Dayro d'Mor Shumrin

Dayro d'Mor Shumrin

The Monastery of Shumrin is an abandoned monastery located near Nisibin, with a history intertwined with two brothers, Samuel of Eshtin and his younger brother, Shomir. Samuel and Shomir are said to have built a monastery just three miles from their village. This monastery, which may have been named after the mountain Amrin or Umrin or Samuel's brother, Shomir, has a history that goes back to at least the 4th century.

Samuel of Eshtin, known for founding the famous Mor Gabriel Monastery in 397, is said to have built the Shumrin monastery first with his brother. Seven years later, the monastery had a community of thirty monks, and Samuel was ordained a priest by Bishop Karpos of Sawro (Savur). When Bishop Karpos was killed during a Persian raid, the monastery was burned down. Samuel retrieved his master’s body, rebuilt the monastery, and then took a relic of Karpos, leaving the Persian territory. He came to Qartmin village, where he founded the Mor Gabriel Monastery.

The monastery's ruins include an unusually large hall-type church, a common feature in monastic structures in the Persian lands across the border. The church contains large ashlar blocks, a type of stone-cutting typical of late antique structures in the region. However, it is difficult to definitively date these blocks back to the 4th century when Samuel lived. The extensive remains surrounding the church suggest that the site was once a large, and possibly fortified, settlement rather than a simple monastery. This fits with the description in the saint's life, which mentions a deserted place that was once occupied. 

Status: Abandoned in ruins