Herod's Gate

Herod's Gate

Herod's Gate is a gate in the walls of the Old City of Jerusalem. Its elevation is 755 meters above sea level. It adjoins the Muslim Quarter, and is a short distance to the east of the Damascus Gate. In proximity to the gate is an Arab neighborhood called Bab-a-Sahairad, the same as the Arabic name for the gate.

This modest gate is one of the newest gates of Jerusalem. At the time when Suleiman the Magnificent built the wall, a small wicket gate was situated in front of the current gate, which was rarely opened. By 1875, in order to provide a passageway to the neighborhoods which were beginning to develop north of the Old City, the Ottomans made a breach in the northern part of the structure and closed the original opening.

The gate is named after Herod the Great. That is because in the Crusaders' period a church was built near the gate in the belief that at the time of the Crucifixion of Jesus, Herod Antipas's house was situated at that spot. In its place today stands the church of Dir Al Ads.

In 1998 and during several subsequent excavation seasons (the latest in 2004), archaeologists of the Israel Antiquities Authority dug in the eastern area of Herod's Gate. The digging focused on three separate areas adjacent to the wall, in which nine archeological layers were discovered – covering from the Iron age up through the Turkish period. Among the most significant discoveries were structures from the period of the Second Temple, a complete segment of the Byzantine-Roman wall, and remnants of massive construction underneath the wall. These remnants were identified as portions of a fortification from the ancient Muslim period and from the Middle Ages. These discoveries point out the importance which the rulers of the city gave to the fortification of one of its most sensitive places—the northern wall of Jerusalem—as historical accounts indicate that circa 1099 the Crusader soldiers in the command of Godfrey of Bouillon entered the city through a breach located in proximity to the present Herod's Gate.


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем сделать НИР

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Herod's Temple — in Jerusalem was a massive expansion of the Temple Mount and construction of a completely new and much larger Jewish Temple by King Herod the Great around 19 BCE. Although the Second Temple was completely removed and a new third temple was built… …   Wikipedia

  • Herod the Great — (?73–4 BC)    King of Judea 37–4 BC. On the factual record, Herod was one of the ablest and most successful rulers in Jewish history. As a reliable and stable Roman clientstate in a sensitive border region, Judea under Herod was able to expand… …   Who’s Who in Jewish History after the period of the Old Testament

  • Damascus Gate — For the restaurant, see Bawabet Dimashq. Damascus Gate Damascus Gate, 2005 …   Wikipedia

  • New Gate — New Gate, Old City of Jerusalem …   Wikipedia

  • Dung Gate — Dung Gate …   Wikipedia

  • NICANOR'S GATE — NICANOR S GATE, one of the gates leading to the Temple courtyard during the period of the Second Temple. According to the Mishnah, There were seven gates in the Temple courtyard.… In the east there was the gate of Nicanor, which had two rooms… …   Encyclopedia of Judaism

  • Beautiful Gate — Peter and John healed a lame beggar at the Beautiful Gate of Herod s Temple (Acts 3:2), which was probably the bronze gate on the eastern side known as the Gate of Nicanor; it led from the Court of the Gentiles to the Court of the Women …   Dictionary of the Bible

  • JERUSALEM — The entry is arranged according to the following outline: history name protohistory the bronze age david and first temple period second temple period the roman period byzantine jerusalem arab period crusader period mamluk period …   Encyclopedia of Judaism

  • Jerusalem during the Crusader period — The Crusader period in the history of Jerusalem began with the conquest of the city by the Crusader army in 1099, during the First Crusade, as it is now known, Jerusalem became the capital of the kingdom for the crusading Christians, these events …   Wikipedia

  • Old City (Jerusalem) — The Old City of Jerusalem and its Walls[1] * UNESCO World Heritage Site …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
… Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”