She spoke to In Jerusalem about the new tours which are now making the museum accessible.<\/p>\n
\u201cAt first, the tour guides came,\u201d she explained, since they were out of work due to the war. But as things opened up, the general public came for tours in both Hebrew and in English.<\/p>\n
Ramesses III status from Beit She\u2019an, 1185-1153 BCE. (credit: BEN BRESKY)<\/p>\n
She sees the building as an important milestone in the history of museology. In the 1930s, the British were in control of the Land of Israel, and their archaeologists had the novel idea of opening a museum in the country from where the artifacts came, as opposed to shipping them off to Europe for display. Thus the mosaics from ancient synagogues, oil lamps, jewelry, and other artifacts discovered in excavations in the Holy Land are still here.<\/p>\n
John D. Rockefeller Jr., son of the wealthy American businessman, donated $2 million for the construction.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s interesting to know that he never visited this building,\u201d Lieber said.<\/p>\n
The building was opened in 1938.<\/p>\n
Treasures from Israel\u2019s past<\/p>\n
Among the treasures in the museum is a life-size statue of Pharaoh Ramesses III found in Beit She\u2019an dating back to the 11th century BCE. Next to it is a large stone stela with Egyptian hieroglyphics telling of the defeat of the Canaanites by the Egyptians at the battle of Megiddo.<\/p>\n
Finds from Jewish history include a large mosaic from the synagogue at Yafia, near Nazareth, from the 4th century, and a stone lintel with a seven-branched menorah from the Eshtemoa synagogue near Hebron from the 3rd century, with a representation of the Temple Mount.<\/p>\n
Inspirational architecture<\/p>\n
The building itself is a work of art, designed by British architect Austen St. Barbe Harrison.<\/p>\n
Victory stele of Seti I from Beit She\u2019an, 1294 BCE. (credit: BEN BRESKY)<\/p>\n
\u201cI always thought that this building was one of the most beautiful buildings I ever saw,\u201d Lieber said. \u201cThe architect tried to combine many inspirations from different gorgeous cities and palaces all over the world,\u201d she explained.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor example, in the inner courtyard, there\u2019s a beautiful pool that he took as inspiration from the Alhambra Palace in Granada [Spain]. The Oriental arches are inspiration from what he learned about the Jewish Temple.\u201d<\/p>\n
An Amazon sarcophagus from the early Roman period sits in the sun near a Greek ossuary from 3rd-century Tel Turmus in the museum courtyard. Above, on the wall, is a carved depiction of Moses with the Ten Commandments as a stone lion watches over the pool. It could use a little cleaning, but considering the past few years, the public is lucky to see it at all.<\/p>\n
Mosaic from Yafia synagogue near Nazareth, 4th century. (credit: BEN BRESKY)<\/p>\n
Another gem is a room full of artifacts from Hisham\u2019s Palace in Jericho with statues dating back to the Umayyad era.<\/p>\n
This includes a statue from 9,000 years ago, which Lieber noted is one of the oldest examples of a depiction of a human face ever discovered. The inner dome of the palace, rescued after an earthquake, now sits on the floor. Its white stucco carved faces surrounded with intricately designed plants, which once stared down, now look up at the visitor.<\/p>\n
Today, the museum is in need of an upgrade. Visitors are advised to wear a coat because the high ceilings and stone walls can make it drafty in the winter, and there is no central heating or air conditioning.<\/p>\n
Relics from Hisham\u2019s Palace in Jericho, 8th century. (credit: BEN BRESKY)One circular room has a fireplace and Greek inscriptions. It\u2019s the only room in the building with an air conditioner and was used by the Israel Antiquities Authority when it used to meet there.Even the letters are art<\/p>\n
In addition to the building\u2019s structure, the lettering inside the museum is also a work of art.<\/p>\n
Lieber is a graduate of the Bezalel Academy of Arts and Design<\/a>, where she studied industrial design with the intent of designing museum exhibitions. She later shifted to being a curator.<\/p>\n As part of her studies, Bezalel took its students to the Rockefeller. \u201cI learned that the Hebrew letters written on the wall in the Rockefeller Museum are a very unique type of Hebrew letters that you cannot see anywhere else,\u201d she explained. \u201cSo, from many aspects \u2013 architectural, design, and archaeology \u2013 it\u2019s one of the jewels of Jerusalem that we must preserve for the next generations.\u201d<\/p>\n Caroline Shapiro, director of external affairs at the Tower of David Museum, commented on the preparations for the Rockefeller tours.<\/p>\n \u201cIt was no easy feat, as the team of guides needed to have extensive training and knowledge to be able to [discuss] the treasures of the Rockefeller,\u201d she said.<\/p>\nLintel from Torah ark of Nabratein (Navoraya) synagogue, near Safed, 3rd century. (credit: BEN BRESKY)<\/p>\n