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| The 'Moat' Section |
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Historic Overview:
The Moat Section, located in the eastern part of the northern city wall, is known to be a weak point in the defenses of Jerusalem due to the topographical characteristics in that spot. It was there that the conquering Crusader and Ayyubid armies breached the wall and broke into the city. The course of the wall in this section was determined in the Roman period. In the Early Islamic period the course was altered, and it was probably also at that time when the moat parallel to the wall was hewn. This course continued to be used for the city's fortifications until the construction of the Ottoman wall.
In the Second Temple period (first century BCE) Herod rehabilitated the city's walls and gates and expanded the city limits to the north. During this period the city had three walls: the first followed the course of the wall from the time of the Hasmonean dynasty, while the second and third enclosed the city's northern residential areas. The route of the Third Wall is in dispute. The 'maximalist' scholars contend the wall extended north, in the area between the Russian Compound and what is today the Sheikh Jarrah quarter, approximately half a kilometer north of Damascus Gate. Others argue the northern course of the Third Wall is identical to that of the Ottoman wall and that remains of the wall which were exposed and identified as the Third Wall north of this route are inconsistent with the magnificent building tradition of the Second Temple period and therefore did not originate at this time.
Roman Period. The city was not enclosed within a wall from the time of the destruction of the Second Temple until the late third century CE. With the departure of the Tenth Legion Jerusalem remained unprotected. It was probably in this phase that the city wall was rebuilt. Scholars agree that the course of the Roman wall should be identified, more or less, with that of the Ottoman wall known to us today.
Nine courses of the Roman wall were exposed c. 5 meters below the Ottoman wall in 1998, in excavations Yuval Baruch and Giora Parnas conducted east of Herod's Gate, on behalf of the Israel Antiquities Authority. Each set of two wall courses were built slightly behind the vertical plane of the two courses beneath them, thus producing an inclined fortification. It is reasonable to assume that this section which was exposed served as a platform for the wall that was erected above it. The excavators believe that this route did not extend as far as the northeastern corner of the city wall known to us today, i.e. the Stork Tower; rather it turned sharply in the vicinity of the Nahal Bizita channel toward the region north of the Temple Mount.
In the Byzantine period the course of the wall on the north of the city remained unchanged and it is also the route followed by Late Ottoman city wall.
Sections of the Muslim Jerusalem's northern wall have been revealed in archeological excavations. This wall was made of various size roughly hewn rectangular stones, including small stones. This manner of construction is unlike the building characteristics of the Roman-Byzantine city wall. In addition, a structural seam between the Early Islamic wall and the Ottoman wall above it is even visible in this wall.
In the Crusader period the city was breached in the north, in a spot located east of what is today known as the Flower Gate. The Crusaders rebuilt the walls and their gates and erected towers at the four corners of the city wall.
In the Ayyubid period Jerusalem was conquered by Saladin. That assault was directed from the north, similar to the Crusader conquest. The city's fortifications and particularly the northern wall were reinforced and the northeastern corner was specifically strengthened, which was the weak point in the city's defenses.
In this region a row of pilasters was exposed below the line of the Ottoman wall and adjacent to the Early Islamic city wall. Today we know this was meant to support a broad gallery that allowed a concentration of forces, soldiers and weapons at the top of the wall.
In the Ottoman period Jerusalem's city walls were erected, including the northern wall which is a result of rehabilitating the wall that preceded it. Thus, there are few decorations, towers and arrow loops between the New Gate and Damascus Gate. From this we conclude that this part is an almost complete remnant from the Ayyubid period. From Damascus Gate south the wall follows the line of the natural bedrock and is accordingly shorter, standing c. 5-6 meters high. The moat that was already hewn in the bedrock in the Crusader period, and perhaps even earlier, adds another 6-8 meters to the height of the wall. Towers were constructed at relatively close intervals north of the Stork Tower because there was a weak point in this region, convenient for breaching the wall and besieging the city.
Flower Gate - the Postern/Herod's Gate:
The gate is called a postern because of its small dimensions that only allow a person or an unharnessed animal to pass through it. The postern structure underwent numerous changes: in the beginning of the Ottoman period the postern included a gate tower on the outside of the wall, in the side of which was an entrance. The gate tower was built as a single unit together with the walls. In a later phase an internal structure was built in order to facilitate easy access to the sentry room in the tower. This addition was built of small stones in a haphazard manner, and hindered continuous passage of the upper sentry. Later on staircases were added that connected the later building to the roof of the original structure. At the end of the Ottoman period a steel staircase was installed which created renewed continuity for the upper sentry. In the early twentieth century another opening was breached in the gate's fa?ade, which canceled the original side entrance of the gate.
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| Orientation map |
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