The University of Michigan
Introduction
More than 20 segments of ancient paved streets have been exposed in Jerusalem during the various archaeological excavations undertaken in the city since the late 19th century, dating between the end of the Second Temple period and the medieval period. Two of the streets comprised the main north-south thoroughfares of the city in the Roman and Byzantine periods: the western was the primary Cardo, or Cardo Maximus, and the eastern, or the secondary Cardo. These impressive colonnaded streets served as the city's primary traffic arteries as well as hosting much of the city's commercial life in the shops along their route (Bar 2002: 160-61). The other streets were narrow and inferior; their route was generally determined by topography and thus did not subscribe to a fixed orientation (fig. 1).
Examination of the street layout within the urban structure of Byzantine-period Jerusalem indicates that the city's planning was based on the general plan of Ae-lia Capitolina. The Byzantine-period builders worked in accordance with the still-existing Roman-period streets. This may be particularly noted in the northern part of the city where, for the most part, the Roman layout has been preserved.
The meticulous street-planning in this part of the city is reflected in the Madaba Map and may also be observed in aerial photographs and in the planning of the modern Christian and Muslim quarters, located in the northern part of the Old City (Vincent and Abel 1926: 1-88; Wilkinson 1975: 118-36; Tsafrir 1999a: 115-66; Bar 2002: 165). The picture differs in the southern part of the city, which was rebuilt as part of its expansion in the Byzantine period. Construction in this part of the city is characterized by a practical, sturdy approach to design, coupled with, to some degree, an almost sloppy street layout, which may have resulted from the rapid population increase and city expansion of that period (Tsafrir 1999b: 295300). Scholars continue to disagree over the location of the southern limit of Aelia Capitolina, as well as that of the city wall and gates in the Roman and Byzantine periods. This topic, however, is beyond the scope of the present study and thus cannot be discussed in further detail (Avigad 1983: 213-29; Eliav 1999: 101-17; Tsafrir 1999a: 135-42).
Author's note: I wish to thank Prof. Yoram Tsafrir and Hillel Geva for their valuable comments and suggestions, Ravit Nenner-Soriano for preparing the figures, and Michal Haber for her English translation and editing.
Fig. 1. The street/urban layout of Byzantine-period Jerusalem.
Ancient paving stones exposed in Jerusalem's Old City differ in characteristics: street segments discovered in the northern part of the city were constructed of large, thick slabs (0.25-0.35 m thick) laid at an angle to the street axis and are gen-
Erally dated to the Late Roman period (Tsafrir 1999a: 120). Other segments, found throughout the city, comprise large, thick stones in secondary use, as part of repair works undertaken in the Late Roman and Early Byzantine periods (Tsafrir 1999a: 146). Still others, particularly in the southern part of the city, were paved with thin stone slabs (0.1 x 0.5 m thick) hewn especially for this purpose and laid both parallel and perpendicular to the street axis. This type dates largely to the Byzantine period (Broshi 1977: 234; Tsafrir 2005: 18).
Discussion of the urban layout of Byzantine-period Jerusalem is not without its methodological problems. The main problem is the low number of extensive excavations undertaken in the northern, densely populated, part of the city (today's Christian and Muslim quarters). This comes in contrast to the numerous excavations that were carried out in the southern part of the city, especially following the reunification of the modern city after the Six Day War in 1967. We must also take into account the difficulty of securely dating the street segments, a situation that stems from the fact that in many cases the slabs were not lifted in order to excavate the sealed loci underneath. Moreover, certain segments were excavated more than a century ago, leaving us with less than reliable data regarding their dating. Finally, the streets themselves were in use for an extended time period.
The following is a survey of street segments exposed during excavations in Jerusalem. Because of the high concentration of segments situated in the southern part of the city, they will be presented from south to north. Dating is based on excavation reports and partial surveys published by M. Broshi (1977: 232-35), H. Geva (1993: 762-65, 775-79), and Y. Tsafrir (1999a: 115-16; 1999b: 281-351). I propose two different time-frames for the paving of the streets during the Byzantine period: during the period of the city's expansion southwards in the 5th century and when the city reached its height under Justinian I (527-565 c. e.).
