The Jerusalem Municipality ( he, עיריית ירושלים; Iriyat yerushalayim), the seat of the

Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...

i municipal administration, consists of a number of buildings located on

Jaffa Road Jaffa Road ( he, רחוב יפו, Rehov Yaffo; ar, شارع يافا) is one of the longest and oldest major streets in Jerusalem. It crosses the city from east to west, from the Old City walls to downtown Jerusalem, the western portal of Jer ...

in 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 ...

History

British Mandate town hall (1930)

Jerusalem's

old town hall Old or OLD may refer to: Places * Old, Baranya, Hungary * Old, Northamptonshire, England *Old Street station, a railway and tube station in London (station code OLD) *OLD, IATA code for Old Town Municipal Airport and Seaplane Base, Old Town, ...

was built in 1930, during the British Mandate. The construction was financed by

Barclays Bank Barclays () is a British multinational universal bank, headquartered in London, England. Barclays operates as two divisions, Barclays UK and Barclays International, supported by a service company, Barclays Execution Services. Barclays traces ...

, whose offices were located in the rounded section of the building facing the Old City walls. The building was designed by British architect

Clifford Holliday Albert Clifford Holliday (1897–1960) M. Arch, Dip. C.D., F.R.I.B.A., M.T.P., was a British architect and town planner who worked in several places across the British Empire, including Mandatory Palestine, Ceylon and Gibraltar, as well as in ...

. Stained glass windows designed by Israeli artist Avigdor Arikha were installed in the City Council Chamber in 1972.

Israeli municipality compound (1990s)

The new complex of the Jerusalem municipality was built in the 1990s in

Safra Square Safra or SAFRA may refer to: People (surname) * Alberto J. Safra (born 1979/1980), Brazilian banker *Edmond Safra (1932–1999), Syrian-Brazilian banker *Jacob Safra (1891–1963), Syrian banker *Jacqui Safra (born 1948), Swiss investor and actor ...

. Offices were previously located in 32 different buildings around the city. As the site is at the historic centre of the city, various measures were taken to meet the practical needs of the town hall without damaging the architectural and historical character of the district. A number of historical buildings were renovated and two modern buildings were constructed.

Municipal seal

Shortly after the founding of

, then-mayor

Gershon Agron Gershon Harry Agron ( he, גרשון אגרון, Gershon ʾAgron, ; russian: Гершон Агрон; , yi, גרשון אגראנסקי; 1 November 1959) was a Russian-born American-Israeli newspaper editor, politician, and the mayor of West Jer ...

West Jerusalem West Jerusalem or Western Jerusalem (, ; , ) refers to the section of Jerusalem that was controlled by Israel at the end of the 1948 Arab–Israeli War. As the city was divided by the Green Line (Israel's erstwhile border, established by t ...

initiated a design contest among local graphic designers for a municipal seal. The winning design was presented by a team led by typographer and artist

Eliyahu Koren Eliyahu Koren (Hebrew: אליהו קורן; July 23, 1907 — February 17, 2001) was a master typographer and graphic artist. After studying in Nuremberg, he immigrated to Mandatory Palestine in 1933. He served as head of the graphics department ...

.Jeremy Stolow
''Orthodox by Design: Judaism, Print Politics, and the ArtScroll Revolution''
University of California Press, 2010. p.215 quote= noted for the creation of numerous prominent Israeli symbols, including the seal of the city of Jerusalem and Israel’s first postage stamp. The seal's design consists of a shield with the

Lion of Judah The Lion of Judah ( he, אריה יהודה, ) is a Jewish national and cultural symbol, traditionally regarded as the symbol of the tribe of Judah. The association between the Judahites and the lion can first be found in the blessing given by ...

flanked on either side by

olive branch The olive branch is a symbol of peace and victory associated with customs of ancient Greece and connected with supplication to gods and persons in power. It is found in most cultures of the Mediterranean basin and became associated with peace ...

es and superimposed on a stylized background representing the

Western Wall The Western Wall ( he, הַכּוֹתֶל הַמַּעֲרָבִי, HaKotel HaMa'aravi, the western wall, often shortened to the Kotel or Kosel), known in the West as the Wailing Wall, and in Islam as the Buraq Wall (Arabic: حَائِط � ...

. Above the main display is the

Hebrew Hebrew (; ; ) is a Northwest Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Historically, it is one of the spoken languages of the Israelites and their longest-surviving descendants, the Jews and Samaritans. It was largely preserved ...

-language word for

(, ').

References

External links