Golden Gate, Jerusalem

The Golden Gate of Jerusalem, or Sha'ar Harachamim, is the oldest of the current gates in Jerusalem's Old City Walls. Jews used to pray for mercy at the gate, hence the name Sha'ar Harachamim, the Gate of Mercy. In Arabic, it is known as the Gate of Eternal Life. In ancient times, the gate was known as the Beautiful Gate.

The Golden Gate of Jerusalem was probably built in the 520s AD, as part of Justinian I's building program in Jerusalem, on top of the ruins of an earlier gate in the wall. According to another theory, the Golden Gate was built in the later part of the 7th century by Byzantine artisans employed by the Umayyad khalifs.

The gate is located in the middle of the eastern side of the Temple Mount. The portal in this position was believed to have been used for ritual purposes in biblical times.

In Jewish tradition, this is the gate through which the Messiah will enter Jerusalem. Ottoman Sultan Suleiman I sealed off the Golden Gate in 1541 to prevent the Messiah's entrance. The Muslims also built a cemetery in front of the gate, in the belief that the precursor to the Messiah, Elijah, would not be able to pass through, since he is a Kohen (direct male descendent of Aaron). This belief is erroneous because a Kohen is permitted to enter a cemetery in which primarily non-Jews are buried.

The Golden Gate is one of the few sealed gates in Jerusalem's Old City Walls, along with the Huldah Gates, and a small Biblical and Crusader-era postern located several stories above ground on the southern side of the eastern wall.

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