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The Foundation for the Development of the Lands Adjacent to the Baptism Site has announced the victory of Níall McLaughlin Architects in the international competition for the design of the new Museum of Jesus’ Baptism, dedicated to the history and significance of baptism in the Christian tradition, in Betania, Jordan.
The six-month competition, organized by Malcolm Reading Consultants, brought together a shortlist of seven international practices and an Advisory Panel composed of leading experts in architecture, landscape, museums, and cultural heritage.
Níall McLaughlin Architects’ winning proposal impressed the Foundation and the Advisory Panel with its ability to construct a layered and immersive narrative centered on the power of baptism as an experience of spiritual renewal and new life. In scale and form, the proposal responded to the brief’s request for a museum that would “inspire wonder and humility in visitors and respond sensitively to the site.”
The concept presents the new museum as an east-west journey structured around an allegorical sequence: beginning in an arid desert garden, visitors encounter a water-filled fissure symbolizing the River Jordan, before re-emerging into the light in a fertile, paradisiacal garden. Accordingly, the eastern entrance and western exit will face each other on opposite sides of a public square. Between them, an open terraced landscape will rise up to the roof, from which visitors will be able to look out across the Jordan River Valley and the pilgrimage route toward the Baptism Site.
The design challenge was to create a building capable of mediating between a landscape rich in meaning and sacred narratives, while also employing local labor, skills, and resources to achieve a socially responsible and low-carbon outcome.
The architects devoted particular attention to Jordanian vernacular architecture, using local stone and rammed-earth techniques to shape a museum that sits discreetly within the landscape, demonstrating sensitivity to its context and the adjacent UNESCO site. The landscape design, led by Kim Wilkie Landscape, allows the desert environment to gently envelop the museum, filling its gardens with fragrant native species. Meanwhile, the exhibition design by Nissen Richards Studio employs variations of light, sound, and materials to create an immersive and engaging atmosphere that expresses the museum’s narrative arc: “desert, water, and testimony.”
Located on a site where multiple traditions have coexisted for millennia, the new museum will focus on Christianity, while remaining welcoming and inclusive toward all faiths. It will offer a space for reflection and learning and - depending on each individual’s experience - will prepare visitors for a profound spiritual connection.
The Museum of Jesus’ Baptism will be the flagship project within the broader masterplan of the Baptism Development Zone (BDZ), which will provide a range of experiences for pilgrims, researchers, and visitors from around the world. Based on current trends and projected growth, the museum is expected to welcome between 400,000 and 450,000 visitors annually.
Scheduled to open in 2030, marking the bimillenary of Christ’s baptism, the museum will become a spiritual and cultural landmark of global significance. The Foundation will work closely with Níall McLaughlin Architects to develop the project, in coordination with UNESCO and in collaboration with local communities and other stakeholders.
All images courtesy of Níall McLaughlin Architects
