Old Jaffa Museum of Antiquities

You will find the Jaffa Museum, also known as the Old Jaffa Museum of Antiquities, on the Mifrats Shlomo promenade. Among the exhibits you can admire in this museum are art and archaeological artifacts. The museum exhibits contemporary artworks in temporary exhibitions.

The museum may not be too big, but it has an impressive effect. This is mainly because it exhibits not only contemporary art, but also ancient art.

Jaffa has been in the hands of many rulers, notably the Canaanites, Egyptians, Phoenicians, Greeks, Romans, Ottomans, and British. All of these have left their mark on Jaffa in their own way. The museum presents the history of this Israeli city thanks to archaeological objects and artifacts left by these rulers.

The building of the Jaffa Museum

You will find the Jaffa Museum in a building that was built under the rule of the Ottomans on the ruins of a Crusader fortress dating back to the 11th century. The Ottomans used it not only as an administrative building for Jaffa, but also as a governor’s residence for Mohammed Agha (Abu Nabbut). In addition, this building housed a post office and a prison cell during the Ottoman rule.

In the 18th century, the Ottoman Empire authorities moved to Saraya House, a building in Clock Tower Square. This was bought in 1733 by a well-known Christian family (Demianis) and converted into a soap factory.

During the Israeli War of Independence in 1948, this building (Assarayah al Atiqa) was abandoned and left to decay. It has since been completely restored and is now home to the Jaffa Museum. In addition to this museum, it also houses an Arab-Hebrew theater as well as an area which has not been used to date.

Do you plan to explore the Jaffa Museum on your own? Then you better call in advance. Because the museum is often closed for events or certain groups. Otherwise, we recommend you to join the Tel Aviv and Old Jaffa Private Tour to visit this awesome museum.