After 13 Years of Being Covered –

One of the Most Impressive and Largest Mosaics in the Country will be Re-exposed and Permanently Displayed in Lod

The late 3rd Century CE mosaic will be uncovered by the Israel Antiquities Authority, in cooperation with the municipality of Lod and residents of the city, and with major funding from the Leon Levy Foundation. The goal: to conserve and present the exceptional mosaic to the public and establish the Shelby White and Leon Levy Lod Mosaic Archaeological Center that will help promote tourism in the city

Thirteen years after one of the most beautiful mosaics ever to be seen in the country was covered over, the Israel Antiquities Authority, in cooperation with the municipality of Lod and its residents, is beginning an archaeological excavation that will re-expose the mosaic, once and for all.  Some 30,000 people from all over the country visited the site during one weekend when the mosaic was on display to the public.

The 1,700 year old mosaic floor, which is one of the most magnificent and largest mosaics ever revealed in Israel, was first uncovered in the city of Lod in 1996. The mosaic is a real archaeological gem and extraordinarily well-preserved. It covers an area of approximately 180 square meters and is composed of colored carpets that depict in detail mammals, birds, fish, a variety of flora and the sailing and merchant ships that were used at the time. The purpose of the building in which the mosaic floor was placed is not known.

This impressive discovery, the product of an excavation that was directed by archaeologist Miriam Avissar, on behalf of the Israel Antiquities Authority prior to the widening of Ha-Halutz Street by the municipality of Lod, caused a wave of excitement in Israel. The discovery was widely reported in the media and tens of thousands of visitors  to the site were amazed. At the end of the excavation, the mosaic floor was covered in order to protect it from the damages caused by man and time until funding is available and a decision as to how to best present it to the public is made.

A recent, highly generous gift from the Leon Levy Foundation and Shelby White - Chairman of the Friends of the Israel Antiquities Authority, will enable the IAA to excavate, conserve and establish the Lod Mosaic Archaeological Center on the site.

The conservation and development of the site will boost tourism and help change the image of the city – the mosaic is located in the eastern part of Lod, next to the entrance to the city from Ginnaton Junction. This junction is easily reached from Ben Gurion airport and from the country’s two main highways: Highway 1, which links Tel Aviv with Jerusalem, and Highway 6, which connects the north of the country with the south. The site is located between two streets: Ha-Halutz Street which leads to the market place and Struma Street, which leads to the city’s historic center. The proximity of the site to the country’s main transportation arteries makes it highly accessible and will facilitate turning it into a site that is of interest to the entire country. The municipality, in conjunction with the Israel Antiquities Authority, plans to integrate it into a tourism circuit that will include a number of historic sites in the city.

Prior to the announcement of the start of work in the area, constructive discussions took place between the residents of Lod, the municipality and the Israel Antiquities Authority. Because of the need to conserve it, the mosaic must be removed from the area and taken to the laboratories of the Israel Antiquities Authority where the conservation work will be carried out. Consequently, some residents of Lod were anxious that the mosaic would not be returned to its site. The Director of the Israel Antiquities Authority, Mr. Shuka Dorfman, promised the residents that the work of exposing the mosaic will be done in complete cooperation with the public, and that the mosaic will be returned to its original location and the place will be prepared as an archaeological center for the benefit of the general public and the many tourists that are expected to visit the site.

The conservation and development work are scheduled to take approximately two years. During that period, and because of the rarity and exceptional quality of the find, a section of the mosaic will be sent on exhibit to the prestigious Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. During this time the planning and implementation work will carried out at the site in Lod, at the end of which the mosaic will be returned to its permanent home and the site will be opened to the public.

(Courtesy of the Israel Antiquities Authority)
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June 16, 2009

Excavation reveals ancient aqueduct in Jerusalem

An archaeological excavation in Jerusalem has revealed an ancient aqueduct that brought water to the Sultan's Pool and to the Temple Mount, supplying clean water to the city's residents and to the many visiting pilgrims

The Israel Antiquities Authority uncovered the main aqueduct that conveyed water to the Sultan’s Pool during an excavation prior to the construction of the Montefiore Museum in Mishkenot Sha’ananim by the Jerusalem Foundation. The ancient aqueduct supplied pilgrims and residents with water for drinking and purification.

Most Jerusalemites identify the Sultan’s Pool as a venue where large cultural events are held; however, for hundreds of years it was one of the city’s most important water reservoirs.