Mount Zion 211
1. The excavation of the “House of Caiaphas” under M. Broshi in 1971-72 exposed part of a street with a north-south orientation, bounded by curbstones (fig. 1.1). The segment measures 5.4 m in width (18 Byzantine feet)—including curbstones, 6.4 m—and 44 m in length (Broshi 1976: 81-88). The paving slabs are of finely hewn hard limestone (mizzi hilu) ranging in size from 0.5 m x 0.6 m to 0.6 m x 1.45 m, with a thickness of 0.1-0.13 m. The street features two superimposed building phases, reflected in its width. A sophisticated water-drainage system was discovered under each phase. Broshi dated the street to the Byzantine period (1972: 107; 1976: 86-87; 1977: 232-35). Tsafrir believes that this street was originally an extension of the Via Praetoria, the north-south route of the Roman Tenth Legion camp (he argues that the camp was situated within the bounds of the modern Armenian Quarter), as well as a processional route that connected the Church of the Holy Sepulchre with the Church of Holy Zion during the Byzantine period (Tsafrir 1999b: 311).
2. Excavations in the southern part of Mt. Zion under F. J. Bliss and A. C. Dickie between 1894 and 1897 exposed two segments of a paved street (Streets 2a, 2b; figs. 1.2a, 1.2b). Ascending in a northeastern direction from Gate N in the Byzantine-period southern city wall (fig. 2), it superimposes a drainage channel (Bliss and Dickie 1898: 52-53, 78-81). The street pavement is a combination of hewn bedrock and stone slabs. The slabs are not uniformly sized and measure up to 0.75 m x 1.2 m. Two hewn grooves are seen running along each side of the street, at equal depth, and exhibit—together with the street itself—a glossy shine resulting from years of extended use. Together, the segments measure 5.4 m in width and more than 100 m in length. A Greek-style engraved cross was discovered on the bottom of one of the slabs.
The drainage channel, measuring 0.5-0.6 cm long and some 1.2 m high, was hewn in bedrock and covered by the street slabs. It drained rainwater and sewage through Gate N toward the Hinnom Valley. The street's Byzantine-period dating is based on that of the floor level of Gate N, which, as mentioned above, was incorporated into the contemporaneous city wall (Pixner, Chen, and Margalit 1989: 85-95).
Fig. 2. Remains of walls and streets on Mt. Zion (Bliss and Dickie 1898: Plan 1).
An additional street segment was discovered atop the western slope of Mt. Zion, situated today underneath the road that descends from the mount to the Church of St. Peter in Gallicantu (Street 2c; fig. 1.2c). The street measures slightly more
Than 5 m in width, approximately equaling its exposed length. The street is paved with stone slabs and superimposes a drainage channel, which is a continuation of the channel mentioned above. J. Germer-Durand dated the street to the Roman-Byzantine period (1914b: 44-47), while Tsafrir believes that a Byzantine dating is more plausible, since at that time the city wall enclosed the area of Mt. Zion (1975: 261).
3. Germer-Durand's excavations on the eastern slope of Mt. Zion in the late 19th and early 20th centuries exposed a number of streets, some with a north-south orientation and others with an east-west orientation (figs. 1.3-1.7; Germer-Durand 1914a: 244-45, pl. 3, photographs 3:XI, 4:XI).
One street segment (fig. 1.3) was discovered by Germer-Durand some 50 m east of Street 2; (1914b: 46-47). C. Schick was the first to publish these remains (1894: 18), but Bliss and Dickie published both their own findings and those of Germer-Durand, as well as mapping the street's route (Bliss 1896: 212; Bliss and Dickie 1898: 78-82). The street was excavated in a few segments, from Point C in the south to Point Y in the north (fig. 2).212 Its general orientation is north-south, with a slight inclination toward the northeast (less so than its western neighbor, Street 2, and thus the two are not entirely parallel). The street measures more than 150 m in length, and its average width of 5.4 m is similar to that of the other ancient streets on Mt. Zion. Between points R and V, the street runs along a rock-hewn slope, and therefore its western side lies on leveled bedrock and its eastern side lies on either a built terrace or support vaults (Bliss and Dickie 1898: 79). The large, thick paving stones range in size from 0.45 m x 0.75 m to 1.2 m x 1.8 m. Narrow curbstones bounded the street from either side, approximately 0.25 m above street level (similar to Street 1). In its width and construction style, this street bears a strong resemblance to Street 2, which ascends from Gate N in a northeastern direction. North of Point V the street deviates from its route with a sharply angled turn, apparently in order to circumvent the protruding bedrock in its path, and in this way saves resources otherwise expended on difficult hewing. Bliss and Dickie argued that the street was paved after the Second Temple period (1898: 78-82), while Germer-Durand ascribed a dating of the Late Roman or Byzantine period (1914b: 46-47); with some reservations, Tsafrir accepts the latter (1975: 263).
