A7 reported (and provided the above amazing picture): Israel is planning a major archaeological dig under the Western Wall (Kotel) plaza, opposite the Temple Mount, officials announced Thursday. The excavations will create an archaeological park directly underneath the area where worshippers currently stand while praying at the Kotel.The current prayer area will remain open, supported by pillars, while a new area will be added underneath, at the level at which worshippers at the ancient Temple stood in the past.
The tram will enable the elderly and families with small children to easily move back and forth between the two areas. Visitors to the Western Wall (Kotel) could have an easier time getting to the holy site soon. A new tram will visitors to reach to the Kotel Plaza from the Jewish Quarter, enabling visitors who have difficulty walking up and down the many steps between the two sites to more easily visit the Kotel. The tram, which is to be named for Baruch Klein, a resident of the Quarter who is financing the project, will descend from Tiferet Yisrael Street, and then enter a 56-meter long tunnel, where riders will exit. The project is being directed by the Jewish Quarter Preservation and Development Company. Company director Nissim Arazi told Israel National News that the tram could be extended to reach the Herodian Quarter (the Wohl Archaeological Museum) - an area with many well-preserved buildings from the Second Temple era that is impossible for individuals with physical limitations to reach. "Some 10 million visitors come to the Old City each year," Arazi said."The Jewish Quarter has been partially outfitted to enable disable people to reach important sites, but because of worries about preserving the site archaeologically, we were unable to build a connection between the Jewish Quarter and the Kotel Plaza. The tram will enable limited mobility individuals, such as the elderly or families with small children, to easily move back and forth between the two areas."
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Very cool!
ReplyDeleteOf course with no historical evidence linking "The Temple Mount" to an actual Jewish temple, this will probable cause no small amount of intestinal discomfort to the Arabs. Let the preemptive rioting begin!
ReplyDeleteAwesome!
ReplyDeleteAnd I heard about this tram- I can't wait till it gets built!
The rumor is that Baruch Klein has an elderly parent, who like me with a stroller, has a hard time getting from the Old City to the Kotel. So he's single handedly financing it for everyone!
an archeological "park?"
ReplyDeleteWhat is that? What's so significant under there that you have to make a park out of it?
That is very cool.
ReplyDeleteWe lived in the Old City 1970-71, but since I couldn't imagine living a place without nice streets and parks for wheeling babies, we left.
ReplyDeleteBatya, wasn't the Jewish Quarter only completed in 1982 or so?
ReplyDeleteThat said, you've got a point. They rebuilt it from the ground up and seemed to have deliberately made it as "old fashioned" as possible. Helps the tourist trade, I suppose, but makes it rather inaccessible, not that the physical geography helps.
Holy Hyrax, the Kotel plaza sits on thousands of years of landfill and layers of civilizations. The Kotel extends far further beneath the surface than it does above it. There's lots and lots to see.
I love when people quote my articles http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/134009
ReplyDeleteShmuel - Didnt you see the hyperlink? Its right there in the post! ("A7 reports" -- and the hyperlink is there to your story/post -- the exact same one you left in your comment)
ReplyDeleteI NEVER post stories without attributing them to their sources (unlike OTHER websites, email lists, etc).
Shavua tov.
Oh wow, I saw this same article posted elsewhere. Check out what this guy said about it.
ReplyDeletehttp://blogs.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=blog.view&friendId=293268869&blogId=518053583
He said it's prophecy fulfilled.