Tower of David Museum (MMD)

• Tower of David Archive

The Tower of David Museum of the History of Jerusalem is located in the medieval citadel known as the Tower of David, near the Jaffa Gate, the historic entrance to the Old City.

The Tower of David Museum of the History of Jerusalem opened to the public in April 1989. Its establishment was initiated and promoted by then mayor, the late Mr. Teddy Kollek, who sought to revive a tradition dating back to the British Mandate when the site served as a cultural center housing temporary exhibitions (1921-1931) and cultural events.

The archive was born as a result of donations and the assembly of material for exhibitions. The material is digitised and saved in a repository.

The exhibition about medicine and illness in Jerusalem was curated by Dr. Nirit Shalev Kalifa. It uses a wealth of archival material from places that are not officially classifies as archives. This is very important fact for anyone interested in the history of Jerusalem and its preservation to bear in mind – that many of the most important archives are not classified as such.
Hospitals’ records:
Schaare Zedek zu Jerusalem: hospital books – registry of patients in German. Lists of dead of typhus in 1916 (the hospitals’ archive). The hospital was opened in 28/01/1902. The hospital’s books include very specific details about the patient (incl. communal affiliation), illness, instruction of care and food. Many folders and cases.
St John’s Eye hospital keeps its historical records in London. The exhibition proves that it has very valuable material, including letters, photos and general records.
Not included in the exhibition: The Italian hospital, Augusta Victoria, St. Louis: the French hospital etc.
Private collectors – Zalman Grinberg has Governmental reports of 1916 – reports on death during the plague.
Posters and pashkvil collection of the ultraorthodox community. Collected by Harvard University and also the National Library of Israel (many were digitised)
Service des épidémies : Quds sanjar health centre (Arabic)
TOD’s photo archive:
The archive of photos is tiny. It has two collections:
Glass plates from the Russian Compound from the time of the construction of the place in the 1860s. between 100 and 200 glass plates. All scanned and available on the local computers.
Soldier Rush Albums – photos taken and annotated by a wounded British soldier named Sydney Leonard George Rush from 1942-1944.

Sunday-Thursday 08:00-16:00

An appointment is required

Entry prepared on November 2018.

https://www.tod.org.il/en/museum/about-the-museum/
Jerusalem historical libraries and archives revisited, Revised report prepared for Open Jerusalem, October 2014, Merav Mack

Author: Open Jerusalem http://www.openjerusalem.org/