BURCHARD (BROKARD) of MOUNT SION (of Saxony). — Traveller in the Holy Land, author of a famous *Descriptio Terrae Sanctae*, born at Barby in Magdeburg around 1220. Some manuscripts and several editions of the work assign him to the Order of Preachers, which is very likely. From the single date (1283) and from some allusions found in the book, it appears that B. resided in Palestine for about ten years, during which he had the opportunity to repeatedly visit the holy places.
His account is of great historical value for the abundance of information and details that, as an eyewitness, he provides about the Near East, especially regarding biblical sites, and on the customs and manners of the East. Knowledgeable in the local language, B. gathered his information directly from Christians and Muslims, sifting it with diligence and impartiality, without sparing praise for the Eastern-rite Christians, nor criticism of those in the West, who often by their conduct proved themselves unworthy to dwell in the holy places.
Thus, in B.’s work we have a faithful picture of the state of the Holy Land during the final years of the Crusaders’ occupation. Like the so-called *Ancient Compendium* during the 11th and 12th centuries, so the *Descriptio Terrae Sanctae* remained in vogue until the 16th century, often plundered by unscrupulous narrators who took from B. information about the holy places without ever having seen or visited them, particularly regarding Galilee.