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| Location: | Akko or Acre. About 40 minutes bus ride from Haifa. Southwestern part of the Old City, below Pisan quarter. Port side entrance on Haganah Street, near the Uri Buri restaurant. |
| Open: | All year Sun-Thu 8:30-17, Fri, Hol 8:30-14. [2002] |
| Fee: |
Adults NIS 10, Children (6-18) NIS 7, Seniors NIS 7. Groups (10+): Adults NIS 7, Children NIS 7. [2002] |
| Classification: | |
| Light: | |
| Dimension: | L=350m. |
| Guided tours: | |
| Bibliography: | |
| Address: | Old Acre Visitors Center, Enchanted Garden, Acre, Tel: 1-700-70-80-20, Fax: +972-4-9813651. |
| Last update: | $Date: 2008/10/09 18:32:22 $ |
| 12th cty | members of the Templar Order began building their quarter. | |
| 1994 | Templars' Tunnel discovered. | |
| SEP-1999 | Templars' Tunnel opened to the public. |
The Templars Tunnel was built by crusaders, the Templars Knights, also known as the Poor Knights of Christ and of the Temple of Solomon. This order was established in Jerusalem during the Crusade era, specifically to ensure the pilgrims protection.
During the second half of the 12th century they built their quarter in the southwestern part of Akko, protected by nearly 10m thick walls and massive towers. A tunnel led eastward to the city port. The lower part of the tunnel was carved from natural stone and its upper part was built from hewn stones covered by a semi-barreled dome.
The remains of the first Templars fortress are today covered by the sea. The tunnel is located under Pisan quarter, but it was filled with debris for centuries, until it was rediscovered in 1994. Today, with changed sea level and geography, the tunnel is below ground water. To maintain a fixed water level, a special water pumping system had to be installed. A wooden walkway was constructed above the water so that when visitors walk they can see the water on both sides. The water is part of the ground water body, not salt water from the nearby Mediterranean Sea as one might expect.
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