4. Near the spot where Street 3 diverged from its route, Germer-Durand noted a street intersection (1914a: 244-45). One street diverged from another lengthwise street, descending eastward toward the Tyropoeon Valley (fig. 1.4), and another diverged from the latter, ascending westward toward Mt. Zion. Germer-Durand cites no additional archaeological data.
5. Of the streets featuring an east-west orientation, one particularly noteworthy example is a stepped street that ascended from the City of David and the Tyro-poeon Valley in the direction of St. Peter in Gallicantu and is exposed to the present day. In the north, it is built on a steep incline perpendicular to the slope of Mt. Zion and is situated adjacent to the church (fig. 1.5). The exposed street measures approximately 5.4 m x 100 m. Its steps are built of rectangular - and polygonal-shaped
Fig. 3. Western view of the stepped street near the Church of St. Peter in Gallicantu (no. 5).
Stones, resting in part on hewn bedrock (fig. 3). Germer-Durand dated the street to the Second Temple period; however, Tsafrir believes this was part of a Christian processional route that connected the Church of Holy Zion located atop Mt. Zion with the Church of Siloam (1975: 264). In his excavations at the Church of St. Peter in Gallicantu, F. Diez exposed a small segment of stone pavement of a street that branched out northward from the stepped street (no. 5) and dated it to the Byzantine period (1997: 88-89).
Germer-Durand exposed two additional segments on the eastern slope of Mt. Zion featuring a general north-south orientation. On the basis of their similarity to the other ancient streets known at the time in the city, he dated them to the Late Roman-Byzantine period (1914a: 244-45, pl. 1):
6. The first segment was discovered emerging from the lower part of the above-mentioned stepped street (no. 5), running north (fig. 1.6). Paved with polygonalshaped stones, it measures 5.4 m in width (based solely on the published plan) and 6 m in length and superimposes a drainage channel. Its workmanship is inferior to that of the other streets.
7. The second segment was exposed by Germer-Durand some 100 m northeast of the Church of St. Peter in Gallicantu and oriented southwest-northeast (fig. 1.7). While Germer-Durand argued that the paving stones are not in situ, a reconstruction of its route reveals a sharp deviation toward the northeast, leading to the conclusion that the street was redirected on purpose in order to lead it to the area of today's Dung Gate.
The City of David and the Southern Tyropoeon Valley 213
8. Excavations in the southern Tyropoeon Valley, some 14 m southeast of the Dung Gate (fig. 1.8), under the direction of J. W. Crowfoot and G. M. Fitzgerald, between 1925 and 1927, exposed remains of a street running in a north-south direction toward the Pool of Siloam (Crowfoot 1929: 9-16; Crowfoot and Fitzgerald 1929; 41-43). The street measures approximately 5 m x 40 m and, on the basis of additional exposed segments, a length of 60 m may be reconstructed. The street was paved with hard limestone slabs (mizzi hilu), each measuring 20 cm thick and the largest measuring approximately 1 m x 1 m. Buildings, apparently shops, flanked the street. Two drainage channels, one on top of the other, were discovered under the street. The upper is covered in reddish-pink plaster and is 0.48 m deep; the lower displays no traces of plaster and is 0.60 m deep. The street served as the main Byzantine-period southward traffic artery (Reich and Shukron 2006; 66-67) and was dated by the excavators to the 6th century c. e. (Crowfoot and Fitzgerald 1929: 41-42).
9. Excavations in the northern part of the City of David led by R. A. S. Macalister and J. G. Duncan in 1923-1925 exposed a street running in a north-south orientation, measuring 3.75 m in width (fig. 1.9). The excavators believed that the street was paved in the Early Islamic period, but its origins were probably in the Byzantine period (Macalister and Duncan 1926; 63).
