Jerusalem
2 of the 7 encyclopedias on this shelf carry an entry for Jerusalem. Both are reproduced below, so you can see where they agree and where they differ.
Collier's New Encyclopedia (1921)
one of the one of the most ancie interesting cities in the world, in most ancient ities in the world, , until the World War, in the he World War, in province of Syria. It stands on of Syria. It stands elevated site ( about 2,500 feet above about 2,500 feet abc the sea) within the fork of two ravines, the Valley of Jehoshaphat on the E. and the Valley of Hinnom on the S. and W., while a third ravine or valley -the Tyropœon--partially traverses it from S. to N. On the E. side of this valley is Mount Moriah, now the Mohammedan quarter of the city, where anciently stood the palace and temple of Solomon. Immediately S. of this stood the mountain fortress of Zion, known as the City of David, and later as the Akra or Lower City. Of the three walls which Jerusalem latterly possessed, the first wall, that of David was for the defense of the Upper City (the traditional, but THE DAMASCUS GATE, JERUSALEM probably not the ancient Zion). The second wall took in a considerable area on the E. and N. E., while a new town or suburb, Bezetha, which grew up on the N. of this, was inclosed by a third wall, built by Agrippa I. The present limits are much the same as those indicated by the third wall, only that the old Lower City and the S. part of the old Upper City are unpopulated places outside the modern walls. Of the seven gates only five are now used. The interior of the city is much occupied by mosques, churches, and convents. In the N. W. quarter is the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, so called because alleged to contain under its roof the very grave in which the Saviour lay. This church, which was built by Helena, the mother of Constantine the Great, is remarkable for the richness of its decorations and the number of pilgrims by whom it is visited. A large area in the E. of the city is occupied by the inclosure known as El Haram-Esh-Sherif (The Noble Sanctuary). The most conspicuous building within it is the Mosque of Omar, called also Kubbet-es-Sakhrah (Dome of the Rock), a splendid structure of octagonal form which occupies the site of the Jewish Temple. Among the notable convents are the Latin convent, and the still more extensive Armenian convent capable of accommodating 1,000 pilgrims. The first railway to Jerusalem was opened in 1893. Pop. about 60,000. Jerusalem is not mentioned by name till about 1500 b. c., when it was in the hands of the Jebusites. The lower part was wrested from them by Joshua, but the upper part continued in their possession till the time of David, who took up his residence in the stronghold of Zion and made Jerusalem the capital of his kingdom. It reached the height of its glory under Solomon after whose time it declined. In 586 Nebuchadnezzar took and destroyed the city after a long siege, and carried off those of the inhabitants whom the sword had spared as captives to Babylon. On the return from the captivity the temple was rebuilt, 515 B. C. The walls were not rebuilt till the time of Ezra and Nehemiah, 455 b. c. The city had regained a considerable degree of prosperity, when it was sacked and its walls leveled by Antiochus of Syria in 168. Under the Maccabees fostering care Jerusalem, in common with Judea, bestantine the came once more independent, 165 b. c. It perity, next became tributary to Rome, and had with utary to Christian been greatly beautified and enriched atifled and nated in 636 a fine new temple by Herod when the ole by He hammedans, Saviour appeared. In A. D. 66 Jerusalem Omar. In was taken by a party of Jews who had party of salem by revolted against Rome. Titus, the son Rome. MOHAMMEDAN. CEMETERY 000088 00000 00000 JEREMIAH'S GROTTO HERODS GATE Π JEWISH ANOTOS COLONY DAMASCUS GATE MOHAMMEDAN STREET QUARTER GREEK and GR FRANK QUARTER FR GATE OF 2 ABDUL HAMID DAMASCUS 1 JAFFA ROAD 4 3 TEMPLE 60 DAVID STREET JAFFA JAFFA JEWS STREET QUARTER 18 GATE JEWISH GATE CITADEL CITADEL ARMENIAN ROTHSCHILD HOSPITAL QUARTER 10 ZION ST 口の 0 0 JEWISH D COLONY ttt. t't't't HOUSE OF CALAPHAS 7 BIRKET- CHRISTIAN CH ES-SULTAN LTAN CEMETERY TOMB OF DAVID 1- 3 FIORE JEWISH MONTE FIORE 4 CEMETERY PICE HOSPICE 6 7 8 9 RAILROAD STATION CAILROAD ST 10 MODERN JERUSALEM of a Christian of the Emperor Vespasian, regained it or Vespasi ficulty in the year 70, after a terrible siege; 0, after a when it the temple was burned, and the city as burned ladin. In razed to the ground. In 131 Hadrian ground. hands of ordered the city to be rebuilt, but it conbeginning y to be reb of the tinued depressed till the of med till the of Turkey the 4th century, when, Rome having bey, when, tured by come Christian, Jerusalem shared in the 1, Jerusale Allenby benefit, and assumed the appearance of a sumed the PALESTINE. distinguished Christian city, under the Christian of Helena, mother of Conmother of Great. This period of proshis period of prolonged by a succession of termisuccessio emperors, was suddenly suddenly t , by the conquest of the Mothe cononest of the under the Arabian Caliph er the Arabian C 1099 the Crusaders took Jeru- The Crusaders took and made it the ca storm, and made it the capital STORK'S TOWER TOWER ST STEPHENS ST