Saint Joseph's Church (Israel) - Catholic Stock Photo

St. Joseph's Church is a Franciscan Roman Catholic church in the Old City of Nazareth. Early traditions identified this site of the church as the place of the carpenter workshop of the Holy family. It was built in 1914 by the Franciscans over the remains of much older churches. It is located close to the Church of the Annunciation. The place was first converted to a worship place in the Byzantine period. In the 12th century A.D., a church was built over the site of the Byzantine church.  It was destroyed by the Arabs (1263 A.D.). During the Ottoman period the ruins were acquired by the Franciscans in 1745, and the first chapel was built in 1754.