Gibran Museum

Gibran Khalil Gibran, who wrote The Prophet, bought this seventh-century hermitage above his home town of Bcharre and asked to be buried in it. He died in New York in 1931 and his body was brought back the following year. The museum holds around four hundred of his paintings and drawings, which are far less known than his writing and are worth the visit on their own, along with his manuscripts, furniture and library, and the rock-cut chamber where his coffin lies.

What you actually see

• The paintings - around four hundred works, the largest collection anywhere.
• The tomb chamber - the rock-cut cell where Gibran is buried.
• The personal effects - his furniture, library and belongings from New York.
• The setting - the hermitage on the slope above the Qadisha valley.

When to go

May to October is the comfortable season; winter brings heavy snow to Bcharre. Mornings are quietest. The museum closes on Mondays and keeps shorter winter hours.

Honest expectations

Photography inside is not permitted. The drive up from the coast is long, over two hours from Beirut. The display is dense and lighting is dim in parts of the rock-cut rooms.

Nearby

The Qadisha valley is below, and Qornet es Sawda is above the town.