The Southwestern Hill and the Jewish Quarter
10. In 1976, N. Avigad discovered a stepped street on the inner side of the southern Old City wall, east of the Zion Gate, running in an east-west orientation (fig. 1.10). The street is paved in hard limestone (mizzi hilu) stone slabs ranging in size from 0.50 m x 0.90 m to 0. 65 m x 1.20 m. Its southern side was entirely
Fig. 4. Western view of the street east of the Zion Gate (no. 10).
Destroyed and a segment measuring only 3.5 m wide and 30 m long has been preserved (fig. 4). The risers measure 0.15-0.20 m and the wide treads measure up to 1.9 m. The wide tread gave the street a very gentle incline, comfortable for walking. The slabs were laid on a foundation of gray bonding material mixed with small fieldstones. A drainage channel was discovered underneath the street, with some of its flat covering slabs in situ. A probe underneath the paving stones yielded 6th-century c. e. pottery.
11. Avigad's Jewish Quarter Excavations (1969-82), along Jews and Chabad streets, exposed a wide colonnaded street oriented north-south—the southern part of the Cardo Maximus that transversed the northern area of Aelia Capitolina (fig. 1.11; Avigad 1983: 213-29). The street emerged from a large plaza that, in turn, was entered through Damascus Gate. From there, it continued southward, with a slight southwestern deviation, along Beit Ha-Bad Street (Tarik Khan ez-Zeit). According to the Madaba Map, the street was colonnaded along its entire length and, indeed, some columns still stand today, especially in the area east of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre and what may have been the entrance to the city forum (Vincent and Abel 1926: 21-23). During the Crusader period, a market complex featuring three straight alleys was built directly over the Cardo (Bahat 1995: 78-80; Avni and Reem 1999: 60-61). The presumed location of the meeting point between the northern and southern parts of the Cardo is the Transversal Valley, at the meeting point of David Street, Jews Street, and the Street of the Chain. Here, the southern part continued southward, with a slight western deviation (Reich 1987: 164-67). The Cardo segment discovered in the Jewish Quarter has been reconstructed and is open to visitors.
The paving in the southern segment lies about 2.5 m below the surface of Jews Street. Its uneven width reaches 23 m and its length, some 180 m. The street's southern part (Areas X-4-X-5) was paved directly over bedrock (fig. 5), which had been hewn for this purpose and was thus better preserved (fig. 6). As the street progresses northward in the direction of the Transversal Valley, the ground steeply descends. Although it was installed over earthen fill, a segment in the northernmost part of the exposed street (Area X-2) has been well preserved. Two drainage channels were discovered running underneath the street, one along each side. Also found along the street's route were segments of stylobates, a complete in situ column, several column fragments, two in situ column bases, and several capitals and various architectural elements incorporated in secondary use in buildings—all assisting in the reconstruction of the appearance of the Cardo. On the west, the street was bounded by a built wall of dressed stones; on the east, by a row of arches that supported square pillars, also built of dressed stones; and in the area between the southern end of Area X-5 and the southern end of X-7, by a bedrock cliff (Gutfeld forthcoming).
Two rows of columns divided the street into three parts. The central one, 12.6 m wide, was unroofed and is flanked on either side by a narrow aisle, 5.2 m wide, which was apparently roofed with tiles. Column bases are incorporated into the stylobate walls, which are partly stone-built and partly rock-hewn. These bases feature Attic profiles and are not uniformly sized. The reconstructed height of the monolithic columns (only a few were found in secondary use), including the base and capital, reached approximately 5 m. Three Byzantine-period Corinthian capitals were also found, each differently designed. No architrave fragments or keystones were found, leading to the conclusion that wooden beams were installed between the columns.
A row of rooms, most likely shops, was discovered along the eastern side of the street. Some were stone-built and others were hewn from bedrock. In that area, at the bottom of the slope, the area of the shops was raised with earthen fill that was then leveled to the height of the sidewalk. The shops' facade was constructed from vaults that supported the roof and, in turn, were supported by built pillars. Along the street's western side, shops were found only in the southernmost part (Area X-7). At least four intact vaults were found, attesting to the appearance of the shops.
