Showing posts with label city. Show all posts
Showing posts with label city. Show all posts

Tuesday, March 18, 2014

Jerusalem-the holy city

Jerusalem the capital of Israel, is one of the oldest and most popular cities in the world. It is part of Palestine region and is considered a holy city for muslims, christian and jewish believers.
Among the most important tourist attractions in Jerusalem are included: 



Western Wall or Wailing Wall, with the age of about 2.000 years, located at the western edge of the Temple Mount, is one of the most important and visited tourist attractions in Jerusalem. The wall was built by King Herod in the temple expansion.
Western Wall became a place of pilgrimage for Hebrew mainly during the Ottoman occupation, the Jews lamenting the destruction of the Temple by the Romans - this is why it was called the Wailing Wall.  

The square in front of the Wall is divided by a fence - on the left side is a larger space for man and on the right side is a smaller space for women. Wall Access is free, but the head must be covered and the clothes must be appropriate behavior. 




Dome of the Rock is one of the first major achievements of Muslim architecture. The Arabs believe that here is where the Prophet Muhammad ascended to heaven on his fabulous horse, and then to return to the earth and to transcribe visions.
Dome of the Rock along with Al Aqsa Mosque, ranks third place among the holiest places for Muslims after Mecca and Medina. Golden dome, built in four years, is visible from far away, and the interior is coated with bright ceramics and mosaics and arabic calligraphy.
Dome of the Rock is not a mosque, but a temple that protects under its dome the rock, sacred to muslims, christians and hebrew. 

Al Aqsa Mosque was built less than 20 years after the Dome of the Rock. Al Aqsa Mosque was built by Caliph  Omaiad Walid I  on the place of justinian basilica, dedicated to Our Lady. Crusaders took mosque as the Temple of Solomon, and the Jews call it Solomon School. 
  Al-Aqsa Mosque has a silver dome, here being Islamic Museum, which has in its patrmony islamic artifacts and  relics.


Church of the Holy Sepulchre, the most important place of Christian pilgrimage, is a large building, which lies on the places where it is believed that Jesus was crucified and buried, and then rise again. 
Church of the Holy Sepulchre is not a church, but rather a gathering of churches, each with its chapel and altar . Since the time of Saladin, each orthodox christians, roman catholics and eastern orthodox christians  have a separate area - a church in this building. 

The Orthodox Church is the largest of these churches and is situated in the east of the Holy Sepulchre. Armenians have several smaller shrines and chapels in the building, and a larger church - St Helena and St Gregory. Roman Catholics have two chapels, the ethiopians have a chapel and a monastery located on the roof, and the Copts have a small altar behind the Holy Sepulchre.



Citadel of Jerusalem lies south of Jaffa Gate and is called the Tower of David. The building is not related to King David, being made ​​in order to protect the palace of Herod. The three towers of the citadel are called Phasael after his brother, Mariamne, after his wife, and Hippicus, after his friend. 

Today the Citadel in Jerusalem houses a museum about the history of the city, a folk museum and some interesting archaeological excavations.


Israel Old City is a district with an area of 0.9 square kilometers, bounded by walls, within the modern city of Israel, which began to develop after 1860. In the historical center there are several essential religious monuments : the Temple Mount, the Western Wall, the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, Dome of the Rock and Al Aqsa Mosque. 
According to tradition, Israel Old City is divided into four districts: Hebrew District, Christian Quarter, the Muslim Quarter and the Armenian Quarter. 
Israel Old City walls framing were built in the first half of the sixteenth century, by sultan Suleiman the Magnificent and have length 4 km. The walls were originally eight gates, seven preserving until today: Jaffa Gate, New Gate, Damascus Gate, Herod's Gate, St. Stephen's Gate, Golden Gate, Zion Gate and Garbage Gate.


Israel Museum is the most important place for art, archeology and anthropology in the country. Heritage museum includes paintings by famous artists (Rodin, Monet, van Gogh), and important archaeological discoveries. The piece de resistance of the museum is Shrine of the Book, a round shaped building that houses the Dead Sea Scrolls.


Garden of Gethsemane is the garden of Israel known as one of the places visited by Jesus Christ. Located near the Temple Mount, near Kidron Valley and the Mount of Olives, the garden is beautiful, full of greenery and attentive care. Cave of Gethsemane is in the garden of Gethsemane and is where the Savior came to pray. In the Garden of Gethsemane are four places of worship: Tomb of the Virgin, Cave of Gethsemane, catching stone Jesus (here is a Catholic Church) and the Church of the Holy Archdeacon Stefan.