The Zion Gate

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Zion Gate

The Zion Gate (Hebrew: שער ציון‎, Shaar Zion) is one of eight gates built into the walls of the Old City of Jerusalem. It was built for Suleiman the Magnificent in 1540.

Located in the south of the Old City and facing towards Mount Zion and Hebron, it leads to the Armenian and Jewish Quarters. Zion Gate is also known as David's Gate (Arabic: Bab el-Daoud; Hebrew: Shaar David), because Mount Zion is believed by some to be the burial place of King David.

In 1948, during the Israeli War of Independence, the Palmach unsuccessfully battled for control of the Jewish Quarter at the entrance of the Zion gate, this left the stones surrounding the gate pockmarked by weapons fire and riddled with bullet holes which can still be seen today. This same gate was used by the Israel Defense Forces during the Six-Day War in 1967 to enter and capture the Old City. Both pedestrians and vehicles presently use the gate, though navigation is made awkward by a very narrow L-shaped turn inside the gate.

In reggae music, the late Joseph Hill bears the honorific 'Keeper of Zion Gate' in recognition of his status as one of the genre's premier voices and advocates of Rastafarianism.