time of Qorlos Elias al-Mosuli who died in 1911. However, an inscription dating 16th century mentions the name of the Church of the Virgin which contradicts the date of 1890 and assumes that this church was standing at that time. The gate and part of the church were destroyed by ISIS sometime between August 2014 and October 2016. Al-Sayida Church The complete demolition of Al-Sayida Church came in 1934 as its bricks were used to build the new Mar Giwargis Church. Ber Nagara Monastery This monastery is named after Yohanan bit Nagara (St John Bar Nagaré) meaning "Yohanan of the Carpenters" since all his family were working as carpenters. It's believed that he used to worship pagans, and after converting to Christianity he was killed by his father and was buried in the village of Ba Agre. When this village was destroyed in 1282, his grave which was visited heavily by the locals was destroyed with it. That forced Maphrian Gregarious bin al-Ebry to build a temple for the martyr Yohanan in Bartella and was completed in 1285. On November 23, 1285, the remains of St. Yohanan, monks from Syria, and the 40 martyrs killed by the Persians were moved and reburied in this temple. Unfortunately, this monastery was destroyed in 1653 and again the remains were moved to St. Shmony church. Currently, all what exist of this monastery is a small room built recently as a reminder to its existence. The Monastery of the Forty Martyrs This monastery is still frequented by parishioners, while a part of it is demolished. It dates back to 1269. Mar Youhanna Monastery This monastery is ancient without a known date of construction. It sits on the side of the main road north of Bartella. Mar Daniel Monastery Mar Daniel is on a small hill near Bartella. It is named after Mar Daniel the Hermit, who ventured to Nineveh from Diyar Bakir with Mar Mattai in the year 363. This monastery is also known locally as the "Monastery of the Beetles" due to the large numbers of small beetles that appeared during the three-day festival on October 20. Forty minutes by foot from the "upper monastery" is a "lower monastery", which is commonly where the monks lived. Arab historians have called it al-Khalidi, al-Shabishti and Yaqut. Population In early August 2014, Bartella was overrun by ISIL Islamic extremists. The Christian population of the town