Rare color footage from 1930s casts new light on holy city

I am a fan of old black and white photographs of Jerusalem.

Inside the Jaffa Gate

The link from the YNet news site shows rare footage of Jerusalem from the 1930s as never seen before, from the lens of the Margulis family, who vacationed in the city and took with them a 16 mm camera and a newly acquired color film.  

The Jerusalem Cinemateque has digitized the rare photographs. The photos and a short film of the old city can be seen in this link: https://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-5569188,00.html
Note that the Holy Sepulchre was undergoing renovations after the earthquake of 1927.
Apologies for the extraneous adverts, but I think this is worth it for a rare journey to Jerusalem past.

Restoration Work in Holy Sepulcher Completed

Two weeks before Easter, the edicule of the Holy Sepulchre has been revealed to the public in all its glory for the first time since 1809. I was touring the church on the day it was reopened. Here are some of the pictures that I took.

The Restored Edicule

 

Since May of 2016, the edicule covering the tomb of Jesus underwent major restoration for the first time in over 200 years. Even though the structure is surrounded by scaffolding the church has remained open to visitors. Until this week that is.

Light over the Edicule

In the past few days the church has been closed for 60 hours to enable major archeological investigations of the tomb itself.

You can read more in the link below and watch the video about what has been revealed under the stone covering the tomb.

http://news.nationalgeographic.com/2016/10/jesus-tomb-opened-church-holy-sepulchre/

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year

Beautiful blue skies and bright sunshine greeted us as we entered the Old City this morning. As we emerged from the Jaffa Gate we spied Santa Claus distributing free Jerusalem pine tree cuttings to the city's Christian population as part of a Jerusalem Municipal service.

As he rang his bell, people gathered around collecting their Christmas trees and taking pictures. For the first day of winter and shortest day of the year it was simply a perfect day.

 Santa inside Jaffa Gate

 Come and get your tree!

 

I wish everyone a happy and peaceful holiday and a new year filled with light and joy

 



 Candles at the Holy Sepulchre

 

 

Just Another Day at Work

I love Jerusalem. I have lived in this city for over 32 years experiencing the events that influence our daily lives.  Times of joy and hope; times of despair and frustration. In the past few weeks I have spent many hours touring the Old City and am pleased to see tourist groups out and about enjoying the sites.

As I walked around I decided to photograph some holy sites from different perspectives. I met with Christians, Muslims and Jews who are struggling to make a living and hoping for a better future for their families. I am sharing with you the results of my week of touring

Light through a window - Church of All Nations, Gethsemane

Designed by Antonio Barluzzi in the 1920's, the alabaster windows only allow diffuse light to enter the church to create the gloomy night of Jesus' arrest

 



Byzantine Floor - Gethsemane - under the modern mosaic

 



Haram-eSharif with Dome of the Rock viewed from 1st Station of the Cross

The view from the Ommaryah School is something special. The school sits on the site of the Antonia Fortress which housed the Roman garrison 2,000 years ago. Every Friday afternoon the Franciscans start their walk of the Via Dolorosa from here.

 

 

Dove nesting in Western Wall

 

During the year a variety of birds nest in the Wall. Its deep crevices provide a perfect place to rest while the worshippers place notes in the cracks below.

 

 Ethiopian Jews Celebrating the Sigad Festival - Western Wall

 

Last week, Ethiopian Jews celebrated Sigad, on the 29th day of the Jewish month of Heshvan, commemorating the renewal of the covenant between the people of Israel and the Almighty, when Ezra and Nehemiah read out the Torah to the exiles who returned to Jerusalem.       

      

In Ethiopia, the priests, kesim, would read Torah chapters in the ancient Gez language, translated into Amharic, and deliver sermons in which they exhorted the people to observe the commandments and pray to be found worthy of returning to Zion.   Now an official day of celebration in Israel, Ethiopian Jews still celebrate Sigad despite having fulfilled their dream of reaching Israel.
  

Candles in the Holy Sepulchre

 

Armenian Crosses

For centuries Armenian pilgrims would engrave their crosses on the walls of their chapel after their long and arduous journey to Jerusalem





At the end of the day I sat in the Citadel at Jaffa Gate watching the sun set on the city

 

 

 

 

Beautiful City!