FINLAND & PALESTINE Proceedings of a Joint Workshop

Yrjo August Wallin - Abd al-Wali (1.811.-1852)
During the 19 th century, Europeans
actively exploring the world on expeditions
were roaming in all parts
of the globe, especially in sub­
Saharan Africa and Pacific islands.
In this context, the very gifted Yrjo
August Wallin made several to the
Near East, then under Ottoman
control. His figure and face looked
as if he was born here, and he
spoke fluent, almost perfect Arabic.
He was the first westerner to
reach Mecca in 1845, at risk to his
life, and was rewarded for reports
of his travels by the Royal Geographic Society in 1850. During
his long travels, Wallin visited the Sinai and Palestine, describing
the monuments in Jerusalem in his reports.
Valter Juvel/us (1865-1922)
Juvelius was a very original and
gifted person who knew Biblical
Hebrew very well. He heard about
the expedition James Parker was
planning to Jerusalem and his intention
to dig in the Ophel hill.
Parker accepted the Finn to his
expedition because he was interested
in the "secret code" Juvelius
had found in the Book of Ezekiel.
The Finn said that the secret code
gives the location of the treasures
of the Jewish Temple that were
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