Into the Tunnel

The descent into ancient Jerusalem’s underground waterworks begins with this flight of iron steps (above), built over the ancient stone steps when the tunnel was recently opened to the public. The stairs lead to a gently inclined tunnel (below). The distant figure in the lower photo is standing at a bend in this tunnel, which curves sharply.

Just around a bend in the horizontal tunnel, a tourist peers down Warren’s Shaft (next photo), which is a natural sinkhole. At bottom, the late archaeologist Yigal Shiloh uses a rope ladder to climb up the 37-foot shaft, demonstrating how, according to some scholars, David’s general Joab may have entered the city through its water system.