Jerusalem light show offers a modern look at ancient history
The Tower of David isn't Jerusalem's most celebrated, sacred or coveted site, but perhaps no place better illustrates the city's contentious history: Over the millennia, myriad conquerors have used it as a fortress, military barracks and cannon emplacement.
These days, the Tower serves a more benign purpose. Tucked inside the walls of the picturesque Old City, the compound is now a museum that welcomes tens of thousands of visitors each year.
Though overshadowed by its world-famous neighbors — the Western Wall, Dome of the Rock and Church of the Holy Sepulcher — the sprawling complex is worth a visit for the perfect snapshot it provides of the city's past....
The "Night Spectacular" has no narration and is not meant to be a comprehensive history lesson. Instead, viewers are treated to a colorful series of moving images that turn the massive walls, arches, towers, turrets and archaeological ruins into lifelike depictions of events that took place over the millennia, often just steps away.
The show opens with a massive silhouette of the Biblical King David strumming on a harp. There are scenes of King Solomon's Temple and its destruction, early Christian monks, the Prophet Muhammad's night journey to heaven, a mystic event recounted in the Quran. At one point, Roman soldiers march through the ruins of the city, their footsteps echoing like thunder, followed by Crusader conquerors and later, by a 30-yard image of the Ottoman ruler Suleiman the Magnificent.
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These days, the Tower serves a more benign purpose. Tucked inside the walls of the picturesque Old City, the compound is now a museum that welcomes tens of thousands of visitors each year.
Though overshadowed by its world-famous neighbors — the Western Wall, Dome of the Rock and Church of the Holy Sepulcher — the sprawling complex is worth a visit for the perfect snapshot it provides of the city's past....
The "Night Spectacular" has no narration and is not meant to be a comprehensive history lesson. Instead, viewers are treated to a colorful series of moving images that turn the massive walls, arches, towers, turrets and archaeological ruins into lifelike depictions of events that took place over the millennia, often just steps away.
The show opens with a massive silhouette of the Biblical King David strumming on a harp. There are scenes of King Solomon's Temple and its destruction, early Christian monks, the Prophet Muhammad's night journey to heaven, a mystic event recounted in the Quran. At one point, Roman soldiers march through the ruins of the city, their footsteps echoing like thunder, followed by Crusader conquerors and later, by a 30-yard image of the Ottoman ruler Suleiman the Magnificent.