Jerusalem's New City - First Century Jerusalem

 
Jerusalem's Walls During the Second Temple Period According to the Model at the Israel Museum

The New City in Jerusalem

Jerusalem was extended on its northwestern side and the inhabitants requested security, so Herod Agrippa I built the third wall. the Pool of Bethesda was also located in the eastern portion of the New City, close to the Temple Mount.

The Time of Jesus - 3 Walls

By the time of Jesus, according to Josephus, there were three walls that surrounded Jerusalem, "90 towers stood in the first wall, 14 in the second, and 60 in the third." The third wall was built by Herod Agrippa I. Click around the map on the first page to learn more about the walls, the towers, and fortifications.

The First Wall

The first wall was referred to as the "old wall" in the writings of Josephus and it encompassed the areas of the Lower and Upper Cities. It was originally built by one of the Hasmonean kings around 130 BC.

The Second Wall

The second wall is fairly uncertain due to lack of evidence, some say it began at the Citadel and and ran by the Damascus Gate and formed a loop ending at the Antonia Fortress.

The Third Wall

The third wall began during the reign of Herod Agrippa I and evidence suggests that it was built around the new city from the Citadel around the northern Beth Zetha quarter forming a loop until it reached the Temple Mount.

Also See: Herod's Temple