Past and Present

To understand today we should remember yesterday.

King George Avenue today is one of the main thoroughfares in the heart of downtown Jerusalem. At the end of the 19th century, wheat was growing where today macadam lies. What does King George have to do with Jerusalem? George was king in England when the Balfour Declaration was signed. Doesn't he deserve to have an avenue named after him ?

Apartment buildings of the 1930's, standing beside the modern Hamashbir Department Store, represent eclectic architecture along this busy street.

The pock-marks on the former City Hall are remaining remnants of the War of Independence in 1948. At this point the city was divided, and the calligraphic letters "BB" still on the window grating serve as a souvenir of the old Barclay's Bank and the days of the British Mandate. Teddy Kollak, legendary Mayor of Jerusalem, insisted that the New City Hall be built at the point where the city had been once divided, but now stands united.