Beit David

{{Short description|Fourth Jewish neighborhood outside the walls of Jerusalem}}

{{Infobox settlement

| name = Beit David

| native_name = בית דוד

| native_name_lang = he

| settlement_type = Neighborhood

| image_skyline = Beit david 04.jpg

| imagesize =

| image_alt =

| image_caption =

| pushpin_map =

| pushpin_label_position =

| pushpin_map_alt =

| pushpin_map_caption = Location in Jerusalem

| coordinates = {{Coord|31|46|59.08|N|35|13|11.35|E|display=title|type:landmark}}

| subdivision_type = Country

| subdivision_name = {{flag|Israel}}

| subdivision_type1 = City

| subdivision_name1 = West Jerusalem

| established_title = Established

| established_date = 1873

}}

Beit David was the fourth Jewish neighborhood outside the walls of Jerusalem. This courtyard neighborhood was established in 1873.Buzzy Gordon Frommer's Jerusalem Day by Day John Wiley & Sons, Oct 11, 2010 [https://books.google.com/books?id=0pBxMjxW9sMC&pg=PT50 Google Books]

History

Beit David was founded as an almshouse for Jews on a plot of land donated by a kollel.{{cite journal | title=Ashkenazi Jewish Almshouses in Jerusalem | author=Zvi Shilony | journal=Journal of Cultural Geography | year=1993 | volume=14 | pages=35–48 | doi=10.1080/08873639309478379}} It was named for the philanthropist, David Reis. The name also alludes to the historical House of David and to the book known as Beit David, a treatise on Jewish law written by Joseph Ben David in the 18th century.Eisenberg, Ronald L. The Streets of Jerusalem: Who, What, Why. Jerusalem: Devora, 2006. {{ISBN|9781932687545}} [https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/84658033 WorldCat link] as given in [https://books.google.com/books?id=yqXXD_74yAEC&pg=PA49 Google Books] Because Beit David was far from the kollel's center in the Old City, it contained a synagogue and 10 apartments to ensure the existence of a minyan.

File:Beit_david_03.jpg

The residence of Abraham Isaac Kook, Israel's first Askenanzic chief rabbi was on the second floor of the building, added in 1922. The Rabbi Kook House is now a museum of the life of Rabbi Kook.[http://www.haaretz.com/news/features/peeking-through-the-highrises-famed-jerusalem-street-s-old-architectural-glories.premium-1.461294 Peeking through the highrises: famed Jerusalem street's old architectural glories], Haaretz The Museum of Psalms, located on the ground floor for many years, featured the paintings of Moshe Tzvi HaLevi Berger, a Kabbalist and painter. Berger was evicted in 2014 to make room for a yeshiva[http://www.museumofpsalms.com/ Museum of Psalms]

See also

References