Travel Tips

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The Old Walled City of Jerusalem has eight fabled gates, and without deliberately setting out to do so, I found that I'd snapped photos of 5 of the 8 gates.

I guess it means I'll just have to return and finish the task!

They are:

St. Stephen's Gate:
Most people go through this gate to get to the Mt. Of Olives. St. Stephen is allegedly the first Christian martyr who was stoned to death near the gate.

Damascus Gate:
Probably the most photographed of all the gates - and likely to always be the busiest. Legend has it you can walk out these gates and continue straight toward Damascus, Syria. Nowadays, the front of the gateway turns into a thriving, outdoor market.

Zion Gate:
Israeli soldiers fired onto this gate during the 1948 War, in order to get through and help the Jewish Quarter which was under attack. You can see the walls are riddled with bullet holes.

Golden Gate:
This is interesting - legend has it that the Messiah will enter the city through these gates, but it seems that the Muslims most likely sealed off the gates during the 7th century, to deny non-Muslims access to the Temple Mount/Haram ash-Sharif.

Jaffa Gate:
This gate is also a very busy gate and probably the most utilized to enter the Old City. This area marks the start of the old road leading to the Jaffa port.

Herod's Gate:
Apparently the name comes from the mistaken idea that one of the nearby buildings was once the palace of Herod.

Dung Gate:
Not an appealing name - apparently once a garbage dump. It's the smallest of the gates.

New Gate:
This is the most modern of all the gates and was opened in the late 1880's to allow acces to the holy sites in the Christian Quarter.