Old Jerusalem Wall

Old Jerusalem Wall - Israel

The majestic Old Jerusalem wall isn't the biblically old one. The Roman army destroyed the last of those after sacking Jerusalem in 70 AD. The current Old Jerusalem wall was built by Suleiman in 1540, so it is less than 500 years old.

About ten feet thick and up to fifty feet high, Suleiman's wall is dotted with forty-two defensive lookout post, including the one above, which looks out to the south. The wall is about three miles long and encloses Old Jerusalem roughly in the shape of a trapezoid.

Given the topography of Old Jerusalem, which sits on a hill top with steep drop offs on its east, west and south sides, the weakness of every wall built to protect the city was considered the northern facade, through which every successful breach in history occurred.

Travel Tip
From sunset on Friday to sunset on Saturday all Jewish businesses in Israel shut in observance of the Sabbath. This includes shops and restaurants, as well as transportation; bus and train departures stop at around 2pm on Friday to enable arrival before sunset and don't resume until around 8pm on Saturday.