Sites within Jerusalem

Antonia Fortress

Antonia Fortress

On the northwest wall of the great Temple in Jerusalem stood the Antonia Fortress, built by Herod the Great and named after Mark Anthony, his friend and patron. Josephus, the Jewish historian, records this in his book, Antiquities of the Jews: “Now on the north side [of the temple] was built a citadel, whose walls were […]

Church of the Holy Sepulchre

Church of the Holy Sepulchre

In 333 C.E., in the book The Pilgrim of Bordeaux, the author describes the place where the body of Jesus was laid after his crucifixion. He wrote: “On the left hand is the little hill of Golgotha where the lord was crucified. About a stone’s throw from thence is a vault [crypta] wherein his body was laid, […]

City of David

City of David

The City of David is the Israeli name for an ancient core of settlement in Jerusalem dating back to the Bronze Age, which is now a major archaeological site. It is on a narrow ridge running south from the Temple Mount in the predominantly Palestinian neighborhood of Silwan in East Jerusalem.It was a walled city […]

Damascus Gate

Damascus Gate

Damascus Gate is one of the main entrances to the Old City of Jerusalem. It is located in the wall on the city’s northwest side where the highway leads out to Nablus, and from there, in times past, to the capital of Syria, Damascus. The latter name, in use continuously since at least as early […]

Dome of the Rock

Dome of the Rock

The Dome of the Rock is a shrine located on the Temple Mount in the Old City of Jerusalem. It was initially completed in 691 C.E. at the order of Umayyad Caliph Abd al-Malik during the Second Fitna and is one of the oldest works of Islamic architecture. The domed central plan structure was patterned […]

Garden of Gethsemane

Garden of Gethsemane

The Garden of Gethsemane is located near the eastern side of Jerusalem, across the steep gorge called the Kidron Valley and up the sudden slope of the Mount of Olives. The word “Gethsemane” literally means “oil press.” The original garden was located in a grove of olive trees, and there were probably olive presses nearby. […]

Garden Tomb

Garden Tomb

Another location where pilgrims worship is just outside the city walls of Jerusalem and close to the Damascus Gate, near some cliffs that have the appearance of a skull. It is called the Garden Tomb. Many believe that this garden tomb was the place where Joseph of Arimathaea buried Jesus. Golgotha means “Place of the […]

Hezekiah’s Tunnel

Hezekiah’s Tunnel

Hezekiah’s Tunnel, or the Siloam Tunnel, is a tunnel that was dug underneath the City of David in Jerusalem in ancient times. Its popular name is based upon the most common hypothesis of its origin, namely, that it dates from the reign of Hezekiah of Judah (late 8th and early 7th century B.C.E.) and corresponds […]

House of Caiaphas and Gallicantu

House of Caiaphas and Gallicantu

There is a church built on the slopes of Mount Zion.  According to tradition, this was the location of the palace of the high priest, Caiaphas, where Jesus was brought to trial after his arrest in Gethsemane.  Its name, Gallicantu, means “cock’s-crow.”  This refers to Peter’s three-time denial of knowing Christ Jesus, and the cock crowing twice. […]

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