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[[Image:Church of Bir YaJacob'qubs Well.JPGjpg|thumb|right|200px|The Church of Jacob's Well in , within the monastery complex of Jacob' well. Nablus, 2008.]]
'''Jacob's Well''' also commonly known as '''Jacob's fountain''' and '''Well of Sychar''' (Arabic: <big>بئر يعقوب</big>, (''Bir Ya'qub'' or ''Bir Ya'kub''); Greek: Φρέαρ του Ιακώβ) is a deep well hewn of solid rock that has been associated in religious tradition with Jacob for roughly two millennia. It is situated a short distance from the [[w:Syro-Palestinian archaeology|archaeological]] site of ''Tell Balata'', which is thought to be the site of biblical [[w:Shechem|Shechem]].<ref name=Hornep50>Horne, 1856, pp. 50-51/</ref> The well currently lies within the complex of the [[Greek Orthodox]] [[monastery]] of the same name, in the city of [[w:Nablus|Nablus]] in the West Bank.<ref name=Bromileyp955>Bromiley, 1982, p. 955.</ref><ref name=Hastingsp535>Hastings and Driver, 2004, pp. 535-537.</ref>
==Religious significance==
[[Judaism|Jewish]], Samaritan, Christian, and [[Islam|Muslim]] traditions all associate the well with Jacob.<ref name=Bromileyp955/> The well is not specifically mentioned in the [[Old Testament]]. The [[Book of Genesis]] (33:18f) states that when Jacob returned to Shechem from [[w:Paddan-aram|Paddan-aram]], he camped "before" the city and bought the land on which he pitched his tent. Biblical scholars contend that plot of land is the same one upon which Jacob's Well was constructed.<ref name=Bromileyp955/><ref name=Hastingsp535/>
In 1860, the site was obtained by the [[Church of Jerusalem|Greek Orthodox Patriarchate]] and a new church was constructed shortly thereafter. An earthquake in 1927 in Palestine destroyed that building.<ref name=Semplici/>
[[Image:Fresco on the dome Dome of the church of Bir YaJacob'qubs Well.JPGjpg|thumb|right|200px|The dome of the Church of Jacob's Well as photographed in 2008.]]
===Modern era===
Since the [[w:Israeli occupation of the West Bank|Israeli occupation of the West Bank]], Jacob's Well has been a site of contention between Christians and Jews.<ref name=Semplici/> In November 1979, a week after a [[w:Zionism|Zionist]] group came to the monastery claiming it as a Jewish holy place and demanding that all religious iconography be removed, the custodian of the well, [[Archimandrite]] Philoumenos, was found hatcheted to death inside the crypt housing the well. Though the two events are thought to be related, no one was ever arrested for the murder.<ref>Luke Baker. "[http://www.jerusalemites.org/News%20In%20English/english/2006/September/10.htm By Luke Baker]". Jerusalemites.org, Originally published by Reuters. Retrieved 2008-12-07.</ref><ref name=Semplici/>
