The “Ecce Homo” Arch

The Ecce Homo Arch is an impressive arch made of stone, built above the Via Dolorosa Street. This ancient arch is known as Ecce Homo, which means in Latin “This is the man”. According to the New Testament (John 19-15), these were the words of the Roman governor Pontius Pilate, when he presented Jesus to the crowd, before sentencing him to death. In the past, many believed that this arch was once part of an ancient arch in the Antonia Fortress where Jesus was sentenced, and under this arch the Roman governor announced: “This is the man”, which is the reason for the arch’s name. But in fact, the arch was built after the times of Jesus. It was built during the 2^nd century AD, the era of the emperor Hadrian, and was part of the Roman victory gate, which was the entrance gate to the “Forum” (a public courtyard). It was a gate with 3 arches. In this street we can see the remnants of a big central arch. On both sides of the arch there were smaller arches. The small northern arch was integrated into the adjacent Convent of the Sisters of Zion, where the Struthion Pool and the courtyard of the Roman Forum were discovered. One can enter the entrance hall of the monastic church and view the northern arch free of charge.