Four stars mainly because those not interested in history and archeology might not find this museum to be as interesting as others. We found it to be great. It's free and in east Jerusalem. It's laid out in a pattern that follows the centuries and the explanations are good enough.
Rockefeller Archaeological Museum
A magnificent building housing an equally magnificent collection of antiquities unearthed in the Holy Land during the British Mandate period, the Rockefeller Archaeological Museum is a testament to the wealth of civilizations that played parts in the history – and prehistory – of the land. The museum was established by James Henry Breasted, the founder and director of the University of Chicago’s Oriental Institute, who, during a trip to Palestine in 1925, was appalled to discover that Jerusalem had no proper archaeological museum. Breasted enlisted the assistance of American philanthropist John D. Rockefeller, Jr., who donated 2 million US$ to the project.
The site chosen for the building was just to the northeast of the Old City on Sultan Suliman Street. When it was opened in 1938, the museum was officially called the Palestine Archaeological Museum, but even then was widely known as the Rockefeller Museum.
During the 1967 Six-Day War, Israeli soldiers captured the distinct hexagonal building and used its towers as lookouts. Since Israel consolidated its control of east Jerusalem, the museum has been jointly managed by the Israel Museum and the Israel Antiquities Authority, which also keeps its main offices in the building. Like the exhibitions at the Bible Lands Museum, the Rockefeller Museum’s many important artifacts are displayed chronologically – the oldest dates back one million years.
Notable among these are original 8th-century wooden panels from the Al-Aqsa Mosque and 12th-century marble lintels from the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, as well as findings from the Lachish, Ashkelon and Megiddo cities.
TripAdvisor Reviews
Based on 107 traveler reviews“back to the mandate”
I had read an excellent book by Adina Hoffman, about Austen St Barbe Harrison, the architect of the Rockefeller. There is a bus (no 1) almost to the door and then you climb the path to the amazing building. Looks like a cross between Bauhaus and Byzantine from the outside. The signs...
MoreI had read an excellent book by Adina Hoffman, about Austen St Barbe Harrison, the architect of the Rockefeller. There is a bus (no 1) almost to the door and then you climb the path to the amazing building. Looks like a cross between Bauhaus and Byzantine from the outside. The signs carved in the walls in Hebrew, English and Arabic were done by the famous font-maker Eric Gill. Inside we were almost the only visitors to enjoy the dusty collections from excavations in Israel/Palestine, including carved wooden beams from Al Aqsa and wonderful stuccoes from Hisham's palace - look out for the row of pigeons - someone had a sense of humour! The library, soon sadly to be moved to the Dept of Antiquities new building, has huge leather covered tomes with the Rockefeller's own lovely bookplates, and feels for all the world like an Oxford college library. But the best part is Harrison's courtyard, built around a fountain and pools of water, fragrant with lavender, with wonderful Armenian tiles reminiscent of Granada, but surrounded by carved Roman remains. The Dept of Antiquities canteen outside was happy to serve us with simple but fresh institutional food - all the workers are Arab, but it has a kosher certificate. And we got on the no 1 bus outside, which goes all the way round the walls of the Old City, past the Mt of Olives, Gethsemane, etc visiting the Western Wall and the Jewish Quarter. Very good value for the price of a bus ticket. The museum is even better value - it is free.
Less“WOW”
It's our free day and after seeing the Biblical museum, we got interested in this one as it is only walking distance from where we were staying at Ecce Homo guest house. Outside, it did not seem big but inside, it was a four wing collections of archeological artifacts. Having seen some of the...
MoreIt's our free day and after seeing the Biblical museum, we got interested in this one as it is only walking distance from where we were staying at Ecce Homo guest house. Outside, it did not seem big but inside, it was a four wing collections of archeological artifacts. Having seen some of the digs in Jericho and in Jerusalem and also Sepphoris, this museum speaks a lot about time, culture and existence farther than the mind can imagine. Outside the building , it says, Palestine museum of antiquities, and inside, Israel museum of antiquities . It served both of them as to me they are one. A good place to learn and think....go for it, it's also free!
Less“History and Archeology galore in an interesting building”