In an archaeological excavation the Israel Antiquities Authority recently conducted prior to the construction of the Montefiore Museum, which the Jerusalem Foundation plans to build in Mishkenot Sha’ananim, an aqueduct was uncovered that conveyed water to the Temple Mount and also served as the principal water supply to the Sultan’s Pool. The excavation, directed by Gideon Solimany and Dr. Ron Beeri of the Israel Antiquities Authority, focused on a section along the course of the Low-level Aqueduct, on the western side of Ben Hinnoam Valley above the Derekh Hebron bridge.

According to Dr. Ron Beeri, excavation director on behalf of the Israel Antiquities Authority, “We are dealing with a very impressive aqueduct that reached a height of three meters. Naturally, one of the first things Sultan Suleiman I hastened to do in Jerusalem (along with the construction of the city wall as we know it today) was to repair the aqueduct that was already there which supplied the large numbers of pilgrims who arrived in Jerusalem with water for drinking and purification. Suleiman attached a small tower to the aqueduct, inside of which a ceramic pipe was inserted. The pipe diverted the aqueduct’s water to the Sultan’s Pool and the impressive sabil (a Muslim public fountain for drinking water), which he built for the pilgrims who crossed the Derekh Hebron bridge and is still preserved there today”. Dr. Beeri said, “It is evident that the location of the aqueduct was extremely successful and efficient: we found four phases of different aqueducts that were constructed in exactly the same spot, one, Byzantine, from the sixth-seventh centuries CE and three that are Ottoman which were built beginning in the sixteenth century CE. The last three encircle a large subterranean water reservoir that was apparently built before the Ottoman period”.

The Low-level Aqueduct is one of two ancient water conduits that originated at the springs in the Hebron Highlands and at Solomon’s Pools, and terminated in Jerusalem and the Temple Mount. We can learn about the construction of the aqueducts and the repairs that were carried out on them from various historical sources which date from as early as the Second Temple period, as well as from later sources. Different sections of the aqueduct’s course were also exposed in archaeological surveys and excavations that were conducted from the middle of the nineteenth century until the present. Research has shown that the ancient aqueduct was meant to supply high quality spring water to the Temple Mount, to Jerusalem’s residents and to the many pilgrims that have come to the city over the course of generations. After the Great Revolt was suppressed and the temple was destroyed, the aqueduct served the Tenth Legion and afterwards Aelia Capitolina, which was Roman Jerusalem. The aqueduct was also used during the period of Christian-Byzantine rule and throughout the years when Muslims governed in Jerusalem.

According to Dr. Beeri, “We can see that from the time of the Second Temple until the Byzantine period water flowed in an open channel that was covered with stone slabs. In later phases, beginning in the Ottoman period, water was conveyed in ceramic pipes which were installed inside the aqueduct”.

The Low-level Aqueduct is to be incorporated in the Montefiore Museum, which the Jerusalem Foundation plans to build inside the pool, adjacent to the aqueduct.

(Courtesy of the Israel Antiquities Authority Spokesperson)

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THE DOWNWARD TREND IN INCOMING TOURISM CONTINUES: 231,000 TOURISTS VISITED ISRAEL IN MAY 2009: 22% LESS THAN APRIL 2008 AND

25% MORE THAN APRIL 2007

Minister of Tourism Stas Misezhnikov on the background to the statistics: "Canceling the Finance Ministry's intention to levy VAT on incoming tourism is a must in order to avoid the collapse of the tourism industry and the dismissal of thousands of employees."

The decrease in incoming tourism to Israel continues: in May 2009, 231,000 tourists visited Israel – a decrease of 22% on April 2008 (297,000) and an increase of 25% compared to April 2007 (185,000). Since the beginning of 2009 (January-May) 968,000 visitors came to Israel, a decrease of 22% compared to the same period in 2008 but an increase of 15% compared to the same period in 2007.

According to the Central Bureau of Statistics, 203,000 of incoming tourists stayed at least one night in Israel (a decrease of 20% compared to May 2008). 28,000 were day visitors (a decrease of 35% compared to April 2008).

Despite the visit of Pope Benedict XVI to Israel, the total number of arrivals into Ben Gurion airport in May stood at 175,000, 10% less than the visit of Pope John Paul II in 2000 when 194,000 arrivals were registered at Ben Gurion airport. However, during the days preceding the Papal visit, the average number of arrivals per day at the airport reached an average of 7,800, as opposed to the May average of 5,600 per day.    

Minister of Tourism Stas Misezhnikov: "The Papal visit in the year 2000 brought with it new records in incoming tourism for Israel. The Tourism Ministry continues to implement focused and intensive marketing activities around the world in order to slow down the sharp decline in incoming tourism. At the same time, the ministry, in cooperation with the tourism industry, is preparing plans to deal with the global economic crisis and the decrease in incoming tourism. Canceling the Finance Ministry's intention to levy VAT on incoming tourism is a must in order to avoid the collapse of the tourism industry and the dismissal of thousands of employees."

