We enjoyed a few quiet moments in St George’s Anglican Cathedral, found the garden tomb, visited the Rockefeller Archeological Museum and then walked along the top of the old city wall from the Damascus Gate (pictured) to the Jaffa Gate.
The garden tomb is a refreshing alternative to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. It gave us an idea of what the tomb would have looked like at the time of Jesus death and resurrection without the trappings of churches built, destroyed and restored over 1,700 years. It was both a moving and a relaxing way to start a free day.
In the Museum there were artefacts, statues and other items retrieved from acheological sites in Israel dating from as old as 5,000 years. There were even older human remains. One item that stood out was a horse’s bit from 2,000 BC.
Jewish, Christian and Muslim items where displayed. A major exhibit was of two marble lintels retrieved from the Church of the Holy Sepulchre which were erected by the Crusaders in 1149 and moved to the Museum in the 1930’s after a fire.
Some items where quite intricate and complex whereas others were simpler and almost child-like and this didn’t seem to have much relationship to the item’s age.
In the process of finding the entrance to the ramparts and the top of the wall we found ourselves in a dead end – fortunately for us four young brothers between the ages of 5 and 11 had enough English to show us the way - for a price! There was much hilarity in this little episode.
From the wall we had quite a good view of both the old and the new city, the skyline, the crowds shopping in the narrow streets and homes in the old city. In our imagination we stood in the battlements and defended the city from various attackers.
The garden tomb is a refreshing alternative to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. It gave us an idea of what the tomb would have looked like at the time of Jesus death and resurrection without the trappings of churches built, destroyed and restored over 1,700 years. It was both a moving and a relaxing way to start a free day.
In the Museum there were artefacts, statues and other items retrieved from acheological sites in Israel dating from as old as 5,000 years. There were even older human remains. One item that stood out was a horse’s bit from 2,000 BC.
Jewish, Christian and Muslim items where displayed. A major exhibit was of two marble lintels retrieved from the Church of the Holy Sepulchre which were erected by the Crusaders in 1149 and moved to the Museum in the 1930’s after a fire.
Some items where quite intricate and complex whereas others were simpler and almost child-like and this didn’t seem to have much relationship to the item’s age.
In the process of finding the entrance to the ramparts and the top of the wall we found ourselves in a dead end – fortunately for us four young brothers between the ages of 5 and 11 had enough English to show us the way - for a price! There was much hilarity in this little episode.
From the wall we had quite a good view of both the old and the new city, the skyline, the crowds shopping in the narrow streets and homes in the old city. In our imagination we stood in the battlements and defended the city from various attackers.
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