Maghdouche

Maghdouche sits in the hills above Sidon and the shrine of Our Lady of Mantara is built around a small cave that local tradition holds is where Mary waited while Jesus went down to preach in the city. The cave was rediscovered in the eighteenth century, and a tower topped by a bronze statue of the Virgin and Child was added in the twentieth, with a modern basilica beside it. The site is visited by both Christians and Muslims, and the terrace looks out over the coast and the sea.

History

Christian tradition says the Virgin Mary waited on the hilltop here while Jesus preached in Sidon. A tower raised in her honour fell in the earthquake of 550, and the Mantara cave was found again by chance by a shepherd in 1726, together with a Byzantine-style icon of the Virgin of the 7th or 8th century (Wikipedia, Maghdouché).

The main sights

• The cave chapel - the small rock chamber at the heart of the shrine.
• The tower - a stone tower topped with a bronze Virgin and Child.
• The basilica - the modern church built alongside the older shrine.
• The coast view - Sidon and the Mediterranean from the terrace.

When to go

March to November is comfortable. The feast of the Nativity of the Virgin in early September draws the largest crowds. Mornings are quietest and clearest for the view.

Before you go

Most of the built fabric is modern and the cave itself is small. Coach pilgrimages fill the site on weekends and feast days. Modest dress is expected.

Nearby

Sidon is below on the coast, and Jezzine is further inland.