: cover shoulders and knees, no photographs during a service, keep your voice down in the courtyard. Doors open on variable hours outside services and no timetable is posted; asking the caretaker in the courtyard is the quickest way. The two long legs run along streets open to traffic, and the pavement breaks off in places. Aleppo middays in summer are harsh and most of the line has no shade; in July and August press the route into the morning or take it late in the day.