Manuscript, description of a journey to the tomb of Aharon HaCohen in Hor HaHar (near Petra in South Jordan), in Cheshvan 1851. [Jerusalem, 19th century].
The writer copies the testimony of "a Torah scholar with fear of Heaven who studies Torah and serves G-d night and day and fasts all his life… Most of the summer he stays in Meron in the Beit Midrash of Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai…". This Torah scholar, who dwelled in Jerusalem in the "courtyard of the outstanding rabbi… the chairman of the Austrich Kollel", describes a journey undertaken with his cousin in 1851 to the tomb of Aharon HaCohen in Hor HaHar in Petra (Jordan). Many amazing (and imaginary) stories appear in his description of this journey [some are influenced by other descriptions of similar journeys to Aharon HaCohen's tomb, see attached material]. At the beginning of his travels, he passed through Hebron and heard that they have a tradition from early sources that "One hundred and twenty years or more have passed since a Jew have visited this holy place…". The Hebron sages told him of a quorum of Chassidim who went to pray at the gravesite of Aharon following a "harsh decree in the city of Hebron". There they came upon a wondrous event at the end of which Eliyahu HaNavi revealed himself and told them that they merited a great miracle. In spite of the warnings of the Hebron sages, the writer and his cousin continued their travels and he testifies to a detailed description of the dangerous journey. After praying at the tomb of Aharon HaCohen, Arab guides offered to show them the graves of the Jewish nation who left Egypt and died in the desert. The guides took them to the place and they saw giant bodies: "From afar, we saw giant people lying in their clothing… We saw their ankles one floor from the ground, about six cubits…".
[1] Leaf, 29 cm, written on both sides. Fair-poor condition, tears with omissions, restored with tape.