The Dung Gate of Jerusalem

By night I went out through the Valley Gate toward the Jackal Well and the Dung Gate, examining the walls of Jerusalem, which had been broken down, and its gates, which had been destroyed by fire. (Nehemiah 2:13)

A Bar Mitzvah near the Dung Gate

The Dung Gate could also be considered the trash gate because it was the most common place to dump the city’s refuse. One reason for this is that the Dung Gate was at the lowest point in Jerusalem. Beyond the gate was a steep drop-off into the Hinnom Valley. People in the city threw their trash over the cliff and down to the bottom of the valley so the people of Jerusalem would never see their trash anymore.

Exiting Buses near the Dung Gate

The dung gate of Jerusalem received its name because a cattle market existed at this place in the past. Livestock were brought in through the gate and sold in a market. When the animals were sold, butchers were available to process the meat and tanners were available to receive the skins which were turned into leather products Dung from the cattle and chemicals from the tanners were disposed of out the gate and over the hill in Hinnom Valley.

View of the Dung Gate walkway facing to the east

Across the course of history there were actually two Dung Gates. The older gate existed below the Pool of Siloam in the days of the First and Second Temple. The other Dung Gate, that exists today, is about three-tenths of a mile uphill from the old location in the city of Jebus. Both gates were known in the time of Nehemiah, the older gate was called the Dung Gate, the upper location was known as the Valley Gate. Both gates were located in the Tyropoeon Valley, which intersects Jerusalem.

Old and New Dung Gate sites

The Dung Gate today is an entry point for those wanting visit the Western Wall (Kotel). The gate is very busy today, and was a commercial center in antiquity. Close to the area are several archaeological sites. The Western Wall excavations are north of the Dung Gate and to the south of the gate the Israel Antiquities Authority is digging at what used to be the Giv'ati Parking Lot. They have found the home of Queen Helena of Adiabene (read more in my book - Israel: Stories for Your Journey) as well as other artifacts.

Experience Israel through its stories

I invite you to join me as I lead a group to explore the land of Israel or read my book to learn more.

Israel Adventure - Day 11

This morning we started with an early fast breakfast from Aroma Coffee, and then a quick departure to the Old City. We began our tour with a walk around the perimeter of the walls to the south. Dr. Ilan showed us the different levels of the walls from the bedrock up. He showed us where the walls were at different places in different time periods. They were not as they appear today.

In the picture above bedrock can be seen below the walls (above the grass). There are tombs chiseled into the soft chalk bedrock, showing that at one time this area was outside of the city. There are rocks above the tombs from the Roman Period (130-443 AD). Above those rocks, and slightly inside, are walls built by Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent (1535 AD).

While we were standing by the wall, we looked across the Hinnom Valley. At the bottom of the valley is Sultan’s Pool, perhaps the Serpent Pool of Jesus’ time. This was part of the irrigation system for farms which lay below the city. Just above the pool is the old aqueduct which snakes around and into the city. Above that are homes built in 1860 - in a sense, Jerusalem’s first suburb.

We then walked south to the Zion Gate. This was on the Green Line in 1948 and several fierce battles were fought here. The walls are pocketed with the bullet holes from shelling and battle.

Continuing on the south wall, we passed a dig being done by UNCC (University of North Carolina Charlotte).

Further along our walk we saw this dig. Dr. Ilan told us this was originally a parking area which was to be developed as a five story parking garage. Israeli law requires that an archeological survey must be done before anything new can be built in Israel. When the survey was done, ruins were discovered from the Turkish period, then by digging, the Roman, Greek, Hasmonean, and earlier. This is not surprising because this area is near the Tyropoeon Valley or Cheesemaker’s Valley, which runs through the center of the city. Four years into the dig, the garage was cancelled and the archeological find was placed along a walking path which leads to the Temple.

Further along the walls we saw more tombs cut into the bedrock. During the time of King David this area was inside the city, so the tombs must have come later. Jewish law forbids burial (except for kings) inside the city walls where people live. As the city walls move in and out and people necessarily come to live near the tombs, the Rabbis developed ways of ritually cleansing the tombs. Bones are removed and blessings are spoken so people can build on top of the tombs. That is what happened with these tombs, and they were refitted as cisterns with plaster on top, and houses above the plaster. The wall above the tombs is late period Ottoman.

Along the way we saw these concrete road barriers (like are being installed on I-77). I wonder why we can’t make them look this good in America?

We came to the Old City of David (currently outside the walls of the city) where the Gihon spring is located. One objective of the day was to descend to the spring and see the ancient fortifications.

We walked through the upper ruins, where the excavator thinks King David’s palace is located.

This is Silwan, a neighborhood across the Kidron Valley from the City of David. In Biblical times Jerusalem looked much like this with the palace at the top (which is why David could look down and see Bathsheba on the rooftop).

Today the hillside looks like this, with remains of structures at the bottom. Some of the residents at the bottom of the hill are listed in the book of Jeremiah. The houses on this hillside go back to the time of King David, so people lived on this hillside for 500 years. Dr. Ilan talked about how difficult archeology and dating become when people can live in peace in an area for so long, without destruction levels to help date the civilization.

This blurred picture is what the city of David probably looked like. The Temple is at the top of the hill, the palace (Solomon’s) at the mid-section. The path to the Temple can be seen winding up the hill. The Gihon Spring can be seen just below the shine on the bottom left of the picture. This spring was fortified behind strong walls in order to protect the city’s water source.  We walked down to Gihon Spring.

