This is My Stone
Jerusalem is built of stone. Furthermore, the stone covering style, reminiscent of the traditional construction that is characteristic of the Old City of Jerusalem, was even nicknamed "Jerusalem Stone". At the beginning of the British mandate period, Ronald Storrs, the first governor of Jerusalem, enacted a municipal law requiring every exterior wall of a building in Jerusalem to be covered with stone. The purpose of the law, which remains in force even today, is to preserve the appearance and style of the Holy City, and to prevent the use of modern materials that would change its unique atmosphere.
Jerusalem was surrounded by a wall for thousands of years. The city wall was built and destroyed numerous times by its various rulers, and its route moved and changed. With the conquest of Crusader Jerusalem by Saladin in 1187, the wall was breached, and in 1219 it was completely demolished. Jerusalem stood unwalled for about 300 years, until it was conquered at the beginning of the 16th century by the Ottoman Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent, who decided to fortify it again. The Ottoman wall, which still stands today, was built from north to south - the northern Damascus Gate was built in 1538 and the southern Zion Gate was completed in 1542.
To speed up the construction of the wall and save time, the builders also used stones dismantled from older existing buildings. An example of such a secondary usage can be found in the lion reliefs, or more precisely cheetahs, that adorn the Lions’ Gate, which were taken from an earlier structure built by the Mamluk ruler Baybars whose symbol was a cheetah. Another interesting example of secondary usage can be found in the corner of the northern wall, in front of the French Hospital. In ancient times, the stonecutters received their wages under contract, according to the number of stones they cut. Therefore, the carvers used to indicate the stones they carved with their personal mark, so that they could be associated with them. Such a sign is emblazoned on one of the stones embedded in the Ottoman wall. The mark happens to face outwards so that it can be seen, but it is likely that there are many other markings that are hidden within the wall stones.
(Anecdote authored by: עמיר)
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