The towering surrounding walls of the Old City, an impressive union of medieval and Middle Eastern architectural features, are among Jerusalem’s most striking features. The walls were commissioned by Ottoman sultan Suleiman the Magnificent, who invested heavily in the development of Jerusalem during the 16th Century. The wall roughly follows the outline of the ramparts surrounding ancient Roman Jerusalem. So devoted to fortifying the holy sites of Jerusalem was Suleiman that when his architects inadvertently left Mount Zion outside the walls, he had them executed in his fury – their graves can still be seen in a small nook just inside the Jaffa Gate.
Visitors wishing to find an elevated view of Jerusalem will be pleased to discover one of the Old City’s nearly-hidden treasures: the Ramparts Walk. Accessible either from behind the Tower of David across from Jaffa Gate or from Damascus Gate, the Ramparts Walk winds along the top of the walls, affording stunning views of Yemin Moshe and West Jerusalem, several major Old City Christian churches including the Church of the Dormition, a rare glimpse inside the cloistered Armenian Quarter, the Valley of Hinnom, the Judean Desert and more.
