__NOTOC__ The Palestine Pilgrims' Text Society (PPTS) was a

text publication society A text publication society is a learned society which publishes (either as its sole function, or as a principal function) scholarly editions of old works of historical or literary interest, or archival documents. In addition to full texts, a text p ...

based in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

, which specialised in publishing editions and translations of

medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the Post-classical, post-classical period of World history (field), global history. It began with t ...

texts relevant to the history of

pilgrimage to the Holy Land Christianity has a strong tradition of pilgrimages, both to sites relevant to the New Testament narrative (especially in the Holy Land) and to sites associated with later saints or miracles. History Christian pilgrimages were first made to sit ...

. Particular attention was given to accounts by pilgrims and other travellers containing geographical or topographical information, as well as those which discussed the manners and customs of the Holy Land. The original narratives were written in a variety of languages, including

Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

Arabic Arabic (, ' ; , ' or ) is a Semitic languages, Semitic language spoken primarily across the Arab world.Semitic languages: an international handbook / edited by Stefan Weninger; in collaboration with Geoffrey Khan, Michael P. Streck, Janet C ...

Hebrew Hebrew (; ; ) is a Northwest Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Historically, it is one of the spoken languages of the Israelites and their longest-surviving descendants, the Jews and Samaritans. It was largely preserved ...

Old French Old French (, , ; Modern French: ) was the language spoken in most of the northern half of France from approximately the 8th to the 14th centuries. Rather than a unified language, Old French was a linkage of Romance dialects, mutually intelligib ...

Russian Russian(s) refers to anything related to Russia, including: *Russians (, ''russkiye''), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries *Rossiyane (), Russian language term for all citizens and peo ...

, and

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) ** Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

. The Society first started publishing its work in 1884, and continued for eleven years, publishing a total of twelve volumes. In 1896, these works were transferred to the

Palestine Exploration Fund The Palestine Exploration Fund is a British society based in London. It was founded in 1865, shortly after the completion of the Ordnance Survey of Jerusalem, and is the oldest known organization in the world created specifically for the study ...

, for distribution to the members of the PPTS. The editions remain valuable and are frequently cited in scholarly works. A version is also available as ''The Library of the Palestine Pilgrims' Text Society''. Certain well-known pilgrimages included are those of: Jacques de Vitry,

Saint Jerome Jerome (; la, Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus; grc-gre, Εὐσέβιος Σωφρόνιος Ἱερώνυμος; – 30 September 420), also known as Jerome of Stridon, was a Christian priest, confessor, theologian, and historian; he is comm ...

's ''Pilgrimage of the Holy Paula'',

Mukaddasi Shams al-Dīn Abū ʿAbd Allāh Muḥammad ibn Aḥmad ibn Abī Bakr al-Maqdisī ( ar, شَمْس ٱلدِّيْن أَبُو عَبْد ٱلله مُحَمَّد ابْن أَحْمَد ابْن أَبِي بَكْر ٱلْمَقْدِسِي), ...

's description of

Syria Syria ( ar, سُورِيَا or سُورِيَة, translit=Sūriyā), officially the Syrian Arab Republic ( ar, الجمهورية العربية السورية, al-Jumhūrīyah al-ʻArabīyah as-Sūrīyah), is a Western Asian country loc ...

, and the ''

Itinerarium Burdigalense The ''Itinerarium Burdigalense'' ("Bordeaux Itinerary"), also known as the ''Itinerarium Hierosolymitanum'' ("Jerusalem Itinerary"), is the oldest known Christian ''itinerarium''. It was written by the "Pilgrim of Bordeaux", an anonymous pilgrim ...

''.

Publications

*(1886):
Description of Syria, including Palestine
' by

(c. 985) *(1887):
Of the Holy Places visited by Antoninus Martyr
' by

Antoninus of Piacenza Saint Antoninus of Piacenza (or Placentia) (died 303 AD) is a patron saint of Piacenza in Italy. He is venerated as a saint and martyr in the Roman Catholic Church, with a feast day of 30 September. The saint was said to have been martyred at ...

, archive.org *(1887):
Itinerary from Bordeaux to Jerusalem
' by " The Bordeaux Pilgrim", (333), archive.org *(1887): *(1888):
Of the Buildings of Justinian
' by

Procopius Procopius of Caesarea ( grc-gre, Προκόπιος ὁ Καισαρεύς ''Prokópios ho Kaisareús''; la, Procopius Caesariensis; – after 565) was a prominent late antique Greek scholar from Caesarea Maritima. Accompanying the Roman gener ...

