Fig. 1

The site of the Tomb of Lazarus. a Walls of the crusaders’ monastery in the foreground, and view of Mosque of al-Uzair (left) and the modern Church of Saint Lazarus (right) in the background. b Lower “Plaza,” with the pillars of the Byzantine and Crusaders’ antique churches in the foreground, and the façade of the modern church in the left background. c Walls of the Crusaders’ Monastery, with carved capitals in the foreground. d Lithobiontic community including chlorolichens, bryophytes, and a black cyanobacterial biofilm on blocks of the pillars of the antique church. e Upper surface of a carved capital of the Crusaders’ Monastery, covered by lichens (mostly orange thalli of Variospora aurantia) partially hidden by dust deposits, but made visible by wetting their thalli (left side). f Black fungi, in part overgrowing chlorolichens, on the façade of the modern church (the 50 × 50 cm square grid used for relevés is visible on the vertical surface)