2. Gates of the Old City
Jaffa Gate
So named because the road
leading from it goes to the
port city of Jaffa (Joppa),
this gate is the only one on
the western side of the Old
City.
A low part of the city wall
was torn down and the
Crusader moat of the
Citadel filled in 1898 for the
visit of the German Kaiser
Wilhelm II. This gate was
also the famous scene of the
English General Allenby's
entrance in 1917.
Damascus GateCalled
the Shechem Gate by the
Jews, the Arabs remember
this gate as the "Gate of
the Column" because of
the tall pillar that stood in
this gate's plaza during the
Roman and Byzantine
period.
Kenyon's excavations
underneath this Turkish
gate found remnants of a
triple-arched gateway
dating to the time of the
3. Roman Emperor Hadrian
(135 A.D.).
St. Stephen's Gate
This gate is so named
because of the tradition
that the first Christian
martyr was stoned outside
this gate. However an
earlier tradition locates this
execution north of the city.
Lions' Gate is another
name for this eastern
entrance into the Old City
because of the four animals
that decorate the gate's
facade and reportedly
placed there because of a
dream of the builder
Suleiman.
4. Golden Gate
This sealed gate on the
eastern side was built
approximately 640
A.D. either by the last
of the Byzantine rulers
or by the first of the
Arab conquerers.
Tradition that equates
this gate with the one
mentioned in Ezekiel's
prophecy (ch. 44) is
dubious at best. It is
believed that an earlier
gate is preserved
underneath the current
gate.
Dung Gate
Different theories account
for the naming of this gate,
including one which puts it
back to Omar's conquest of
Jerusalem in 638 A.D.
when trash was cleared out
of the city through this
gate. It is also known as
the Gate of the Moors
because of the North
African immigrants who
lived in a neighborhood
next to the gate in the
16th century.
5. Zion Gate
Providing access to
Mt. Zion, this gate
bears the marks of
the Arab and Israeli
battles in the 1948
War of
Independence.
This gate is also
known as the Gate of
the Prophet David
because of the
traditional location of
David's tomb on Mt.
Zion. During the
medieval period it was
called the Gate of the
Jewish Quarter.
6. Mount of Olives
Also known as Olivet, Mount Olivet
From the
Kidron
Valley
Separated
from the
Eastern Hill
(the Temple
Mount and
the City of
David) by the
Kidron Valley,
the Mt. of
Olives has
always been
an important
feature in
Jerusalem's
landscape.
From the 3rd
millennium
B.C. until the
present, this
2900-foot hill
has served as
one of the
main burial
grounds for
the city. The
two-mile long
ridge has
three
summits each
of which has
a tower built
on it.
7. Dome of the Ascension
The Church of the Holy Ascension
was taken by Saladin in 1187 and
converted into a mosque and
remains such today. It contains
what is traditionally the last
footprint of Jesus on earth before
he ascended into heaven.
Two other places are claimed to
be the location of the ascension.
Constantine's mother Helena built
a church under the modern
Paternoster Church to
commemorate this event. A
much later tradition connects the
Russian Orthodox Church of the
Ascension to Christ's return into
heaven.
Scripture indicates that the Jesus
ascended into heaven in the
vicinity of Bethany. This village is
down the east slope of the Mt. of
Olives about 1.5 miles (2 km). In
this case, none of the traditional
locations for the ascension are
correct.
8. Garden of Gethsemane
Early Christian pilgrims
located the Garden of
Gethsemane at the bottom
of the slope of the Mt. of
Olives opposite the Temple
Mount. Byzantine, Crusader
and a modern church were
built successively on the site
where it is believed that
Jesus prayed to the Father
hours before his crucifixion.
The modern Church of All
Nations has a beautiful
mosaic on its facade.
Olives Trees in
Gethsemane
Adjacent to the Church of
All Nations is an ancient
olive garden. Olive trees
do not have rings and so
their age can not be
precisely determined, but
scholars estimate their
age to anywhere
between one and two
thousand years old. It is
unlikely that these trees
were here in the time of
Christ because of the
report that the Romans
cut down all the trees in
the area in their siege of
Jerusalem in 70 A.D.
9. Church of Mary
Magdalene
This Russian Orthodox church
was built in honor of the
czar's mother in 1888 and the
mosaic inside depicts the
legend of Mary Magdalene
presenting an egg to the
Emperor Tiberius. The egg
allegedly turned red when she
handed it to him, symbolic of
Jesus' blood. 28 nuns from all
over the world live in the
convent here today.
Dominus Flevit
Church
Built in 1955 to
commemorate the
Lord's weeping over
Jerusalem, Dominus
Flevit features a
beautiful view of the
city through its
distinct chapel
window. Excavations
during construction
of the church
uncovered a number
of ossuaries (bone
boxes) from the time
of Jesus with
numerous
inscriptions.
10. A view of the Jewish cemetery on the slopes of Mount of Olives, as
seen from the old city; On the top of the hill is the Seven Arches
hotel, formerly the Intercontinental hotel.
11. A closer view of the vast Jewish cemetery and the old city in the background
is seen below.
12. "And they came to a place which was named Gethsemane: and he saith to his
disciples, Sit ye here, while I shall pray".
In the north side of the church is a garden with several ancient and large
olive trees, perhaps the descendents from the original olive trees from the
times of Jesus.
Ancient Olive grove in Gethsemane - in the north side of Basilica of Agony
13. One of the malls in Jerusalem, Ben Yehuda Street has lots of shops ranging from
money changers to pharmacies to wineries. A great place to shop.
14. The Sea of Galilee, known to Israelis as Lake Kinneret, is the major source of fresh water for the
entire country. This is also the sea where Jesus calmed the storm and where Peter walked on
water.