Jouar El-Matn is a village in
Lebanon
Lebanon, officially the Republic of Lebanon, is a country in the Levant region of West Asia. Situated at the crossroads of the Mediterranean Basin and the Arabian Peninsula, it is bordered by Syria to the north and east, Israel to the south ...
.
It is located between Chrine, Chouweir and
Khenchara, on the main road to Bteghrine Baskinta, and is north east of
Beirut
Beirut ( ; ) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Lebanon. , Greater Beirut has a population of 2.5 million, just under half of Lebanon's population, which makes it the List of largest cities in the Levant region by populatio ...
. Covering an area of about , this village is known for its traditional red-roofed brick houses.
In the town is the 18th-century church of
Saint Nicolas, noted for its
iconostasis
In Eastern Christianity, an iconostasis () is a wall of icons and religious paintings, separating the nave from the sanctuary in a Church (building), church. ''Iconostasis'' also refers to a portable icon stand that can be placed anywhere withi ...
of wood. In addition to its collection of icons, the monastery is the site of the Middle East's first Arabic
printing press
A printing press is a mechanical device for applying pressure to an inked surface resting upon a printing, print medium (such as paper or cloth), thereby transferring the ink. It marked a dramatic improvement on earlier printing methods in whi ...
, which first appeared in 1734. A five-room museum displays the old presses and some 450 related objects and pieces of equipment. The oldest model displayed was built between 1726 and 1733 by Abdallah el-Zakhir from
Aleppo
Aleppo is a city in Syria, which serves as the capital of the Aleppo Governorate, the most populous Governorates of Syria, governorate of Syria. With an estimated population of 2,098,000 residents it is Syria's largest city by urban area, and ...
.
References
Populated places in Matn District
Melkite Christian communities in Lebanon
{{MelkiteGreekCatholic-stub