Jerusalem

We are proud to introduce you to the sites of Jerusalem’s Jewish Quarter.

The Jewish Quarter, in the Old City of Jerusalem, encompasses many holy and historic sites. It includes various starting points for trips around Jerusalem, from family tours to guided educational tours.   Among the Old City alleyways of Jerusalem’s Jewish Quarter, you will find well-known and brand new excursions, restaurants and many other surprises that will turn your day touring through Jerusalem into an exciting and enjoyable experience.

All of these sites are within an accessible distance inside the Old City and the Jewish Quarter, which makes a tour around the Jewish Quarter both varied and easily planned and implemented.

 

 

Sites in the Jewish Quarter are all  covered and are suitable for year-round visits during all types of weather.

 

The Synagogue was first built in the year 1700 by Rabbi Yehuda the Hasid. It was destroyed by a fire in 1720 and was burned down to its foundations. It was rebuilt in 1864 and turned into a symbol the renewed settlement (Yishuv) for the Land of Israel.

The synagogue was once again destroyed in 1948 by Jordanians who were well-aware of the building’s significance to Jerusalem’s Jewish population. By destroying it, they tried to indicate that there would never again be a Jewish presence in the city.

 

 

In 1973, after the Jewish Quarter was returned to the State of Israel, a temporary victory arch was built above the synagogue’s ruins, and became a symbol of revived settlement in the Jewish Quarter.

Following reconstruction and building projects assembled since 2006, the building of the “Hurva” Synagogue was completed on Erev Rosh Hodesh Nissan 5770 (March 15, 2010).

Synagogue tours are led on Sunday through Friday, and by appointment only.

Tours are suited to groups, individuals and families. The tour length is one hour.

 

 

Light and Sound Show

“The Burnt House” is a magnificent building discovered during excavations in the “Upper City.” It won its name due to its unique position as witness to the destruction of Jerusalem in the 1st Century period, and the Romans’ burning of the synagogue.  

Researchers assume that the house was burnt when the Upper City was conquered by the Romans on the 8th of Elul in 70 AD, during the large fire that destroyed the Holy Temple.

The Burnt House is also called the Katros’ House, because an engraving with “(Da)ber Katros” (Katros says) was enscribed on one of the weights found in the house.  The Katros Family is mentioned in the Talmud, on a list of the four families of priests (Cohanim) that abused their status. In addition its witness of the Day of Destruction, the Burnt House is also evidence to the Jewish life conducted here until the day of the fire.

Today, the Katros House is found at a depth of 6 meters below the road surface. The renovated Jewish Quarter is built above it. The basement floor of the ancient house today serves as the basement of the new house built by the descendants of the Jews that lived there 2000 years ago, thus closing the circle.

A light and sound show is presented at the site, describing the lives and events of the Katros Family during the period of the Rebellion against the Romans. It tells the story of the house and, from the perspective of its residents’, tells about the final days of the City and the Temple.

The film is shown every 40 minutes, beginning at 9 am. It appears in Hebrew, English, Spanish and French.

 

 

The Herodian Quarter – The Wohl Museum of Archaeology

A tour of the city of above – in the depths of the earth….

This gorgeous neighborhood that was once filled with Jerusalem’s priests and wealthy residents during the Second Temple period was turned into an incredible museum and the largest covered archaeological site in Israel. The site includes the oldest engraving of the Temple’s Menorah, ash remnants from 70 AD when the city was razed to ashes, Jewish ritual baths (mikvahs), spectacular mosaic floors, wall mosaics, household items, holy tools and more.

Voices from the light – the Herodian Quarter’s Sound and Light Show takes place in the entrance hall of the Museum, inside the ancient residential houses. A bridge of lights and sounds come from the noisy streets of the past. The secrets hidden within the archaeological remains are brought back to life slowly and dramatically in the magical space, and with the help of rays of light “dancing” to unique background music.

The music and lights take the visitors on a sequential experience beginning at the stage when the neighborhood was exposed by archaeologists under the supervision of Professor Nachman Avigad in the 1970s, through to the daily life in the period of the Second Temple and through to its end – when the Roman battalions destroyed Jerusalem. It ends with the melody of HaTikvah. The show is approximately eight minutes in length.

The show plays for no additional cost, and by request at the site entrance.

 

The exhibit depicts the fall of the Jewish Quarter in 1948

A rare depiction of the final days of the Jewish Quarter during the War for Independence, as seen through documentary footage of John Philips includingthe destruction, pillage, surrender and fall to captivity. The exhibit contains a new film that brings the stories of fighters from 1948 to life….it is highly recommended that visitors combine the exhibit with an “On the Warriors Heels” tour.

 

 

This is the main road of the Roman Christian city, Aelia Capitolina. Today, it is filled with shops selling Judaica, art and souvenirs. The site has impressive archaeological remains, and a copy of the Madaba map in which you can see the Kardo clearly.

The Broad Wall

The Jerusalem Wall from the period of Hezkiyahu the King (the First Temple).

The site is open at all times. There is no entrance fee.

 

This amazing garden is located next to the Old City Walls. In the eastern section, there is an amphitheater and entertainment areas set above the remains of the domed Byzantine Pools; sports facilities are built in the western section. The two sections are built along the length of the Southern wall, creating wonderful areas that are shaded during most of the year. Relatively moderate stairways are found on either side of the garden; both entrances also include ramps for walking down with baby carriages as well.

 

This is a house in an alleyway on Nahamu Street near the Batei Machseh Square. It includes impressive remnants from the new Church of Mary, built in the middle of the Sixth Century AD by the Byzantine Czar Justinian. They were found in the basement of a house from the Jewish Quarter. No entrance fee. Entry with reservation only.

 

·         Mount Tzion parking lot – for tours beginning at Zion Gate

·         Karta Parking Lot – for tours beginning at Jaffa Gate.

·         Dung Gate (near the Kotel)

·         Mount Zion Parking lot (former bus parking lot)