Jerusalem Walls National Park (also known as Jerusalem Walls-City of David National Park) is an Israeli national park located near the walls of the

Old City of Jerusalem The Old City of Jerusalem ( he, הָעִיר הָעַתִּיקָה, translit=ha-ir ha-atiqah; ar, البلدة القديمة, translit=al-Balda al-Qadimah; ) is a walled area in East Jerusalem. The Old City is traditionally divided into ...

. The national park was designed originally to surround the old city from all sides, to separate between the old city and the new constructions surrounding it while at the same time connecting between them, while preventing construction near the walls. The National park includes the site of the

City of David "City of David" is a biblical and religious epithet for the ancient city of Jerusalem. It may also refer to: * City of David (archaeological site) - an archaeological excavation associated with ancient Jerusalem * Jerusalem Walls National Park ...

on the southern part and connects to the Emek Tzurim National Park on the Northern-eastern part. Signpost of the City of David Visitor Center

The area of the national park includes the

Gates of the Old City of Jerusalem This article lists the gates of the Old City of Jerusalem. The gates are visible on most old maps of Jerusalem over the last 1,500 years. During different periods, the city walls followed different outlines and had a varying number of gates. Dur ...

Sites located in the National Park

* The

archaeological and tourism site. * The

promenade An esplanade or promenade is a long, open, level area, usually next to a river or large body of water, where people may walk. The historical definition of ''esplanade'' was a large, open, level area outside fortress or city walls to provide cle ...

of the

old city of Jerusalem The Old City of Jerusalem ( he, הָעִיר הָעַתִּיקָה, translit=ha-ir ha-atiqah; ar, البلدة القديمة, translit=al-Balda al-Qadimah; ) is a walled area in East Jerusalem. The Old City is traditionally divided into ...

. * The

Tower of David 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 t ...

- consists today of a museum for the History of Jerusalem and an antiquities site. *

Mount Zion Mount Zion ( he, הַר צִיּוֹן, ''Har Ṣīyyōn''; ar, جبل صهيون, ''Jabal Sahyoun'') is a hill in Jerusalem, located just outside the walls of the Old City (Jerusalem), Old City. The term Mount Zion has been used in the Hebrew ...

- the site includes

David's Tomb , alternate_name= Makam Nabi Daoud; Cenacle , image = Jerusalem Tomb of David BW 1.JPG , alt= , caption= , map_type = Old Jerusalem , map_alt = , map_caption = Shown () within Jerusalem , map_size= , location = Jerusalem , reg ...

, the Holocaust chamber and several holy sites for Christians, among them the Hagia Maria Sion Abbey, the Cathedral of St. James and more. * Cemeteries - Jewish, Christian Orthodox and Protestant ( Mount Zion Cemetery).

Archaeology

The national park consists important sites of archaeological excavations as well as the Ophel Archaeological Garden, which includes archaeological finds from the

Solomon's Temple Solomon's Temple, also known as the First Temple (, , ), was the Temple in Jerusalem between the 10th century BC and . According to the Hebrew Bible, it was commissioned by Solomon in the United Kingdom of Israel before being inherited by th ...

period until the

Ottoman period The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University) ...

. The eastern side of the garden includes a Muslim cemetery. West and south of the Old City is

Gehenna The Valley of Hinnom ( he, , lit=Valley of the son of Hinnom, translit=Gēʾ ḇen-Hīnnōm) is a historic valley surrounding Ancient Jerusalem, Ancient Jerusalem from the west and southwest. The valley is also known by the name Gehinnom ( ...

The

Kidron Valley The Kidron Valley ( classical transliteration, ''Cedron'', from he, נחל קדרון, ''Naḥal Qidron'', literally Qidron River; also Qidron Valley) is the valley originating slightly northeast of the Old City of Jerusalem, which then separat ...

which is also located on the grounds of the National Park consists of a number of burial constructions, including

Tomb of Absalom The Tomb of Absalom (), also called Absalom's Pillar, is an ancient monumental rock-cut tomb with a conical roof located in the Kidron Valley in Jerusalem, a few metres from the Tomb of Zechariah and the Tomb of Benei Hezir. Although traditionall ...

and

Tomb of Zechariah The Tomb of Zechariah is an ancient stone monument in Jerusalem that is considered in Jewish tradition to be the tomb of Zechariah ben Jehoiada. It is a few meters from the Tomb of Absalom and adjacent to the Tomb of Benei Hezir. Architectural ...

. Under the northern wall, between the

Damascus Gate The Damascus Gate is one of the main Gates of the Old City of Jerusalem. It is located in the wall on the city's northwest side and connects to a highway leading out to Nablus, which in the Hebrew Bible was called Shechem or Sichem, and from the ...

and

Herod's Gate Herod's Gate ( ar, باب الزاهرة, Bab az-Zahra, ) is one of the seven open Gates of the Old City of Jerusalem. It connects the Muslim Quarter (Jerusalem), Muslim Quarter inside of the old city to the eponymic Palestinians, Palestinian nei ...

, is a site called

Zedekiah's Cave Zedekiah's Cave—also called Solomon's Quarries—is a underground meleke limestone quarry that runs the length of five city blocks under the Muslim Quarter of the Old City of Jerusalem. It was carved over a period of several thousand years ...

. Researchers believe that this was a quarry from Herod's period.

References

External links

the Israeli Parks Authority site
{{authority control National parks of Israel Parks in Jerusalem

Sites located in the National Park

Archaeology

See also

References

External links