Israel Day 9/14: Tower of David

The afternoon was slated for shopping, but we really wanted to do something else. Since we were dropped off at the Jaffa Gate, the historic main entrance to the city, we decided to visit the Citadel. Actually it is the Tower of David Museum of the History of Jerusalem. And that was exactly what it was, a museum all about the history of the city of Jerusalem. 

was there ever a moat???

really cool model

Abraham and the King of Jerusalem

The Citadel is a medieval fortress with later additions. But it has nothing to do with King David. It became known as the Tower of David when early Church fathers in the Byzantine period  accidentally attributed the tower to King David. In reality it was built by Herod. 

a statue of David made in the mid-1400s 

it was a gift from the city of Florence

a giant model of Jerusalem

a Byzantine baptism font

these were also used by Jordanian snipers from 1948-1967

The view from the towers is amazing! And there is so much to learn there and we didn't have nearly enough time to learn even a fraction of it.

In the evenings, there is a sound and light show that tells the story of Jerusalem.

We hurried through, saw as much as we could and still had time to do a tiny bit of shopping... :) 

I wish we knew what this sign said but we didn't have any luck figuring it out...