About the project
Herod’s Gate, also known as the Flowers Gate, is a northern entrance into the Old City, east of Damascus Gate. The gate’s name comes from Christian pilgrims in the Middle Ages who thought a nearby church was the palace of Herod Antipas, to whom Jesus was sent by Pontius Pilate. The present gate was opened in the wall in 1875. Above the gate is a guardroom and iron steps that lead to the Ramparts Walk atop the Old City walls. In 1986, the Jerusalem Foundation supported a project to restore the gate and to construct an entrance plaza that was previously a parking area. The new stone-paved entrance plaza, which was dedicated on the 20th anniversary of the city’s re-unification in 1987, creates an area for people to gather, rest and view the gate. The Foundation supported improvements to the area immediately inside the gate in 1999. Work included paving, repairs to steps and improvements to storefronts.