Fig. 6. Western view of a street segment in the southern part of the Cardo (no. 11).
The street was paved with flat, hard limestone slabs of poor quality. Most are cracked and even crumbling due to centuries of intense use, and some of the larger slabs exhibit a glossy shine, also a result of extended use. The slabs range in size from 0.30 m x 0. 45 m to 0.90 m x 1.10 m and 0.9-1.1 m thickness. They were
Fig. 7. Southern view of a street segment in the southern part of the Cardo (no. 11). The columns have been reconstructed.
Generally installed perpendicularly to the street axis, and not diagonally, as known from other Roman - and Byzantine-period streets in Palestine. The street's center line is emphasized by a row of flagstones installed in the direction of this street— that is, oriented north-south (Fig. 7).
Scholars accept a dating of the Roman period—the period of Aelia Capitolina— for the northern part of the Cardo; however, Tsafrir disputes Avigad's dating of the architectural history of the southern route. He agrees that the presently visible paving stones were installed in the Byzantine period but disagrees as to whether they were superimposed on an earlier street (Avigad 1983: 225-26; Tsafrir 1999a; 14445). Avigad argued that they did were not superimposed and dated the street to the reign of Justinian, based on the pottery found in the fills underneath the street (Magness 1993; 119-52) and on the architectural elements discovered along the street (albeit in secondary use). However, Tsafrir maintains that the southern extension of the Roman-period Cardo passed along this route (1999a; 132-43, 144-45 nn. 48-49). According to this theory, a 2nd - or 3rd-century road would have been entirely dismantled in order to pave a new—and lower—Byzantine-period street in its place (Tsafrir 2005; 18-22). However, it must be stressed that no remains of an earlier street in this part of the city have been found.
Fig. 8. Southeastern view of a street segment in the Hurva Synagogue (no. 12).
12. Excavations carried out in 2003 by H. Geva and O. Gutfeld in the Hurva Synagogue, situated in the center of the Jewish Quarter, revealed two segments of a street dating to the 6th century c. e. (Geva and Gutfeld 2004: 29-30; 2004; 239-46). The excavation area is located east of the southern part of the Cardo (Area X-6), and its western edge is only a few meters away from the rows of vaults lining the Cardo's eastern side (fig. 1.12). The street in the synagogue is paved with stone slabs measuring 3.7 m x 10 m (fig. 8). They were laid directly on bedrock, installed between two rock-hewn edges upon which walls oriented north-south were built in order to support the street.
The street was paved with large and well-hewn stone slabs, similar to those in the southern part of the Cardo, worn and cracked due to centuries of intense use. The street ascended eastward at a very slight incline (7.5%). Although its eastern side was destroyed by a later water cistern, it appears that it continues in this way until it reached a plaza or entrance to a building, which have not survived, as attested by a rock-hewn channel that ran eastward over the exposed street. Its western side continues westward, passing underneath an arch (today incorporated into a modern shop on Jews Street), until it meets the Cardo (Area X-6). The street can be seen by visitors in the basement of the new Hurvah Synagogue that was recently opened to the public.
Ha-Gai Street
A number of street segments paved in stone slabs were discovered along HaGai Street (the Tyropoeon Valley), through which the secondary (eastern) Cardo passed. The main part of the Roman-Byzantine Cardo to the west of the Temple Mount featured a new route on the slope of the city's western hill, some 90 m west of the route of the Second Temple-period road that was exposed adjacent to the Temple Mount precinct wall. The earlier road may have gone out of use following the Great Revolt, as is seen by the massive amounts of debris from the Temple
Fig. 9. View, looking east, of a street segment in Ha-Gai Street, south of the Old City wall (no. 13).
Mount precinct walls, which covered it (Ben-Dov 1982: 231). Remains of the Ro-man-Byzantine Cardo, which descended gently southward in accordance with the topography, were discovered in seven segments. They are described below from south to north:
13. Excavations undertaken by M. Ben-Dov in 1973-77 west of the Dung Gate, south of the Old City wall (figs. 9, 1.13), exposed part of a paved street measuring approximately 12 m x 100 m (1982: 226-32). Ben-Dov argues that the paving stones “were taken from a Second Temple-period street and placed at this spot in secondary use” (1982: 226). They were installed directly over bedrock that had been leveled for this purpose. They are not uniformly sized—some are very large and others are medium-sized—and were laid perpendicularly to the street axis, similar to other streets in Byzantine-period Jerusalem. According to Ben-Dov, the pottery found underneath the paving stones dates to the Byzantine period (1982: 229; 1987: 115-19). This street segment is open to visitors.
