Tower of David Jerusalem Museum Presents "Open Doors"

"Open Doors" at the Tower of David Jerusalem Museum: From Wednesday to Saturday, November 4-7, participants will join top guides from the Tower of David Jerusalem Museum for a variety of tours to the city's most intriguing communities and compounds.

Visitors will get to know ancient communities, wander through alleys, enter fascinating churches, meet the people behind the stories, and visit places that are usually closed to the public. The audience will dive into hidden spots in the Tower of David Citadel, peek into the secret storerooms of the Museum for Islamic Art, visit the Russian monastery in Ein Karem, pass through the doors of St. Mark Street in the Old City, and enter the YMCA complex.

Those who love surprises can join a "Surprise Tour" without knowing the destination in advance—participants simply have to trust that it will be excellent.

The Offered Tours:

Locked Doors in the Citadel will lead participants to closed areas within the Tower of David Citadel: the secret passage, the roof of the Ottoman gate, and the locked tower, all the way to the famous minaret. High-Tech in the East of the City will take the audience to a busy street in the Bab al-Zahra neighborhood, visiting social and business centers that reflect the changes the neighborhood has undergone. Merchants and Craftsmen in the Old City is a journey back in time through the alleys, meeting a goldsmith, a painter, a fabric merchant, a photographer, and an Armenian ceramic artist. The House on Nablus Road will take visitors from a former border point to a Christian prayer center in a 19th-century manor, asking how one finds peace in the most turbulent place in the Middle East.

The Bayit V'Gan Reservoir will introduce participants to one of the garden neighborhoods from the Mandate period and conclude with a visit to the largest indoor water reservoir in the Middle East. The Doors of St. Mark Street will open doors of Jews, Muslims, and Christians on a narrow and diverse street in the Old City, including an Aramaic lesson. Behind the Scenes will tour around Bible Hill following Jerusalem's "Cultural Mile" and end at the Khan Theater. Saint Claire will pass through the Abu Tor neighborhood, near the Sheikh's tomb and the remains of a Byzantine church, reaching the St. Claire Convent for a meeting with one of the nuns.

The Palace of the Bukharian Quarter will allow visitors to enter the Yehudayoff House, the "Messiah's Palace," and tour the neighborhood and the renovated market. Between Concrete and Hasbon is a night tour following the glory days of the "Jerusalem Triangle," ending at the Hasbon complex. To the Kings' Tombs will lead the audience through burial complexes from the Second Temple period, with a visit to the Garden Tomb. The Moscovia of Ein Karem will visit the Gorny Monastery, with its golden onion-domed church and the legend of Princess Elizabeth. A Gift for the Kaiser will showcase the St. Paulus Hospice, with wooden models of the Temple Mount and a view of Damascus Gate, ending at the Syrian Church.

Between Heaven and Earth will tour sites on Mount Zion and the renovated Dormition Abbey. The People of Kfar Shaul will lead participants through the historical buildings of the former Arab village of Deir Yassin, now a mental health hospital, guided by Hadas Tidhar. The Zephania Hotel Collection will introduce the Kerem Avraham neighborhood through prose and poetry, ending at the hotel with a unique art collection and the story of the family that owns it. 82 Prophets Street will offer a rare glimpse into the Anglican compound, which is usually not open to the public. Lower Jaffa will deal with the Persian conquest of Jerusalem in 614, the Mamilla cemetery, and the mysterious Lion’s Cave.

Oxford at the Corner of Nablus will tell the story of the Neo-Gothic St. George's Cathedral and its place in the Anglican community in Jerusalem. Surprise Tour will not reveal the destination in advance; participants must simply trust the museum. The Disappeared Princess will pass through the Al-Amira neighborhood, the Ratisbonne Monastery, and the Baptist Church on Narkis Street. The Medieval Cheetahs will lead the audience to the vault of the Museum for Islamic Art, to see rare items not on public display. The Syrians will introduce visitors to the Aramaic-speaking community at St. Mark's Monastery, where, according to tradition, the Last Supper was held in its basement.

The Austrians in Jerusalem will follow Austrian institutions in the city and Jewish subjects in the Jewish Quarter, ending at the Austrian Hospice with a view from the roof. The Most Beautiful in the City will present the YMCA building, an architectural gem from the 1930s that has also featured in films. The Deir Yassin Affair will tour the Kfar Shaul complex and introduce the audience to the events of April 1948 from various perspectives.

For more information and tour registration: Museum Website

(Photo: Saint Claire. Photographer: Hagai Agmon Snir)