It took us a while, but we finally found the entrance to Zedekiah's Cave/ Solomon's Quarries. It is on the north side of the old city, a few hundred feet east of the Damascus Gate. It was absolutely fascinating, monstrously huge and full of intriguing possibilities. This is what you see when you enter from the street.
If you click on the photo, it should enlarge so that you can read it. The legends concerning this cave are numerous. It is not known, as far as I could find out, the exact extent of the cave. The portion we were allowed to explore went many city blocks under the Old City.
Here you can see one of the massive stone pillars that was left to support the city, that rests over the top, while stone was excavated for the first temple and for other buildings in Jerusalem, at the time of King Solomon and later.
On our second visit this "room" was set up for a Masonic meeting, with a table that appeared to be straight out of one of Dickens novels.
One of the legends connected with these caves, is that the cave runs almost to the Jordan River Valley, about 15 miles eastward. The legend says King Zedekiah followed the cave from Jerusalem down to near Jericho, but the invading army anticipated his escape and caught him as he emerged in Jericho and that is when he witnessed the killing of all his sons (except the infant Mulek who was spirited away by his nurses and eventually ended up in the New World).
This is a continually running fountain, near the south end of what we were allowed to see... probably close to the north side of the temple mount, I would guesstimate. It is called Zedekiah's Tears. Another legend connected with this system of caves is that King Zedekiah hid out here, shedding many tears for the capture of his people. It is also believed that the prophet Jeremiah hid in these caves and was incarcerated in another portion.
One of the most intriguing rumors, is that the Ark of the Covenant, commissioned by Moses during the Exodus, and the implements of the ancient temple are buried somewhere in this system of caves. Legend says that King Josiah, the last righteous king of Judah was prompted to hide up the Ark before his death in a war against Egypt. There are those who believe that the Ark ended up under the crucifixion site. Giving credence to this idea is the Mosaic practice of the High Priest, each Passover, entering the Holy of Holies to sprinkle blood on the Mercy Seat. It would not surprise me one bit, that when the Ark of the Covenant is found, that the actual blood of Christ is on the Mercy Seat, as the Priests in token sprinkled it for generations before Christ's death by Crucifixion. Perhaps the earthquake after Christ's death opened up the path, that the blood could drip down onto the Ark, after the soldier pierced His side. Just a thought.....
