Israel 2006

Akko (Acre)

The Acco ramparts, built long after the Templars left. Probably in the days of the Ottoman Empire

Acco's seaside gate. Well designed, actually. You cannot get at the gate very easily with a ram, for example, and there is a perfect 'kill zone' protecting the gate area.

The seawall protecting the city from naval attacks

A closed section of the Templar castle, but I jammed the camera against an opening and did a time exposure.

A Templar grave marker.

The great hall of the Templar Knights

Part of the Templar fortress

Back to the Templar Knights and one of the reasons I came here. As stories and legends have it, when the Templars departed, several ships had pulled into the harbor and were loaded with all of the treasure that the Templars had accumulated. This was accomplished via these secret tunnels that connected the fortress to the harbor. The ships that were seen and reported, departed destination unknown. The top two images show the accessible tunnels with walkways installed for the tourists. The bottom picture shows one of the tunnels that are still in the excavation stage and you can see that it is flooded.