Elzear Horn (Latin: Elzearius; 1690 or 1691–28 November 1744) was a German Catholic friar and missionary of the Franciscan Order who is best known for his travelogues of Palestine.
[1] Horn's writings, particularly Ichnographiæ locorum et monumentorum vete-rum Terræ Sanctæ, accurate delineatæ et descriptæ, are an extensive source of information about the monuments, particularly churches, and life in 18th-century Jerusalem.
[1] At this time, various Christian denominations vied for power in Muslim-ruled Jerusalem, including the Greek Orthodox, Roman Catholics, and Armenians.
[2] Yet Horn also states that the Franciscan friars treated sick people regardless of religious affiliation, and he himself is known to have employed a Jewish physician from Italy.
[4] In 1738 Horn travelled to the province of Thuringia but soon returned to the Holy Land, where he spent the rest of his life.