(c. 560) *(1889):
The Letters of Paula and Eustochium to Marcella, about the Holy Places (A.D. 386)
' *(1889): *(1890):
Description of the Holy Land
' by

John of Würzburg John of Würzburg (Latin ''Johannes Herbipolensis'') was a German priest who made a pilgrimage to the Holy Land in the 1160s and wrote a book describing the Christian holy places, the ''Descriptio terrae sanctae'' (Description of the Holy Land). ...

(1160–1170) *(1890):
The Epitome of S. Eucherius about certain Holy Places (ca. A.D. 440) and the Breviary or short description of Jerusalem (ca. A.D. 530)
' *** **alt.: (1890):
The Epitome of S. Eucherius about certain Holy Places (ca. A.D. 440) and the Breviary or short description of Jerusalem (ca. A.D. 530)
' *(1891):
Churches of Constantine at Jerusalem: being translations from Eusenius and the early pilgrims
' **alt.: (1896):
Churches of Constantine at Jerusalem: being translations from Eusenius and the early pilgrims
' *(1891):
The Hodæporicon of Saint Willibald
' (c. 754) by

Huneburc Hygeburg (''floruit'' 760–780), also Hugeburc, Hugeberc, Huneberc or Huneburc, was an Anglo-Saxon nun and hagiographer at the Alemannian monastery of Heidenheim. She is "the first known Englishwoman to have written a full-length literary work" ...

*(1891):
The Pilgrimage of S. Silvia of Aquitania to the Holy Places (ca. A.D. 85)
' *(1891):
Description of the Holy Places. (ca. A.D. 1172)
' by Theoderich *(1892):
Saewolf (A.D. 1102, 1103)
' archive.org *(1893): *(1893): with p
677: Index
*(1893):
Theodosius
' (530) *(1893):
The Itinerary of Bernhard the Wise (A.D. 870) How the City of Jerusalem is Situated, (ca. A.D. 1090?)
' archive.org *(1894):
Anonymous Pilgrims, I–VIII (11th and 12th centuries
' *(1894): *(1894):
Guide-book to Palestine (ca. A.D. 1350)
' archive.org *(1895): (about

Arculf Arculf (later 7th century) was a Frankish bishop who toured the Levant in around 680. Bede claimed he was a bishop (). According to Bede's history of the Church in England (V, 15), Arculf was shipwrecked on the shore of Iona, Scotland on his return ...

) *(1895):
Extracts from Aristeas, Hecatæus, Origen, and other early writers
' **alt.: (1895):
Extracts from Aristeas, Hecatæus, Origen, and other early writers
' *(1896): Fetellus (ca. A.D. 1130),
Translated and Annotated by Rev. James Rose Macpherson
' *(1896): *(1896): *(1896):
The Life of Saladin
' by Beha Ed-Din (AD 1137–1193) *(1896):
History of Jerusalem
' by Jacques de Vitry, 1180 * (1896):
A Description of the Holy Land
' by

Burchard of Mount Sion Burchard of Mount Sion (, also misnamed ''Brocard'' or ''Bocard''; fl. late 13th century), was a German priest, Dominican friar, pilgrim and author probably from Magdeburg in northern Germany, who travelled to the Middle East at the end of the 13t ...

. * (1897):
Vol III, The Pilgrimage of Arculfus (1889)
' The Hodoeporicon of St. Willibald. Description of Syria and Palestine, by

. The Itinerary of Bernhard the Wise. *(1897):
Vol IV A Journey through Syria and Palestine. (1888)
' By Nasir-I-Khusrau. The Pilgrimage of Saewulf to Jerusalem. The Pilgrimage of the Russian

abbot Daniel Daniel the Traveller, known also as Daniel the Pilgrim (russian: Даниил Паломник), Daniel of Kiev, or Abbot Daniel, was the first travel writer from the Kievan Rus.Anzovin, p. 201, item 3391: "The first Russian travel-writer was Da ...

. * (1897):
Vol VI, Anonymous Pilgrims. (1894)
' The City of Jerusalem and

Ernoul Ernoul was a squire of Balian of Ibelin who wrote an eyewitness account of the fall of Jerusalem in 1187. This was later incorporated into an Old French history of Crusader Palestine now known as the ''Chronicle of Ernoul and Bernard the Treasurer ...

's account of Palestine. The Guide Book to Palestine. Description of the Holy Land, by John Poloner. *(1897):
General Index to the Library of Palestine Pilgrims' Text Society
'

References

External links

WorldCat listing of the original edition
{{Authority control Medieval literature Medievalists 1884 establishments in the United Kingdom 1896 disestablishments Holy Land travellers Text publication societies

Publications

References

Further reading

See also

External links