- Address: Ha-Hagana St, Akko, Israel;
- Length: 350 m;
- Phone: +972 4-981-3651;
- Working hours: Sun-Thurs, Holidays and Saturdays: 09: 30-18: 30; Fri and the eve of the holidays: 09: 30-17: 30.
The Templar tunnel is a unique historical object, which has survived to our days in excellent condition. Tourists have the opportunity to feel the atmosphere of the sacrament, which has remained since the time of the Templars. They used it as the connecting link between the lock and the port.
Description
The city of Akko was built during the time of the Crusaders, and he is the only one among his "brothers" who could so well survive. It was founded in 1187 by knights who could not stand before Salah ad-Din army and were forced to leave Jerusalem .
In the west of Acre was a fortress, and in the south-western part of the city a residential quarter. The tunnel connected the fort with a seaport located in the east of Acre. This was the most important strategic object, therefore, to its construction and further protection came with all responsibility. The length of the tunnel is 350 m.
Tunnel architecture features
The Templar tunnel has a semicircular shape. Its lower part is hollowed out in the rock, and the upper one is made of hewn stones. Once in the tunnel, you can not immediately understand where the junction between the rock and the masonry is, as the masters worked hard to make the slots minimal. This reflected on the strength of the tunnel.
The lighting inside is dim, since the light comes from the lamps through the openings in the floor. The lamps themselves are in the water. Also there is electric lighting. Small lamps on the walls significantly improve visibility in the tunnel. The wooden floor, which makes the walk comfortable, was also built by our contemporaries. Templars did not worry about comfort, so they arranged a stone rough cut floor.
Interesting facts about the tunnel
It's amazing that such an important object was discovered by accident. In 1994, the woman whose house was above the tunnel complained about the sewers. In search of the cause of the problem, the repair team stumbled upon the wall of the tunnel. In five years the underground passage was opened for visitors. For this, a lot of work has been done, including the installation of pumps to control the groundwater level. But even such a large amount of work did not allow to study the structure completely.
In the middle the Tunnel of the Templars bifurcates. At this point the path ends. Scientists suggest that the tunnel is just the beginning of a whole network of underground tunnels located under the city. At the moment, the research and clearing of the museum is suspended, but archaeologists plan to unravel all the secrets of this mysterious place.
Where is?
Near the landmark is the road number 8510, which runs buses number 60, 271, 273, 371 and 471. The stop on which to exit is called Bustan HaGalil Intersection.