19th Century Model of Jerusalem P8040027

Illes Relief at the Tower of David Museum 03

Illés Relief is a 1:500

scale model A scale model is a physical model which is geometrically similar to an object (known as the prototype). Scale models are generally smaller than large prototypes such as vehicles, buildings, or people; but may be larger than small prototypes ...

of the city of

Jerusalem Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...

, built for the Ottoman Pavilion at the

1873 Vienna World's Fair ) , building = Rotunda , area = 233 Ha , invent = , visitors = 7,255,000 , organized = , cnt = , org = , biz = , country = Austria-Hungary , city ...

. It was based on the Ordnance Survey of Jerusalem and additional research by

Conrad Schick Conrad Schick (1822–1901) was a German architect, archaeologist and Protestant missionary who settled in Jerusalem in the mid-nineteenth century.Perry & Yodim (2004) For many decades he was head of the "House of Industry" at the Christ Church, ...

History

The model is made from molten and beaten

zinc Zinc is a chemical element with the symbol Zn and atomic number 30. Zinc is a slightly brittle metal at room temperature and has a shiny-greyish appearance when oxidation is removed. It is the first element in group 12 (IIB) of the periodi ...

and is hand-painted. It was hand-crafted between 1864 and 1873 by Stefan Illés (, ), a Hungarian

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

who lived in the city making a living from book binding. The scale model reflects the city under the later stages of Ottoman rule. The model is considered the first scientific relief model of the city. After being displayed in the Ottoman Pavilion at the

1873 Vienna World's Fair ) , building = Rotunda , area = 233 Ha , invent = , visitors = 7,255,000 , organized = , cnt = , org = , biz = , country = Austria-Hungary , city ...

, the model was displayed around Europe and was purchased in 1878 by community leaders in

Geneva Geneva ( ; french: Genève ) frp, Genèva ; german: link=no, Genf ; it, Ginevra ; rm, Genevra is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland (after Zürich) and the most populous city of Romandy, the French-speaki ...

, where it was displayed in the Calvinium (the Salle de la Réformation) for 40 years. In 1920 the building in which the model was housed was leased by the

League of Nations The League of Nations (french: link=no, Société des Nations ) was the first worldwide intergovernmental organisation whose principal mission was to maintain world peace. It was founded on 10 January 1920 by the Paris Peace Conference that ...

. The model was moved and soon forgotten. In 1985, then graduate student Moti Yair of the

Hebrew University The Hebrew University of Jerusalem (HUJI; he, הַאוּנִיבֶרְסִיטָה הַעִבְרִית בִּירוּשָׁלַיִם) is a public research university based in Jerusalem, Israel. Co-founded by Albert Einstein and Dr. Chaim Weiz ...

came across a reference to it and tried to track down its location. With the help of some friends and a librarian from the Library of Geneva, the model was found in the library's attic. Shortly afterwards the model was offered to Jerusalem on permanent loan, and it is on exhibition at the

Tower of David Museum The Tower of David ( he, מגדל דוד, Migdál Davíd), also known as the Citadel ( ar, القلعة, al-Qala'a), is an ancient citadel located near the Jaffa Gate entrance to the Old City of Jerusalem. The citadel that stands today dates to ...

in Jerusalem.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Illes Relief Images of Jerusalem Old maps of Jerusalem Dioramas 19th-century maps and globes 1873 sculptures

History

See also

References