St From Hurva Sq. turn right at the Mizrahi Bank. s628 7211. Open Su-Th 9am4:30pm, F9am-
12:30pm. NIS9, students NIS7. English presentations every hour on the half hour.)
LAST DITCH BATTLE MUSEUM. Previously named the One Last Day Museum, the
building displays the photojournal of the British journalist John Phillips, who lived
in the Old City during the Jordanian siege of 1947-1948. Dubbed the modern-day
Josephus Flavius, Phillips recounts life during the siege. The museum contains a
surprisingly fascinating photography exhibit and five-minute silent documentary
film. (Newly relocated, in the first storefront on the left when entering the commercial center on
the Cardo. Open Su-Th 9am-5pm, F9am-lpm. NIS6, students NIS5.)
FOUR SEPHARDIC SYNAGOGUES. The Synagogue of Rabbi Yohanan Ben-Zak-
kai, the Prophet Elijah Synagogue, the Middle Synagogue, and the Istanbuli Syn-
agogue were built by Mediterranean Jews starting in the 16th century. At the
time, there were laws against building synagogues, so they were called study
centers. The Middle Synagogue is the most recent; it was a courtyard until a roof
was put over it in 1835. The four synagogues (with religious services held twice
a day) remain the spiritual center of Jerusalem's Sephardic community. A Portu-
guese minyan (a religious service with at least 10 participants) gathers in the
Istanbuli room on Shabbat. An exhibition features photographs of the syna-
gogues before their destruction in the 1948 and 1967 wars. (Down Mishmerot Ha-
Kehuna St. near the Jewish Quarter parking lot. -в 628 05 92. Open Su-Th 9am-4pm, F 9am-
noon. NIS7, students NIS4.)
TREASURES OF THE TEMPLE MUSEUM. The folks at the Temple Institute are
hoping to rebuild the Jewish High Temple and to recapture its original look and
feel. Their plan requires relocation of the Dome of the Rock. Muslim worshipers
are not amused. The small museum is filled with gorgeous paintings and sacrificial
instruments built to the specifications written in the Talmud and suitable for use
in the anticipated Third Temple. A film (either 10 or 26 min.) gives history on the
second temple and is a good introduction for people planning to go on a tour of the
Western Wall tunnels. (19 Misgav Ladakh St. off Tiferet Yisrael Rd.; turn left when coming
from Hurva Sq. NIS20, students NIS15.)
TEMPLE MODEL MUSEUM. The museum showcases reconstructions of the furni-
ture of the Temple and clothing worn by its priests. Featured is a model of the pro-
posed Third Temple. (On Misgav Ladakh St. off Tiferet Yisrael Rd. to the right when coming
from Hurva Sq. under the archway. NIS10, students
NIS8.)
HURVA SYNAGOGUE. A single stone arch soars above the ruins of the synagogue
in the square named for it, forming the center of the Jewish Quarter. Built in 1700
by followers of Rabbi Yehuda the Hasid, the synagogue was destroyed by Muslims,
thereby earning its ominous title (hurva means "ruin"). In 1856 the building was
restored as the National Ashkenazic Synagogue, only to be destroyed again during
the 1948 War. In 1967, renovators opted to rebuild only the single arch as a
reminder of the destruction. (On На-Yehudim Rd. around the comer from Hurva Sq.)
YISHUV COURT MUSEUM. This small museum exhibits 19th-century life in the
Jewish Quarter. The rooms in this one-time home each depict a different element
of life, from childbirth to haberdashery. One especially interesting attraction is the
synagogue, built in the room where the famed mystic rabbi the Arizal was born.
Rooms are furnished with period artifacts donated by the quarter's citizens,
including a collection of ancient wooden Torah cases. (6 Or Hayim St. on the right
when coming from St. James Rd. and Jaffa Gate. Open Su-Th 9am-3pm, FWam-lpm. NIS14, stu-
dents NIS11, children NIS8.)