STEPHENS GATE GATE HARAMESH LEGOLDEN GATE GOLDEN GATE SHERIF TOMB OF TRESALOM ABSALOM 吉 7 TOMB OF TOMB OF ZECHARIA ZECHARIA ㅁ JEWISH EWISH CEMETERY !!!!! ETERY 1111 1111 DUNG GATE D 0 VILLAGE VILLAGE D DD OF OD OF 1 SILOAM SILOAM CHURCH OF SEPULCHRE OF SEPULCHRE 2 SERAI POOL OF HEZEKIAH HEZEKIAH MOSQUE OF OMAR OF OMAR MEH 5 MEHKEMEH WAILING PLACE 6 PLACE EL-AKSA MOSQUE EL - AKSA ROBINSONS ARCH SUN'S ARCH ARMENIAN MONASTERY MAN MONASTERY -JEWISH HOSPICE GERMAN - JEWISH HOSPICE monarchy, which with diferchy, which w maintained its existence till 1187, its existence ti was finally overthrown by Sally overthrown 1517 Jerusalem fell into the Terusalem fell i the Turks, and remained a part ts, and remained Ottoman empire, until the collapse mpire, until the in 1918. The city was cap- The city w British forces under Gen. forces unde in Dec., 1917. See ZIONISM; 1917. See Z
Aiton's Encyclopedia (1910)
the capital and chief city of Palestine. Its site is a quadrangular plateau half a mile square, surrounded on three sides by steep valleys, 300 to 400 feet deep--a sort of natural fortress. The ancient site is the same as the modern, save that debris has collected to a depth of from thirty to forty feet. During its eventful history the city has been surrounded by walls again and again. Fourteen centuries before Christ it is mentioned as a hill fort with a garrison. It was then the capital and citadel of the small kingdom of Jerusalem. At the time of the invasion of Canaan by the children of Israel it was a fortress of minor importance, and was left undisturbed until David captured it from the Jebusites and made it his capital. Even then it was but a small fortress. Solomon made it a city. He built the Temple and extended the walls to embrace more territory. Jerusalem was razed by Nebuchadnezzar in 586 B. C., and its inhabitants were carried away into captivity. The city was rebuilt and destroyed repeatedly during the centuries that followed. Under a native prince the temple was rebuilt, the walls were restored, business revived, trains of camels passed in and out through its gates, and Jerusalem again became the center of the Jewish world. It next passed under the dominion of Rome. The condition of the city in the time of Christ is more or less familiar to the New Testament student. Titus destroyed the city in 70 A. D., after one of the most barbarous and atrocious sieges recorded in history. Later it was held by Persian, Arab, Turk, and Crusader. The present city is that built by the Saracen known in history as Solyman the Magnificent. Modern excavations have resulted in identifying the chief features of the successive cities. Aside from the plan of the Temple, now fairly well made out, the most interesting discoveries are the various aqueducts, tunnels, and rock-cut cisterns on which the city depended for water. It is estimated that the reservoirs are capable of holding 10,000,000 gallons. The aqueduct of Pilate, which conducted water from the pool of Siloam seven miles distant, is still in use. The walls of modern Jerusalem are from twenty-five to fifty feet high. They inclose 210 acres. There are eight gates. The area within is occupied almost solidly by streets and flat-topped stone buildings. The monotony is broken by the domes of synagogues and the minarets of Moslem mosques. There are many monasteries, hostelries, hospitals, and bazaars. Americans maintain a school for oriental research. The "Holy City," for it is holy to Jew, Christian, and Moslem, may be reached by rail from its seaport, Jaffa, thirty-three miles distant on the Mediterranean. Here the railroad ends. Carrying is resumed by mule trains and lines of laden camels. Caravans wend to and fro in all directions. The city is, of course, under Turkish rule. The present population is about 70,000, two-thirds Jew. There are about 10,000 Mohammedans and as many Christians of various denominations. The business of the city is quite largely the reception and entertainment of travelers. The site of Solomon's Temple and the Sepulchre of Christ, Calvary, the Mount of Olives, the Pool of Siloam, and Bethesda are of perpetual interest. At Easter there is an unusual influx of visitors. The inhabitants carry on extensive trade in rosaries, and crosses of olive wood, and other trifles offered as mementos. During a summer day, the narrow streets are described as hot, stifling, noisy,--crowded with loaded camels and donkeys. There are long rows of small, dark shops. The owners squat in Turk fashion and offer their wares. At night the gates are closed; the hubbub ceases and gives way to a stillness as of the grave. The streets are not lighted, but in season the moon comes out and shines as it shines only in Judea. During the summer the elevated situation of the city and the prevalence of the sea breeze from the Mediterranean render life endurable. At this season the population betakes itself to the housetops to sleep. In winter there are occasional falls of snow, lasting for a few days at a time. A parching desert wind from the east renders Jerusalem a very undesirable place of residence in the month of May. See Jews ; Palestine ; Gethsemane ; Mount Of Olives 2026 Editor's Note: By way of comparison, Jerusalem today is home to about 950,000 people, up from the 70,000 this article reports. (Ed: BR 2026-07-05)