Shared Threshold

© Zeev Kurlianchick - Image from the Shared Threshold photography project © Zeev Kurlianchick - The procession moves toward the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, gathering tension. © Zeev Kurlianchick - He meets the Patriarch to hand over the ladder used to open the lock, a ritual repeated for centuries. View all images ↓
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Jerusalem. The key to the Holy Sepulchre is passed between communities before the doors open. The series reveals a fragile archipelago, where ritual becomes a shared threshold of tension and coexistence.

Jerusalem. The key to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre is passed between communities before the doors open.

As it has been for centuries, this ritual precedes the Holy Fire ceremony and reveals a precise system of roles and access that helps prevent conflict between communities.

The Armenian Patriarch carries the key through the Old City in a ceremonial procession, holding it on display before handing it to a neutral custodian, who unlocks the doors. He then enters first, according to an established order shaped by the Status Quo.

Through ritual, access is regulated, roles are defined, and tension is contained.

In this dense and contested space, separate communities stand side by side, like islands in an archipelago — not merging, but held together by a system of rules, roles, and rituals that keeps the peace.

This project is a candidate for PhMuseum Days 2026 Photography Festival Open Call

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© Zeev Kurlianchick - Image from the Shared Threshold photography project
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As it has been for centuries, the key is carried through the Old City in a ceremonial procession for the Holy Fire at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre.

© Zeev Kurlianchick - The procession moves toward the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, gathering tension.
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The procession moves toward the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, gathering tension.

© Zeev Kurlianchick - He meets the Patriarch to hand over the ladder used to open the lock, a ritual repeated for centuries.
i

He meets the Patriarch to hand over the ladder used to open the lock, a ritual repeated for centuries.

© Zeev Kurlianchick - The Armenian Patriarch hands the key to a neutral custodian, a practice meant to prevent conflict between communities.
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The Armenian Patriarch hands the key to a neutral custodian, a practice meant to prevent conflict between communities.

© Zeev Kurlianchick - A key ritual: the key allows separate communities to coexist like islands in an archipelago.
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A key ritual: the key allows separate communities to coexist like islands in an archipelago.

© Zeev Kurlianchick - On this day, a neutral custodian unlocks the doors, as every year for centuries.
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On this day, a neutral custodian unlocks the doors, as every year for centuries.

© Zeev Kurlianchick - The doors open to allow the Armenian Patriarch to enter first.
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The doors open to allow the Armenian Patriarch to enter first.

© Zeev Kurlianchick - Through ritual, separate communities stand side by side amid the crowd, like islands in an archipelago, keeping the peace.
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Through ritual, separate communities stand side by side amid the crowd, like islands in an archipelago, keeping the peace.