Rockefeller Museum, Archaeological museum in Bab az-Zahira, Jerusalem, Israel.
The Rockefeller Museum is an archaeological museum in Bab az-Zahira, Jerusalem, housing extensive collections of artifacts discovered during regional excavations. The pieces are displayed chronologically in galleries arranged around a central courtyard.
The museum was funded by philanthropist John D. Rockefeller Jr. through a major donation and opened to the public in 1938. This made it one of the first modern institutions in Jerusalem dedicated to systematically collecting and displaying archaeological discoveries.
The name honours John D. Rockefeller Jr., whose 1927 gift of two million dollars funded the building and an endowment. British sculptor Eric Gill carved the stone signage in English, Hebrew and Arabic in 1934; the Hebrew lettering drew on scripts from Second Temple-era finds such as the Uzziah tablet. Gill also carved a gargoyle fountain in the inner courtyard.
The museum stands just outside the Old City walls beside Herod's Gate (Bab az-Zahira), on Sultan Suleiman Street, a short walk from the Damascus Gate. The entrance faces a paved courtyard with a rectangular pool. Galleries are arranged around an inner courtyard, so allow time to circle back to the entrance hall.
The museum's hexagonal tower served as an Israeli paratroop lookout during the 1967 Six-Day War, when fierce fighting took place between Israeli and Jordanian forces. The building was captured by an Israeli paratroop brigade and later renamed the Rockefeller Museum.
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