14. Part of a paved street located west of the Dung Gate, on the inside of the Old City wall, was exposed during excavations led by C. N. Johns in the 1940s (fig. 1.14; Johns 1948). In the 1970s, Ben-Dov reexposed this same segment. The majority of the area was excavated under R. Reich and Y. Billig in 1994-96 and by Reich and Y. Baruch in the late 1990s (2000: 128-40; 2004: 147-60). Here, another street segment was discovered, ascending gradually from south to north. A deep, rock-hewn drainage channel was found underneath. Its paving stones, most of which are in secondary use and are not uniformly sized, were laid directly over bedrock, which had been leveled for this purpose (fig. 10). The slabs were laid diagonally
Fig. 10. View, looking south, of a street segment in Ha-Gai Street, north of the Old City wall (no. 14).
To the street axis (less than 45 degrees), some in a rather careless fashion (Baruch and Reich 2004: 152, fig. 6). Today, this ancient street is incorporated in a modern pathway located in the Davidson Center archaeological park.
Fig. 11. View, looking south, of a street segment near the Third Station on the Via Dolorosa (no. 19).
15. In 1996, a small part of a paved street was discovered at the western end of the Western Wall plaza, some 90 m from the Wall itself, along the line of the presumed route of Ha-Gai Street (fig. 1.15; Baruch and Reich 2004: 154). Excavations led by S. Weksler-Bdolah currently underway in the area have exposed additional, ca. 45-m-long and 11-m-wide remains of the street. The street was paved in a straight, north-northwest-south-southeast direction, sloping gently along a course parallel to the Western Wall. On either side of the street was a sidewalk, and beyond the western sidewalk was a row of shops, hewn in the bedrock cliff. The overall width of the street and the sidewalks, including the stylobate walls, reached ca. 23.5 m (Weksler-Bdolah et al. 2011).
16. Excavation of the Ohel Yitzhak Synagogue, situated on Ha-Gai Street northwest of Wilson's Arch, under H. H. Barbe and T. Deadle in the early 20th century revealed part of a paved street measuring 3-3.5 m x 14 m (fig. 1.16; Barbe and Deadle 2006: 23*). The paving stones were laid diagonally to the street axis; some display grooves intended to prevent slipping. The varying sizes of the slabs (the largest
Fig. 12. View, looking south, of the Lions Gate (no. 20).
Measures 1 m x 1.6 m), along with the varying directions of the grooves, are the result of repairs to the street and of secondary use of the paving stones themselves, which may have been taken from an earlier floor or street. Pottery found in the sealed loci underneath the stones dates mainly to the late Second Temple period, but Byzantine-period types were also found—subsequently dating the street (Barbe and Deadle 2006: 24*).
17. During the 1930s, three trial excavations were carried out in the center of Ha-Gai Street, exposing two levels of a paved street (fig. 1.17). The first excavation was led by Johns approximately 25 m south of the Cotton Market (1932: 97-100). Two other excavations were led by R. W. Hamilton: the first some 20 m south of Johns' excavation (Hamilton 1932: 105-10) and the second about 85 m south of the first, in the area of today's covered passageway between Ha-Gai Street and the western part of the Western Wall plaza (1933: 34-40).
The upper level is paved with slabs of local mizzi hilu laid diagonally to the street axis. The largest slabs measure approximately 1 m x 1 m and are 0.3 m thick. A well-built, vault-covered drainage channel was discovered underneath the first level,
Fig. 13. View, looking south, of the Street of the Christians (no. 22).
Together with an additional street level. The latter was paved with stones similar to those of the upper level (Johns 1932: 98). Both Johns and Hamilton dated the upper level to the reign of Constantine or Eudocia (4th or 5th century c. e.) and the lower level to the Second Temple period (Hamilton 1933: 39).