Here is one wall protecting the spring as it appears today. The wall extends to the second floor and beyond. It is wide and built of large stones. The group continued through Hezekiah’s Tunnel. Because Sarah was there last week but had not traveled through the Canaanite Tunnel, the three of us traveled that path. We saw the Canaanite wall (when Melchizedek was king) and other ruins. We walked down to Siloam Spring.

As we returned we saw an area the Romans used to quarry stone. They removed a lot of rock, so no archaeological work can be done. There appears to be two large tombs (behind me) on the hill. This could be the tomb of King David.

Following the tour we saw the Skirball Museum, Hebrew Union’s archeological museum. They have displays from Dan (where they are currently digging), Gezer (a past dig), and other sites. They have models of different gates at Dan, pictures from their digs, pottery, and other finds. We ate a Syrian hummus lunch with Dr. Ilan after seeing the Museum.

On the way home we visited the Jerusalem YMCA, a beautiful art deco building. We also saw a Herodian Tomb. We ate a dinner of Potato Kreplach and Spinach Tarte.

Israel Adventure - Day 9

This is Shabbat, and in Jerusalem most people observe Shabbat. The streets are quiet, and most businesses are closed. We began the day by finding a restaurant in Jerusalem's First Train Station, a modern center with shops, amusements, and many special events such as the National Book Week taking place this week and the film festival we enjoyed there two years ago.  Of course the book fair was closed for Shabbat, but two restaurants were open for breakfast. We had Mediterranean shakshuka with eggplant and feta and nutella rozalach.

The restaurant was interesting - a railroad car served as part of the decor. Restrooms were located inside the train, and storage was above. Chelsea asked why I didn’t design her bedroom like that with her bed on the top level.

Following breakfast we walked to the Old City and entered through the Jaffa Gate. We met a couple of tourists from London, England who took our picture.

Upon entry we went up on the ramparts, or walls around the city.  We went north and then east, from the Jaffa Gate, over the New Gate, past the Damascus Gate, beyond the Herod Gate, and to the Lion’s gate.

Of course the walls have a military purpose, so several areas are built like fortresses. This one is at the Jaffa Gate. It is a well-fortified tower which provides visibility in over a 180-degree range. The towers can be several levels high.

The walk along the walls provides many great rooftop views, including this view of a family Mosque built on a later (but destroyed) tower along the walls. (The walls are 500 years old.) Across the roof of the Mosque you can see Jerusalem is a city of many faiths: Islamic, Christian, and Jewish. The steeple above is (I think) the Lutheran Church and a Christmas star also adorns the skyline to the right of the Mosque.

Along the tour, the Dome of the Rock was visible at several points.

The Mount of Olives is also visible in the background in this picture.

Along the wall we saw doves, sparrows, lizards, cats, and other interesting sights.  The day was quite warm by the time we were walking the wall. There were a few areas of shade, but mostly sunshine.

We walked up and down along the wall with the lay of the land of the hills of Jerusalem.

We could see both into the walled city and to the outside city of Jerusalem. Here is the view of the Damascus Gate, headed north. This gate is the main gate to the Moslem Quarter of the city. We entered through this gate many times when we came to Jerusalem four years ago. Our motel was about five blocks north of the gate.

Following our walk on the wall (which took almost two hours) we exited at the Damascus Gate and walked through the market to get a Coke. We looked at the shops around us, then went on our next adventure. Earlier this year when I was researching early Christian worship with Sarah for one of her classes, I spotted that the oldest church in the world is St. Mark’s Syrian Orthodox Church in the old city.  

After finding our way there (the church is on a back street), we entered the outside patio, only to find the church itself closed. We sat in the shade a minute, then a German woman came downstairs to see why we were there. She called her son who spoke English to talk to us, and he told us that the woman who gives tours was taking her nap and to come back in two hours. We were about to walk out when she came downstairs and took us inside the church.

She told the history of the church and its site which goes back to the Last Supper in the Upper Room. (Mark invited Jesus to dine at his home for Passover.) This was also the place where the disciples went after Jesus died and when the Holy Spirit came upon them.

She showed us the altar, which was beautiful. There is a painting of Mary and Jesus traditionally created by Dr. Luke (of the Bible). It is painted on leather and the faces show up when a candle is placed in front of the picture. Mary is holding Jesus as a baby, but his face is painted as an adult.

She explained the Upper Room is now downstairs - because as cities grow older and go through the cycle of destruction and rebuilding, they grow upwards. We went down the stairs to a well kept stone room, which definitely does not date to the period. The building in which the church is meeting is fairly new, only about 800 years old. There is a history (on the link) which tells how during restoration of St. Marks an inscription was found from the sixth century which says, “This is the house of Mary, mother of John, called Mark. Proclaimed a church by the holy apostles under the name of Virgin Mary, mother of God, after the ascension of our Lord Jesus Christ into heaven. Renewed after the destruction of Jerusalem by Titus in the year AD 73.” Pilgrims visited this site as early as 333 AD.

After our visit to the church we headed home. But before we arrived we stopped at the lion fountain and Chelsea and Sarah dipped their feet in to cool off. Then we returned home for a rest.

At dinner time we ate hummus at Jerusalem’s First Train Station again and shopped at the book sale. Most of the books were in Hebrew, and some were familiar because we knew the cover. (Dr. Seuss collections, Disney Collections, and others).  We also saw a few books in English. We enjoyed practicing reading some Hebrew and looking through the books.