Lion’s Gate

Lions Gate is the only open door on the east facade of the walls of the Old City of Jerusalem, at the Mount of Olives.

The name Lions Gate comes from the two pairs of felines that can be distinguished on both sides of the door (they are actually leopards, not lions). According to the legend, the name was given by Suleiman the Magnificent (builder of the walls of the Old City), who in a dream was threatened by his father Selim I to accelerate the construction of the wall; otherwise he would be thrown to the beasts.

It is also called St. Stephen’s Gate after the first Christian martyr. The martyr’s tomb was found near the door, in the valley of Jehoshaphat. Near the gate, outside the walls, it is the Orthodox Church of Saint Stephen.