The Qadisha val­ley is one of the most impor­tant ear­ly Chris­t­ian monas­tic set­tle­ments in the world. Its monas­ter­ies, many of which are of a great age, stand in dra­mat­ic posi­tions in a rugged land­scape. Near­by are the remains of the great for­est of cedars of Lebanon, high­ly prized in antiq­ui­ty for the con­struc­tion of great reli­gious build­ings.