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Solomon' Pools

The pools are three huge rectangular cisterns cut in the rock and masoned locally known as Solomon's pools. They are situated about 3 kms south of Bethlehem. The pools hold about 1160,000 cubic meteers of water. They are constructed in steps, each six meters above the next, to enable to water to be carried as far as Jerusalem by sheer force of gravity. They also supplied Herod's fortress and palace at Herodion. Near the pools are the remains of Qal'at al Burak (fortress of the pools) also known as Qal'at Murad. The fortress was built by the Turkish sultan Murad in the 17th century for the protection of the water soruce and maintained this role throughout the centuries.

Although the construction of the pools is attributed to King Solomon, they probably date from Herod's era, the idea being conceived by Pontius Pilate. History shows that Pilate, not Solomon, built the great aqueduct which supplies water to Jerusalem.

The fortress and the pools are set in a beautiful grove of pine and cypress trees. The site can be accessed from an eastern side road off the main Bethlehem-Hebron road. The system was in use as recently as 1946, and along much of the route from Bethlehem to Jerusalem original terra-cotta piping can still be found lying around.

The Wall of Jerusalem

Jerusalem is surrounded by a wall on all four sides, the purpose of which was to protect the city from inva sion. The earliest was built by the Yabbousites and remnants of the wall are still surrounding the city. Yabous was discovered during the arachaeological digs hgeld in 1960. During Salah Eddin's time, a wall was built and a moat was dug surrounding it to increase the city's defense. In 616H/1210 AD, the great king Issa destroyed the wall so that the crusaders would not be able to take hold of the city. It was renovated several rimes during the mamluki period. The present wall dates back to Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent's period. Its renovation took four years. The wall has several open gates.

Damascus Gate (Bab Al-Amoud)

Literally translated as the Door of the pillar, Bab Al Amoud is the most important and the largest gate in Jerusalem. It is also called Damascus gate and Nablus gate, as it was the entrance for caravans coming from or departing to these cities. In 70 AD, Titus destroyed Jerusalem and between 133- 137 AD, Hadrian (Adriamus) rebuilt the city under the name of Elia Capitolina. In commemoration of rebuilding the city, a black granite pillar fourteen meters high carrying a statue of Adrianus was erected in the inner courtyard of the gate. The pillar is depicted in the Madaba mosaic, which was discovered in a Byzantine church. The gate in its present form dates back to the Mamluki and Ottoman periods. The ottoman Sultan Suleiman made the latest renovations the magnificent in 1538. It consists of a large arch placed on two carved stone pillars, above which there is a small stone tower which is inscribed with the name of Sultan Suleiman the magnificent and the date of the renovation.