(Courtesy of Israel Ministry of Tourism)
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June 9, 2009

3000 SHEKEL FINE FOR UNLICENSED TOUR GUIDES

TOURISM MINISTER ANNOUNCES THE LAUNCH OF A JOINT TOURISM MINISTRY- ISRAEL POLICE ENFORCEMENT CAMPAIGN AGAINST UNLICENSED TOUR GUIDES

Tourism Minister Stas Misezhnikov advised representatives of the Tour Guides Association that the Tourism Ministry, in cooperation with the Israel Police, is to launch an enforcement campaign against unlicensed tour guides. This new initiative comes in the wake of complaints made by the Tour Guides Association regarding the extensive activities of unofficial guides who are taking away some of their income.

Within the framework of the preparations for the recent visit to Israel by Pope Benedict XVI and the anticipated subsequent influx of pilgrims, the Tourism Minister recently toured tourism sites in the Old City of Jerusalem to check, among others, the level of service available for tourists and visitors to sites such as the Mount of Olives, the Via Dolorosa, the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, the Western Wall and the Moslem and Christian quarters.

In the immediate future, the Tourism Ministry, together with the Israel Police, will increase activities to enforce the law regarding unlicensed tour guides in all tourist sites throughout Israel. The police stationed in the tourist sites will report to the Tourism Ministry on the activities of unofficial tour guides and, as a result of these reports alone, the Ministry will levy the fines. In recent weeks, two such fines were given to unofficial tour guides working at the Church of the Holy Sepulcher.

Tourism Minister Stas Misezhnikov: "Tour guides escort the tourist for the entire length of his visit to Israel and they are required to display professionalism, excellent knowledge of the country, its sites and heritage and to welcome the tourist with courtesy. The tour guides study all these subjects in the tour guide licensing courses given by the Tourism Ministry.  The illegal activities of the unprofessional guides adversely impacts the tourism product and the income of the licensed tour guides."

In order to gain a license, tour guides must participate in a two-year course supervised by the Tourism Ministry, pass the final written and oral exams and complete ongoing professional training annually in order to renew the license, which must be renewed every two years.

(Courtesy of Israel Ministry of Tourism)
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June 3, 2009

TOURISM MINISTRY ENCOURAGES CONSTRUCTION OF NEW HOTELS IN ISRAEL AND LAUNCHES A NEW TRACK FOR ENTREPRENEURS WITHIN THE FRAMEWORK OF "SPECIAL HOTEL ACCOMODATION"

The Tourism Ministry this week announced an update to the directives regarding "special hotel accommodation" that allows for an additional possibility regarding the construction of new hotels in order to increase the supply of hotel rooms in Israel.

The global economic crisis and the credit crunch have created difficulties both in raising finance for the construction of new hotel rooms and for entrepreneurs in marketing hospitality units for sale within the framework of "special hotel accommodation" (as opposed to regular hotel accommodation  whose units are not for sale). Given the situation and the goal of accelerating growth in the economy and increasing the number of hotel rooms in Israel, the Tourism Ministry has created another track that is expected to offer an answer to the difficulties experienced by hotels seeking finance from banks and other financial institutions, while aiming to incentivize the entrepreneurs and facilitate the construction of additional hotels.

The existing track within the framework of "special hotel accommodation" allows entrepreneurs to sell all the accommodation units in a hotel, with the buyers able to use the purchased units for three months a year. During the rest of the year, for at least 9 months, the units are made available to the general public as regular hotel rooms.

In the additional track, at least half of the project will be a regular hotel whose units may not be sold and will be made available to the general public throughout the year. In the remainder of the project, entrepreneurs may sell the units and the buyers may use the units for up to six months. For the remaining half year, these units will also be made available to the general public as regular hotel rooms. This formula falls in line with the directives passed by the Supreme Court on the matter, while at the same time facilitating the construction of hotels within the current financing constraints.

Despite the global economic crisis, the Tourism Ministry is preparing for an increase in incoming tourism once the crisis has passed and has set an objective of 5 million tourists from 2015 onwards. Today, the hosting capacity of the existing 45,000 hotel rooms in Israel is restricted to about 3.5 million tourists annually.  In 2008, a record year for incoming tourism in Israel, about 3 million tourists visited the country, producing a shortfall in hotel accommodation at certain times of the year and especially in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv. The Tourism Ministry estimates that the new track will facilitate the construction of hundreds of hotel rooms in the areas with the highest demand.

(Courtesy of Israel Ministry of Tourism)