18. Part of a street at a depth of 4 m below the modern street level was found in 1977 during a trial excavation carried out by O. Hess and E. Eisenberg in HaGai Street, in the area between the Street of the Chain and the Cotton Market (fig. 1.18). Its large stone slabs were laid diagonally to the street axis (Hess and Eisenberg 1977: 48). Pottery found in the fills above the ancient street date from the Byzantine period to the present day, whereas the pottery from underneath the street dates to the Late Roman period.
19. In 1979-80, M. Magen exposed several segments of a street paved with large stone slabs, some pitted and worn, adjacent to the Third Station of the Via Dolorosa (figs. 11, 1.19). Discussion of the pottery and stratigraphy was undertaken by A. Kloner and R. Bar-Nathan (2007: 193-205). The paving stones that were removed in order to examine the fills underneath were replaced in the modern street level.
Lions Gate Street
20. Part of a street at a depth of 3 m below the modern street level was exposed during excavation of Lions Gate Street, between the Ecce Homo Arch to the west and Lions Gate to the east (fig. 1.20, unpublished). The street was paved with large (1 m X 2 m), thick slabs whose upper face was flattened, similar to those of the Church of St. Anne and the Lithostrotos, dated to the time of Aelia Capitolina (Tsaf-rir 1999a: 120, 138, fig. 13). The paving stones that were removed were replaced at the modern street level (fig. 12).
Street of the Chain
21. Excavations during the 1990s exposed a number of street segments in the eastern end of the Street of the Chain and in the plaza across from the Gate of the Chain. The Decumanus passed through this route during the Roman and Byzantine periods (fig. 1.21).
1. At the intersection of the alley that ascends from el-Wad Street (Ha-Gai Street) and the Street of the Chain (Abu Riya 1991: 134-35).
2. On the western side of the plaza of the Gate of the Chain, adjacent to Sabil Suleiman (Gershuny 1991: 135-36).
3. From the corners of Ha-Gai Street and the Street of the Chain to the plaza of the Gate of the Chain (Kogan-Zehavi 1997a: 104).
4. In the area bounded on the west by Sabil Suleiman, on the south by Madrasat al-Tankiziya, and on the north by the al-Baladiya building (Kogan-Zehavi 1997b: 104-6).
The street was paved with large stone slabs measuring up to 1.2 m x 2 m and 0.3-0.4 m thick and was oriented east-west. Two, displaying grooves oriented north-south, intended to prevent slipping, were found in the street's northern portion. While L. Gershuny believes that the street dates to the Second Temple period, R. Abu Riya and E. Kogan-Zehavi argue that it was first paved in the 2nd century c. e., during the time of Aelia Capitolina, and repaired in the Byzantine or Early Islamic period. Today, several in situ paving stones may be seen incorporated into the Gate of the Chain plaza.
Street of the Christians
22. A salvage excavation undertaken in 1977 by S. Margalit in the Street of the Christians revealed paving stones in secondary use approximately 0.6 m below the modern street level (fig. 1.22; 1977: 32; Chen, Margalit, and Solar 1979: 243-44). The slabs measure about 1 m x 2 m and are 0.5 m thick. The fills underneath the slabs yielded Late Roman and Early Byzantine pottery, as well as a coin from the early 5th century c. e. The paving stones that were removed were replaced in the modern street level (fig. 13).
Discussion
The streets discussed above may be divided into three main types and three time-frames:
1. Streets paved with large, thick slabs, some in secondary use, dated to the Late Roman and Early Byzantine periods. They were found in Ha-Gai Street (nos. 13-19), Lions Gate Street (20), Street of the Chain (21), and the Street of the Christians (22).
2. Streets paved with thinner and smaller slabs than those of Category 1. The street measures 5.4 m in width, and the slabs were not laid in a uniform orientation but in accord with the topography. I believe that the similarity between the streets' appearance, construction style, and materials, as well as their dating to the Late Roman and Byzantine periods, points to their part in the building campaign that expanded the city southward in the 4th and 5th centuries. This street-type was found mainly on Mt. Zion (nos. 1-7) and in the southern Tyropoeon Valley (8).
3. Streets paved with slabs similar to those of Category 2, during the height of the city's expansion under the emperor Justinian in the 6th century.
This street-type is found in the southern part of the Cardo (no. 11) and the Hurva Synagogue (12)—both following a fixed orientation and not topography—and to the east of the Zion Gate, adjacent to the Mamluk city wall (10).
