Open House Jerusalem 2017

Some of Jerusalem’s most fascinating architectural treasures will open their doors to the public for the Annual Open House Jerusalem festival, which takes place for the third year running October 26-28, 2017. As part of the international Open House festival, one weekend a year Jerusalem offers once in a lifetime access to unseen artistic treasures and private spaces, including designer lofts, urban villas, unique synagogues, architecturally significant public buildings, curious construction sites, plazas and gardens. During the event weekend, the public can visit, explore and attend lectures about these sites.

Open House Jerusalem, which began in 2007, was inspired by the London and New York Open Houses and follows their format and values. The project offers unique access to over a hundred interesting homes, public buildings, historical monuments and unique apartments – all distinct in their architectural design, free-of-charge and open to the public at large. Dozens of architectural tours, some with an historical point of view, and other from a technological or social and activist aspect, will allow participants to explore the city in a deep and unique way while celebrating its urban life.

Last year’s Open House Jerusalem received over 20,000 visitors, from Israel and abroad, a testament to Jerusalem’s brand as a thriving tourism destination with an international reputation for buildings and sites of historical interest.

Highlights include:

The Concealed and the Unconcealed:A project initiated by the Jerusalem Municipality, Jerusalem Development Authority and Israel Antiquities Authority include two sessions with the artist, Ran Morin, and a look at the archaeological garden project which he designed beneath Jaffa Gate, whose initial stage was recently completed. Morin will talk about the findings that were unearthed at the site, including a section of an ancient aqueduct that was in use until the 20th century, a bathhouse, commercial streets from the Byzantine period, and a portion of the Old City wall that was built during the Ayyubid Period (13th century), which preceded the existing Ottoman wall.
Custody of the Holy Land (Custodia di Terra Santa:Two simultaneous guided tours of this Old City compound that belongs to the Franciscan order of the Catholic Church. It consists of a monastery which has been active since the 16th century, as well as a church built in the Spanish baroque style in 1880, decorated with frescos and stained glass windows.
The Poor Folk`s Cemetery:A tour of the neglected Samboski Jewish cemetery, which is located at the foot of the Tomb of King David and is where Jerusalem`s poor were buried for over 200 years. The tours will trace and tell the stories of the people who are buried there, whose names no longer appear on the gravestones, making them anonymous.
In the Footsteps of American Colony Photographers: A special photography workshop which will trace the techniques and subjects of a variety of old photographs taken of Jerusalem and will attempt to recreate them.
Colonial Jerusalem:For thirty years, Jerusalem was planned and built under the British Mandate government. During that period, Britain ruled about one-third of the world`s territory and under it scores of cities were planned and built, new and old alike. How did all of that affect Jerusalem?
Novy Jeruzalem – Museum of the Underground Prisoners:An open house and guided tours at one of the most impressive sites in the city, originally built as a hostel for Russian pilgrims visiting the Holy Land. During the British Mandate period, it was converted into a prison, where members of the Jewish underground movements were also incarcerated. In Its third and current metamorphosis, the building serves a museum dedicated to the role played by the underground movements in establishing the State of Israel.