Examples of paving stones in secondary use are seen in the central and southern parts of Ha-Gai Street. Their non-uniform size and orientation to the street axis indicate that they were installed during the Byzantine period (Hamilton 1933: 39; Ben-Dov 1982: 229; Baruch and Reich 2004: 157-58; Barbe and Deadle 2006: 23*).
Roman-period colonnaded streets in Palestine—such as at Sepphoris (Weiss 2006: 23), Gadara (Weber 2002: 148-51, pl. 14), Gerasa (Parapetti 1983-84: 44-45), and other places (Segal 1995: 16-17)—feature large, thick paving stones of high quality that have remained virtually unbroken and unworn over their six centuries or more of use. The paving stones at these sites were laid diagonally to the street axis. It is thus surprising that so many repairs were undertaken specifically in Jeru-salem—and during the course of a relatively short time period (Baruch and Reich 2004: 151, 157-58). Moreover, the orientation of the paving stones in Jerusalem indicates that these were not typical Roman streets: while the paving stones in the above-mentioned sites were laid at a 45-degree angle, those in the southern part of the secondary Cardo were laid either perpendicularly or in no fixed orientation. One significant factor that helps date the southern part of the Cardo is the Byzantine-period pottery found in the fills underneath the paving stones (Ben-Dov 1982: 229; Barbe and Deadle 2006: 24*). Whether there was a Roman-period street that connected the area south of the Temple Mount to the northern part of the city and that passed through the southern part of Ha-Gai Street (Eliav 1999: 101-17), from where the paving stones themselves came, and why they were dismantled, are questions that have no definitive answers.
Apart from the construction of churches and monasteries, the most prominent urban process of Byzantine-period Jerusalem was the paving of streets, especially in the southern part of the city. The construction—according to Weksler-Bdolah, in the early 5 th century (2003: 112-13)—of the new city wall that also encompassed Mt. Zion required the builders to pave a new road system that would lead from the city center to Mt. Zion and the City of David, as well as through the new gates of the southern city wall. This date is accepted also for the paving of the streets on Mt. Zion.
This proposal is supported by Street 2, which ascends from Gate N in the southwestern part of Mt. Zion, turns to the northeast and, after a few dozen meters, turns north. Were we to accept Germer-Durand's reconstruction, the road would take on a different significance. The street is oriented north-south, with a slight northeastern deviation. According to the plan, if it were to progress northward, the street would cross the Old City wall seen today at a point some 120 m east of the Zion Gate. Were we to follow the presumed route of the western Cardo southward, the two streets would eventually merge into one (Tsafrir 1975: 260; Broshi 1977; 234). Furthermore, Street 2c is supposedly also part of this street. Had it continued southward, it would have intersected, or possibly merged, with the street exposed by Bliss and Dickie between Point S and Gate N (Streets 2a and 2b). In fact, the latter may well be part of Street 2c after it had deviated from its clear southern course to the southeast (Tsafrir 1975; 260). I propose that the street was paved during the 5th century, as is the case for the other streets on Mt. Zion, and continued northward along the route of the southern part of the Cardo, following the area's topography, until it reached the Roman-period Cardo in the northern part of the city, in the area of the Transverse Valley. With the construction of the Nea Church in the sixth century, the street was dismantled and the southern extension of the Cardo—a wide colonnaded thoroughfare—was paved in its place, only at a lower level (Tsafrir 2005: 20-23).
The street in the Hurva Synagogue (no. 12) is another example of a Justinian-period street whose level was lowered. This was a street that branched out from the Cardo and ascended eastward to the area of the synagogue, in the center of today's Jewish Quarter. Its paving stones are similar to those of the Cardo, located several meters away. An examination of each street's height has revealed an interesting detail. The bedrock in the western side of the Hurva excavation area is some 3.5 m higher than that of the Cardo, leading to the conclusion that, along the Cardo's route in this area, bedrock was lowered from both sides and not just from the west, as had been previously believed.
Over the years, the topic of the urban layout of Late Roman - and Byzantine-period Jerusalem has generated much debate. One can only hope that further excavations will take place—such as the one currently underway along Ha-Gai Street—and thus help to resolve the many unanswered questions.
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